The Bengals ended the first day of free agency the way they started and made sure they invested in new coordinator Al Golden’s revamped defense.

Published reports Monday night had them expecting to retain edge rusher Joseph Ossai on a one-year deal after the torrid close to his 2024 season.

Four of Ossai's career-high five sacks came in the Bengals' end-of-season five-game winning streak, and he had at least half a sack in six of the last seven games during a year he played a career-high 51% of the snaps.

Earlier in the day, they reportedly reached a two-year deal with another player from Ossai's 2021 draft class they view as an ascending defender when they got a $15 million agreement with starting Packers nose tackle TJ Slaton.

For good measure Monday, they also wrapped up the glue of their defensive interior for the past four seasons when tackle B.J. Hill reportedly agreed to a three-year, $33 million deal.

Not to mention a reported two-year, $5 million deal for Eagles backup Oren Burks as they began to beef up the linebackers room.

Ossai, a Trey Hendrickson protégé who finished second on the team to Hendrickson's NFL-leading 17.5 sacks, reportedly agreed to a $7 million deal for 2025.

Jerry Montgomery, Golden's new defensive line coach, has been anxious "to get his hands on," the club's young edge rushers they feel have plenty of untapped potential in guys like Ossai and 2023 first-round draft pick Myles Murphy. Ossai turns only 25 next month and has 9.5 sacks and 32 quarterback hits despite missing virtually his entire rookie year with injuries and playing only about 25% of the snaps in 2022 and 2023.

Montgomery developed Slaton into a productive nose tackle who started the last 34 games in Green Bay after the Packers took him in the fifth round in 2021.