It doesn't appear too optimistic for Carson Palmer. After being limited all week, Palmer remained in the weight room while the team stretched on Friday. When he came onto the field, he was in pads, but wasn't throwing; he had ice wrapped around the elbow of his throwing arm.

At this point, it would appear more likely that Ryan Fitzpatrick starts against the Jets.

Also, Levi Jones was limited on Thursday and missed practices on Wednesday and Friday and Shayne Graham hopes that his sore groin won't cause any problems on Sunday.

UPDATE: Fitzpatrick will start Sunday's game against the Jets, says Marvin Lewis.

Lewis indicated Palmer's injury is not a season-ending condition, but the club wants to try getting him some rest so it doesn't become a week-to-week situation. Lewis didn't rule out Palmer as a backup for Sunday and wouldn't say if he will be the No. 2 or No. 3 quarterback.

It does Cedric Benson no good to worry about old teammate (and rival) Thomas Jones. However, Jones said of Benson: "He failed to realize that the guys ahead of him, we all had great careers. I don't think he realized the talent he had in front of him. I think that blocked him from learning from us. It prevented him from becoming a well-rounded back. I looked at him like a little kid."

This weekend, Benson might be splitting carries with, not one back but, two backs in Chris Perry and Kenny Watson. Says Benson, "I don't think you can really learn how to do that kind of thing. You learn how to accept it, as to how the offense is styled and how the coaches want to run it. You do your best to make it work."

Geoff Hobson talks about the high level of play by Leon Hall.

With fellow starting cornerback Johnathan Joseph on the shelf, Hall played big-time games against Plaxico Burress and Terrell Owens. Yeah, he let Owens get inside of him too easily on the 57-yard crossing route for a TD last Sunday, but the fault lay pretty much with the safety taking the wrong angle as stand-up guy Marvin White has attested.

When Burress and Owens combine for five catches, that's some pretty good play. I think they'd like to get the same kind of physicality, durability and consistency from Joseph. Joseph has great closing speed and superb coverage skills and has Pro Bowl tools.

Chick Ludwig predicts the Bengals win 24-20.

I wrote a preview for the New York Times (not yet published), and predicted a 27-24, Bengals win.

Dr. Z puts the Bengals 30th in his power rankings.

List of emerging players in the NFL.

Cincinnati: SS Chinedum Ndukwe. The winless Bengals have sorely lacked impact defensive plays but Ndukwe has provided a few of them. Starting the past four games in place of the injured Dexter Jackson (thumb), Ndukwe is atop the team's defensive rankings in sacks (one) and interceptions (one) to go along with 26 tackles.

Free agents: The good, the bad and Javon Walker. Bengals have two players listed, both as bad free agent signings.

Cincinnati TE Ben Utecht: I loved the guy in Indianapolis and thought he could be a big help to the Bengals. Apparently, so did the Bengals, who envisioned using him as a third wide receiver. Nice try. Utecht has five catches and hasn't been a factor in a disappointing passing game. I don't know what the problem is, but the Bengals must get it -- or Utecht -- straightened out. This guy should be more than a hood ornament.

Cincinnati DE Antwan Odom: This is another move I thought would pay off. Odom was one of the best-kept secrets in Tennessee and figured to make a lot of money on the open market. He did, pocketing $29.5 million in a five-year deal before going on extended vacation. Fourteen tackles and one sack is not what the club had in mind when it backed up the Brink's truck, but I'll cut him some slack: He didn't play in preseason because of a foot injury and had four tackles in his third start last week.

Practices

DNP - Did Not Practice
LP - Limited Participation in Practice
FP - Full Participation in Practice

On Thursday, the Bengals waived Ethan Kilmer from injury reserve. This goes back to the Marvin Lewis era draft. Of the 53 men selected through six NFL drafts:

• 11 are starters.
• 27 are no longer with the team.
• 3 on Injured Reserve.

In bold, are players that have started this season.

Oh dear Rudi Johnson, where are you? Sorry, feeling a bit nostalgic about the only season in my lifetime that I could watch the Bengals with a winning record, causally drinking a Budweiser (legally). So in 2007, Rudi Johnson had constant hamstring problems, with a dreadful rush-blocking offensive line, and finished the season with 497 yards rushing; averaging 2.9 yards-per-rush. He got stronger, more fit, more 2005-Rudi and the Bengals cut him to save $3.2 million; in which the Bengals have yet to distribute.

The plan was to implement Chris Perry as the team's feature back, use Kenny Watson at some point (though finding Watson is harder than infiltrating Area 51), and use DeDe Dorsey to back up both. Watson's been missing even when healthy and Dorsey is on Injured Reserve. The irony here is that Chris Perry has been performing worse than Rudi Johnson, averaging 2.8 yards-per-rush. Woefully worse is that Chris Perry is fumbling footballs, losing momentum and chances for us to win.

To say that Perry has been super-disappointing would be an understatement. To say that Perry is a starting feature back in this league, would be lying through my teeth. True, the offensive line truly has issues rush blocking. But to blame them, over Chris Perry, is a lazy argument. The offensive line struggles to block (boy, that's a nice way of saying it) and Perry can't break a tackle; not to mention fumblitis. Let's just say both are horrible, aye-eat?

