The Indianapolis Colts have struggled with a lackluster secondary, and during free agency, general manager Chris Ballard finally did something, signing a pair of stars in Cam Bynum and Charvarius Ward to help transform the defense into a unit to be feared.
Much of the attention since then has been paid to Ward, but Bynum is a stand-out in his own right that deserves the hype, too. In the four years he spent with the Vikings, he racked up over 300 tackles, 28 pass breakups, and eight interceptions. There's going to be some high expectations on him, but Bynum seems to be ready for it. And he's looking towards a Colts legend for inspiration.
Is Cam Bynum the next Bob Sanders?
In an appearance on The Colts Show podcast, Bynum talked about how, despite growing up in California, he and his brother were always fans of the Colts. And Bob Sanders was a big part of that.
Sanders, nicknamed "The Hitman," was just 5'8" tall, but became notorious for how hard he hit people on the field. Unfortunately, he also dealt with some injuries that cut his career short far too early. But in the time he was able to play, there's no doubting just how good he was. Sanders was a Pro Bowler, a First-Team All-Pro, and, in 2007, named Defensive Player of the Year. And he made a big impact on Bynum.
"He used to just kill people. He was smaller. He was that guy that was always flying around, just hitting people no matter how big they were. He was just fearless out there. Another thing is he’d always hit people’s legs and make them flip. As a kid, that’s like a cartoon or a football movie. You’re watching The Little Giants, and you see all of the big hits and everything, and that’s what he made happen in real life."Cam Bynum
Sanders was the first Colt to be named Defensive Player of the Year, and just the fourth safety ever - so if Bynum was inspired by Sanders, he will certainly have some big shoes to fill. With Bynum working under Lou Anarumo as defensive coordinator, and alongside Nick Cross, could he manage to live up to his idol? Only time will tell, but Colts nation will certainly be rooting for him along the way.