Confirming what reader firstPick said in the comments of the previous Andre Smith post, the Bengals newly-signed offensive tackle has a fractured foot and will miss time.  Smith hurt his left foot in a non-contact drill, according to Bengals.com.

And the frustrations surrounding this pick continue to mount.

Is it safe to say Smith's rookie season is an official bust yet?  I can't remember this much bad luck associated with one pick.  Oh wait, the name Ki-Jana Carter just flashed in my head.  Is it OK to hope Smith's debacle doesn't reach Carter levels or should I simply keep my mouth shut?

Update:

Smith is expected to miss seven to ten days. Again courtesy of PFT (via NFL.com).

by Tony Tribble - AP

View full size photo »

When Andre Smith (finally) signed his rookie contract, many viewed it as a win for the Bengals franchise.  Katie and Mike didn't allow the slotting system to dictate the terms they agreed upon, and the result was a performance-laden contract that doesn't break the Bengals' bank and puts the onus of earning the deal's maximum potential on Smith.  

Because one of the biggest concerns about Smith is his playing weight, that too was addressed in the contract.  According to ProFootballTalk, if Smith weighs in at 350 pounds or more, he'll have half of his pay taken for each game he is over the established limit.  Here are some details:

Per the source, the contract contains a provision that slashes in half Smith's pay for each game in which he weighs in at 350 pounds or higher.

It's technically a de-escalator of his base salary, a device that is permissible as long as Smith's salary exceeds the league minimum for his specific level of experience.  But it's a dramatic and (as far as we can tell) unprecedented move to compel a player to maintain a certain weight.

For those of you thinking Smith, now that he has his money, is going to turn into an out-of-shape bust, take comfort in the fact that he will be punished for doing so.

Here's a Joe Reedy tweet about Andre Smith's first day at practice, courtesy of Paul Alexander. I think we can file this under the "You Don't Say" category.

As Bengals fans, we can only hope his rookie season isn't a bust and Smith will be able to contribute. Watching him dominate at Alabama gives this blogger hope, but it ain't gonna be easy. I'm not applying blame here because there's plenty to go around to both parties. One could say, "Damn them for low balling Smith" or "Damn that Smith for not signing and getting into camp sooner," and frankly, both sentiments are valid.

At the end of the day, however, the Bengals finally signed their first round draft pick. The best we can hope for is that it wasn't too late for the man-child to contribute this season.

More photos » by Al Behrman - AP

Browse more photos »

Obviously, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick has a soft spot for wide receivers who possess a little bit of the selfish reputation.  See Moss, Randy and now, Cincinnati's favorite receiver, Chad Ochocinco.  During the Bengals/Patriots game last week, Belichick playfully razzed Ocho about double-covering him the whole game so the Pats wouldn't have to see any of Ocho's touchdown celebrations.  The Boston Herald's Rap Sheet blog has more:

Belichick: "We’re double covering you so you can have the night off."

Ochocinco: "Come on.  Come on."

Belichick: "One double 85, that’s our call, one double 85."

Ochocinco: "No matter where I go?"

Belichick: "Yeah, so you can’t hide."

Ochocinco: "Come on Coach, you serious?  Tell me you are just playing."

Belichick: "We are not going to watch you run in the end zone and watch you spike the ball here.  Have a good one. I’ll talk to you later."

Ochocinco: "Alright. (walking away) Damn."

You'll notice there was no "child, please" response from Chad, leading this blogger to believe his respect level for Belichick is awfully high.

Allow me, with great pleasure, to introduce Ventrell Jenkins, a rookie free agent defensive end just picked up by the Bengals. Now normally, I don't roll out the orange carpet for every free agent signing, especially ones that aren't likely to be around during the regular season. However, Ventrell is an exception. You see, Jenkins is a recent graduate of the University of Kentucky, and if you know anything about me, that's reason enough to celebrate. Besides, take a look at the lead video -- the boy's got some skills. Or at least a flair for dramatic, game-winning, fumble return touchdowns in rare Kentucky bowl appearances.

