Andre Smith and Dre Kirkpatrick practice on Monday

If you watched the film against the Dallas Cowboys, it wasn't immediately clear that Andre Smith had suffered any kind of injury. Crash landing during a run block off the right edge, Smith gingerly stood but gave no indications of dealing with anything more your typical wear and tear of an NFL game. Yet, the team announced afterwards that he had tweaked his knee. Smith didn't play the preseason finale against the Indianapolis Colts.

On Monday, as the team prepares to get into regular season routine before Tuesday's off-day, Smith returned to practice basically confirming the shoulder shrug that's been given in Cincinnati's lockerroom since last week. With the unknowns regarding Andrew Whitworth's knee (he didn't practice, but worked with trainers on Monday), the Bengals can't really afford to lose both of their offensive tackles for the regular season opener (it's not like there's an Anthony Collins tree, Ben).

Joining Smith in practice was cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick, who has been dealing with concussion symptoms that he suffered against the Cowboys. Adam Jones, who returned to practice last week and played infrequently against the Colts, has been dealing with a rib while Brandon Ghee hasn't practiced after suffering his own concussion.

Back to the good news side of the spectrum, defensive end Carlos Dunlap is full contact during practice and has been since last Tuesday. He appears to be ready to go for Chicago.

Devon Still and Terence Newman sat for unknown reasons.