So the Bengals signed Cedric Benson; primarily because the team has one healthy running back (which is ironic when that running back is Perry). Scouts, Inc. writes that Benson is similar to Perry:

Though Perry is still the starter, Benson will definitely play more of a role in the running game on Sunday against the New York Jets and looks like he's being groomed to take over as starter for the rest of the season. Both backs are similar physically, though Benson doesn't have Perry's power into the hole. And like Perry, Benson lacks top elusiveness and explosiveness through the hole. The main reason he washed out of Chicago is because he simply wasn't aggressive enough, especially for the bruising NFC North. Benson has yet to play up to his measurables, often falling down on first contact and failing to finish runs.

Joy.

I hate harping on this, but the Bengals are stuck with offensive linemen that simply need to go. Levi Jones is done; he takes shots into his knees before games that even has Joe Walter saying, "oh man, that's not good." Eric Ghiaciuc is the only offensive linemen that gets pancaked by defensive linemen and Andrew Whitworth (as much as I like the guy) isn't what you'd call a typical guard; he tends to be slow on the pull, and (at times) doesn't finish the block.

So Scouts, Inc. says that Benson is another Perry, with less power up the gut. Interestingly enough, during the game against the Cowboys, I thought Benson was much more physical than Perry, broke a few tackles and leaned forward for positive yards; which isn't consistent with judging Perry.

Game: Cincinnati Bengals (0-5) @ New York Jets (2-2)
Series Leader: Jets, 12-7
Streak: Jets have won five of the past six
Coaches vs. Opponent: Lewis: 1-1. Mangini: 0-1
Broadcast: CBS (1:00 PM ET): Dick Enberg, Randy Cross, Dan Fouts. SIRIUS: 153 (Cin.), 126 (NYJ). Direct TV: 706
SB Nation: Gang Green Nation
NFL.com: Game Center
Weather: Hi of 71, mostly sunny with light winds. [Weather.com]
Uniform: White
Television Coverage: Mostly regional. [the 506 TV distribution maps]
Site: We plan on being here.

BENGALS

• In two career games against the Jets, Carson Palmer has a 1-1 record. He's completed 32 of 48 passes for 474 yards passing with three touchdowns and two picks (102.3 passer rating).
• With ten carries, Cedric Benson is averaging 5.1 yards per rush (51 yards rushing).
• In the past three games against the Jets, T.J. Houshmandzadeh has 25 receptions for 271 yards and three touchdowns.
• In his past two games against the Jets, Chad Johnson has 201 yards receiving... looking for a reception in 98th straight game.
• In his last game against the Jets, Antwan Odom recorded a sack and forced fumble.

JETS

• The Jets are 2-0 coming off a bye week under head coach Eric Mangini.
• Brett Favre looks to be the first Jet since Richard Todd (1981) to record three touchdown passes in three consecutive games.
• In four career games against the Bengals, Brett Favre has completed 102 of 156 passes for 1,181 yards, seven touchdowns and seven picks (84.4 passer rating).
• When Favre records a passer rating of 100 or more, his teams are 85-8.
• Thomas Jones has recorded 173 yards rushing, on 46 attempts, in two career games against the Bengals.
• When Jones rushes 20 times or more, his teams are 26-13.
• Tight End Dustin Keller aims to record a touchdown in his third consecutive game -- leads all rookie tight ends with two touchdowns.
• Darrelle Revis had a career-high two interceptions in his last game -- including one 32-yard touchdown return.

Team Rankings

Carson Palmer

Chad Johnson

T.J. Houshmandzadeh

The Last Time. The last time the Bengals faced Brett Favre, was on October 30, 2005 against the Green Bay Packers. Favre threw five interceptions in a 21-14 Bengals win.

On my way home, I listened to Lance McAlister and his buddy Dave Lapham, talking about Carson Palmer's elbow. Significantly approached, Lapham talked about Palmer's "pitch count" with his injury; which is 40 tosses during the week, and 50 during the game. Likely, he said, this will last the entire season. However, very telling, was Palmer's admission after the game that he doesn't have the confidence to throw the football deep. "Balls I normally zip right by somebody, I felt maybe there's a chance they get their hands on it or make a play on it."

Furthermore, it doesn't appear that this will be healed or fixed during the season, but should be fine with limited (if any) work during the week to rest for Sundays.

There was a "report" going around that the San Francisco 49ers are interested in acquiring T.J. Houshmandzadeh. What's it based on? Well, apparently there's talk about Houshmandzadeh in San Francisco, where Mike Martz is the offensive coordinator, close friends to Ken Zampese, the Bengals quarterback. Blah, blah, blah. If I had a dime for each person that stated an unsubstantiated report/rumor...

Lewis points out the obvious: "What club in its right mind would trade for a player that's going to be an unrestricted free agent? If you're going to start a rumor, make it a good one. Make it something that would make some sense."

