If there's a guy that knows about rehabilitation from reconstructive knee surgery, it's Carson Palmer. And if there's a guy that would reach out to another teammate for encouragement, it's Carson Palmer. Once Stacy Andrews had the surgery to repair the knee he shredded against the Cleveland Browns (the game where we dominated them in shutout fashion!), the right tackle put an emphasis on Palmer's advice, writes Geoff Hobson.
He's taking Palmer's advice into his two-a-day routine with Bengals director of rehab Nick Cosgray.
"It's not necessarily who does your surgery, but your rehab after surgery. That's what matters. That's what Carson told me," Andrews said. "He told me, 'Do every little thing Nick tells you to do. It can be a pain, but you have to do it. The little things are what really count.' "
The Bengals are currently in talks with Andrews' representatives for a new contract after Andrews played through a one-year contract when he was slapped with the Franchise Tag. Stats, Inc. credited Andrews with allowing 9.5 sacks in 2009. NFL Game Statistics and Information Systems charts the following:
| End | Tackle | Guard | Center | Guard | Tackle | End | |
| Plays | 42 | 65 | 36 | 91 | 57 | 65 | 50 |
| Rank | 24 | 12 | 20 | 24 | 10 | 9 | 13 |
| Avg. Gain | 4.38 | 2.82 | 4.86 | 4.57 | 3.39 | 3.17 | 4.46 |
| Rank | 24 | 30 | 5 | 8 | 28 | 31 | 24 |
Now, this isn't an exact science; it takes the position of that lineman's rushing lane rather than the player himself. It doesn't account for pulling linemen, nor does it account for busted rushing plays, defensive players that are unblocked in the backfield or running backs sidestepping Eric Ghiaciuc. All "end", "tackle", "guard" and "center" means is the point of attack.
With that said, anything long-term for Andrews would be a bit much. His versility increases our depth, Our right tackle would be good for depth reasons, and a one-year prove you can play deal isn't unreasonable. But anything more than that wouldn't make much sense.