[BFritz]

Can't believe BFritz didn't post this earlier...

From the Cincinnati Enquirer: The Bengals scored on four Graham field goals, a nine-yard touchdown pass from Doug Johnson to Chris Henry and an 81-yard interception return for a touchdown by rookie defensive lineman Matt Toeaina. Johnson was 11-for-20 passing for 150 yards, one touchdown and one interception with a passer rating of 75. Bengals starting quarterback Carson Palmer played the first two series and was 7-for-10 passing for 93 yards and a 99.2 passer rating.

Backup tailback Kenny Irons, the team’s second-round backup, was injured during the second quarter and was on crutches in the locker room after the game. He suffered a left knee injury, the Bengals confirmed. He is scheduled to have an MRI.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/a...308090054/

Watched it at my friends' place last night and just got home.

Anyways, the Bengals won this game while the serious part of the game was going on (by serious I mean while the starters were playing). I thought Palmer looked good last year even though he was pulling off on the end of his throws and not following through, but wow, he looked back to pre-injury form. He was following through, not pulling up, and throwing beautiful seeds all over the field- 7-10 for 93 yards (that's not calling anyone out on here, just complimenting Palmer). They looked to utilize Rudi a bit more than they have in the past two years or so, and he produced, so I think the offense will be more balanced and even more dangerous. Pass rush was lacking at times, but, overall, wasn't terrible. DBs need some work, or just played bad. Overall, the defense didn't play great, but they definitely showed some qualities of a defensive unit that can be very good, or at least stop people. Irons is possibly out for the year with a knee injury, which is depressing because he looked promissing. Leon Hall looked athletic and like he could make big plays, but he was just alays a step behind or an inch short. Once he gets used to the NFL, he looks like he could be very good.

I'm even more pumped about the season now.

For a first preseason game, I think they showed a lot of potential, but they still need to fix a few small things. I'm buying my tickets to their Super Bowl appearence next week.