Chad Johnson says lay off Bob Bratkowski. More on Chad:

"My ankle's fine, my shoulder's fine, but for those who don't know why I'm not getting the ball, I have my own little philosophy on what's going on. And I broke it down like this: Never, ever, ever, ever go against the monster, because the monster always wins. Get it? So y'all put that in your own perspective and you'll understand where I'm coming from and why things are going the way it's going right now. OK, what else you want to talk about?"

David takes a look at the offense beyond this season.

Marvin Lewis says the Bengals need to run the ball better and stop big plays. Really?

Jay muses at the irony that the Bengals have reversed roles over 2007 -- now we have a serviceable defense and a game-losing offense.

Jets head coach Eric Mangini talked about the Bengals for four minutes during Wednesday's press conference. Probably safe to say that Mangini isn't taking the Bengals lightly.

Like when Chris Henry was suspended to start the season, he didn't count against the 53-man roster. Same thing should apply with the suspension of Darryl Blackstock, allowing the team to sign back Kenny Watson without having to cut another player -- at least for now.

Also in the move above, the Bengals signed Simeon Castille to the team's practice squad.

There is no running back "controversy". The team should play the running back that's most effective; isn't that how things works?

I couldn't come up with the team's biggest bust with 2008 acquisitions.

This Dallas News blog breaks down the Cowboys defense against the Bengals.

Carson Palmer wouldn't let them rush the passer. Seventeen times he used a three-step drop or less. Twelve times he used a five-step drop. And when he hit his back foot, the ball was almost always gone.

Now, the Cowboys didn't really come after him either. I had them for rushing six defenders four times, all in the second half. Most of the time they rushed four guys (19 times) and that put DeMarcus Ware and Greg Ellis into coverage more.

...

COWBOYS RUSH
Three-man: 1 time
Four-man: 19 times
Five-man: 18 times
Six-plus man: 4 times

SNAP DECISIONS
Base: 41 times
Single safety: 4 times
Nickel: 6 times
Dime: 18 times

Based on the same blog, taking an offensive take, the Bengals pass rush defense looked like:

BENGALS PASS RUSH
Three-man: 1 time
Four-man: 16 times
Five-man: 5 times
Six-plus man: 4 times

Carson writes about how great it is playing with his brother.

I can't argue against this.

Try as you might, I won't be convinced that Willie Anderson isn't the equal of Stacy Andrews, or his backup, Scott Kooistra. Or that Levi Jones is the best they can do at left tackle.

Many of the personnel decisions the Bengals have made in recent years, are directly reflected in their record. We hear about how the defense was going to be a major emphasis going into this season. Mike Zimmer has achieved a modicum of improvement as the coordinator but what does he have to work with?

It's pretty safe to assume that 2005 was the best season by the Bengals in a really, really, long time -- and at this rate, really long time would assert itself as predictions. But we generally agree, it's our offense that's hurting us the most. So let's take a comparative look at the Bengals through the seasons during the Marvin Lewis era. I wanted to chart how many games the offense recorded 300 yards or more. At the same time, I wanted to chart how many times the offense recorded less than 200 yards.

Through the first five games.

* November 11, 2004, the offense recorded 504 total yards offense (Browns)
** September 18, 2005, the offense recorded 504 total yards offense (Vikings)
*** November 12, 2006, the offense recorded 545 total yards offense (Chargers)
**** September 16, 2007, the offense recorded 531 total yards offense (Browns)

+ January 1, 2006, the offense recorded 163 yards total. However, starters left early in preparation for Wild Card weekend.

From my charts, the Bengals have only recorded four games in which they've recorded less than 200 yards total offense; one of which we shouldn't take seriously considering it was a week 17 game before the 2005 Wild Card weekend.

On September 21, 2003, the Bengals offense recorded only 182 yards total against the Pittsburgh Steelers. On October 17, 2004, the Bengals offense recorded only 189 yards total against the Cleveland Browns. On September 7, 2008, the Bengals offense recorded only 154 yards total against the Baltimore Ravens.

The following is a list of average yards, per game, listed by season.

How about first downs? Like above, a breakdown of average first downs picked up per game, listed by season.

A breakdown of average passing yards, per game, listed by season. This is based on numbers from Carson Palmer, Jon Kitna, and Ryan Fitzpatrick.

A breakdown of average rushing yards, per game, listed by season.

So yea, the Bengals offense, typically a key of the team's successes, has been dreadful. They are making strides in recent games, but still below the averages of previous Bengals offenses.

Note: I purposely say games rather than teams, because of repeating teams in the AFC North.

The last time we looked at the Bengals strength of schedule, there were five undefeated games, nine games with a winning record and only seven with a losing record. Since then, we saw the Ravens and Cowboys blemish their marks with the only undefeated teams being the Giants and the Titans. There are now only six teams with a winning record, four standing at even, and six with more losses than wins. Since after the third week, Bengals opponents have gone 16-11.

Of the five opponents that the Bengals have already played, their record is a 16-6 -- which means the remaining opponents have a .480 winning percentage (24-26).