The Bengals will line up with 11 against the Denver Broncos on Sept. 13, and his strong safety will be Williams.

The 6-foot, 225-pounder agreed to contract terms on Wednesday, May 6, two months after he received his release from Dallas. The move strengthens the Bengals' secondary, giving it more physicality.

"I believe Roy will bring veteran leadership and a headhunter's mentality to the team," agent Jordan Woy wrote in an E-mail.

Williams, who turns 29 on Aug. 14, is a six-time Pro Bowler. One of the NFL's most feared hitters, Williams became known for the "horse-collar" tackle, a technique banned by the league in 2005 and commonly referred to as "The Roy Williams Rule."

His career statistics: 506 tackles (414 solos), 38 pass deflections, 19 interceptions for 307 yards, nine forced fumbles, 6.5 sacks and three defensive TDs.

"We gave up an unbelievable amount of third-down touchdowns last year," Lewis said, "When you look back on our (4-11-1) season, if you could just cut those in half, what a difference you'd have."

Williams' job is to punish offensive skill players and help make the Bengals' 12th-ranked defense a top-10 unit as he reunites with Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer, who spent seven years (2000-06) as Dallas' coordinator.

While the Bengals welcome their enforcer, they say goodbye to left offensive tackle Levi Jones, whose contract was terminated.

Jones, the club's No. 1 draft pick (No. 10 overall) in 2002, started 89 of 94 career games, but battled knee injuries in recent years and became expendable when the Bengals drafted Andre Smith.

"He's going to stay in the Phoenix area, work out at Athletes' Performance (in Tempe) and wait for the best opportunity to present itself," agent Ken Zuckerman said. "He's going to be ready to roll. We just don't know what uniform he'll be wearing."