Jermaine Gresham dealing with Injury; Bengals could re-sign Alex Smith

The Cincinnati Bengals are dealing with a injury at tight end that could help lead to hem re-signing a familiar name.

According to Bengals.com's Geoff Hobson, Jermaine Gresham sustained an injury, presumably at some point this offseason, that could affect his availability for voluntary OTAs:

Tight end Jermaine Gresham wasn’t here for the first day of voluntary practices on Tuesday and word is he’s dealing with a physical issue.  Indications are it could impact his participation in the voluntaries but there doesn't seem to be a concern he’d miss a big chunk of training camp…

With only Orson Charles and Tyler Eifert at TE now, the Bengals may bring back Alex Smith:

The Bengals have also been talking to last year’s No. 3 tight end, Alex Smith, about a deal. They’re monitoring his rehab from a dislocated wrist he suffered in the regular-season finale.

Smith was more of a blocking TE that also played a little fullback, so he's not the ideal option if the Bengals want to add another pass-catching threat at TE.

Hopefully, this is just a minor injury that won't affect Gresham's availability for training camp. He's on the final year of his rookie deal, and needs to have a big season to ensure he gets a good contract offer from either the Bengals or another NFL club. Gresham is coming career-lows in receptions (46), receiving yards (458) and touchdowns (4) in 2013.

Cincinnati spent the 21st-overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft on Notre Dame TE Tyler Eifert, so they have Gresham's replacement lined up if he leaves, though they'd prefer to keep using their 2-TE sets with Gresham and Eifert.

Nick, Anthony and Mickey talked about Gresham last night on Inside the Jungle, and what the plan with both Gresham and Eifert could be going forward.