The Bengals top draft pick, Andre Smith, is undergoing a slow recovery process as he tries to get back from a broken foot; one he injured two days after ending one of the most unnecessary hold-outs known to man. According to Joe Reedy (via PFT), Smith is still in a walking boot and we predict he won't be available to play until after the Bengals' Week 8 bye.
Sigh.
Yeah, I know there were different opinions concerning Smith's contract, but my goodness, could the handling and subsequent outcome of Smith's signing gone any worse? Thankfully, the Bengals line has been doing a decent-to-good job, especially on the run blocking, a noted strength of rookie Smith. As long as Palmer's decently protected, and Cedric Benson has his running lanes, Smith can remain on the back-burner -- one that hopefully finds him healthy and light enough, weight-wise, to contribute at some point this season.
Living up to the potential that saw him named the best tackle in college football last season wouldn't be a bad thing, either.