So far, I haven't seen anything official about the Jenkins signing, although, I don't think UK offensive coordinator Joker Phillips is a liar.  I will say, however, Phillips' well-wishes for Jenkins seemed a little... Well, they seemed a little forced.  "I'm happy for him" doesn't read like someone is overwhelmed by the knowledge they just gained.

Maybe it's just me, however.

Anyway, let's give Ventrell a warm Bengals welcome, and hopefully, the decent pass-rushing skills he showed at Kentucky translate the NFL.  Oh, and the reason I think he might be a roster casualty is Jenkins was recently cut by Buffalo Bills.  Maybe he'll have better success in the AFC North, as opposed to the East.

The Jacksonville Jaguars signed their first round pick, Eugene Monroe, today, and guess what? He's making more than the guy picked after him. Here are some details, via ESPN:

Monroe's deal was expected to be worth a little more than the reported five-year, $28.5 million ($18 million guaranteed) that the ninth pick, Green Bay Packers defensive tackle B.J. Raji , agreed to Thursday, according to the Times-Union, which cited an unnamed NFL source.

So I ask, yet again:  Why on earth, with EVERY OTHER TEAM signing their first rounder to a contract that's higher than the player(s) picked after, do the Bengals think offering Andre Smith LESS THAN Darrius Heyward-Bey is good and wise business decision?  I know I've been beating this horse to death, but until Smith is signed, I'm going to continue to do so -- especially after watching Katie Blackburn's pathetic attempt to explain the situation away on Hard Knocks.

Regardless of all the baggage surrounding the Bengals first-round pick -- justified or not -- as HBO showed us, he's been working out, getting in shape, and working on his footwork in anticipation of joining his teammates.  Meanwhile, us fans are left with a front office staff that looks more and more foolish, as other teams actually sign their rookies and get them into camp.

Hey, at least we have Blackburn's "explanations" to pacify us, right?

Goddammit.

Josh mentioned this during his Hard Knocks recap and for those of you who didn't get to see it, here's the video. I'm not sure, however, just how long it will stay up, so get it while it's hot.  While Maurice Purify is listed as a practice squad member, if he keeps smashing the Bengals safeties like he did in the video, there might be a spot for him on the tight end squad, because Lord knows they need the help.

Hey, it's a better idea than switching a "stiff" defensive player just to save money, isn't it?  At least Purify has experience catching the ball.  Granted Chris Harrington outweighs Purify by 40 or so pounds (260 to 224), so the idea isn't that great, but it's still better than the one offered by Mike Brown.  I'd like to see if Harrington can block like Purify did in the above video.

One last thing before I end this post -- cutting a player at 5:30 in the morning is cruel, unusual, and just plain rude and unprofessional.  Also, being an ass to the player while he's struggling for lucidity is not "professional" or a particularly "hard knock" thing to do.  It's just mean and it makes the Bengals staff look like a bunch of dicks and/or Mike Brown automatons.

Surely the franchise can do better than that.  Surely.

Click for larger image

Yeah, Chad's still going strong on Twitter (amazing, I know), but while some might find his constant chatter tiring, he does use the micro blogging platform for good -- at least for us fans -- as well as meeting hot, female Tweeters.  This time, Chad is introducing us to, as he calls it, "the entire receiving core."  Misspellings aside, it's nice to see them bonding and taking part in Ocho's social media invasion.

Now, lets see who can name them all -- not counting Chris Henry and Laveranues Coles.  Josh, you are excluded from this little exercise.

In other Twitter news, Chad got into it with ESPN mouthpiece, Mark Schlereth.  The argument started after one of Chad's tweets supporting Plaxico Burress.  Schlereth responded with a little bit of sarcasm, and from that point, they were playing the feud.  All told, there are about 22 or so tweets of these two going back and forth, and thankfully -- I say "thankfully" because I really don't need to see ESPN going into Day Five of the Ocho/Schlereth spat -- the issue ended quietly.

And you know I'm not exaggerating about the "Day Five" thing, either.