Carson Palmer didn’t practice on Saturday and that left his status for Thursday’s game in doubt. As I mentioned in a previous blog, the Bengals definitely need to protect Carson. I mean, a preseason game is about as meaningful as a Michael Bay film and about a 100 times less predictable. Any player could get injured on any play, whether the game counts or not. Even though the games are meaningless, players do get meaningful preparation for the upcoming season. If there is one team not named the Lions or the Browns that need the preseason to get their team in sync, it’s the Bengals. So with the possibility of Carson sitting out a second straight game, I am concerned about Carson getting enough reps with his receivers. He played in only four games last year, and only with one of the receivers from this year’s corps. If Carson sits the third game, I would say they will probably play him more than usual in the fourth game (which usually is the most meaningless of the meaningless games). The more reps that Carson gets before the season starts the better. Our offense finished dead last in 2008. Of course, that was without Carson, but I don’t know how much better it would’ve been with Carson because the O-line couldn’t stop a 5 year old on roller skates.

Of course, one positive from this preseason is that I feel we have a very capable backup in J.T. O’Sullivan. An si.com writer ranked all the backup QBs and O’Sullivan was #30 out of 32. After two games, O’Sullivan has had a 136 rating with 2 TDs. He didn’t have a very good season last year with the 49ers, but the Niners didn’t have the receivers that we have and that could be a huge difference. That #30 rating was definitely based on last year and not what he has produced so far this preseason. The offense, whether with Palmer or O’Sullivan, has moved the ball up and down the field. But they haven’t been putting it in the end zone. I am not overly concerned about that at this time, because I think they’ll be able to correct that once the bell rings and the season starts. If for some reason Carson doesn’t play this season, I don’t think all is lost with O’Sullivan (all would definitely be lost if Jordan Palmer plays… He has some talent but none of the decision making abilities of his brother).

I still would like to see Carson get more reps in game-like situations before the season starts. He should be ready to play once the season starts, and the Broncos (the first game of the season) don’t scare me too much. That game will be additional preparation for the Packers and Steelers, who have much tougher defenses. If the O-line can perform more consistently, this offense has a chance to be in the top 10. Last season Carson struggled from the get go because of two primary things: 1) Poor O-line play and 2) Not many reps with the actual first team offense. If Carson doesn’t play on Thursday, it won’t spell doom for the season, but it may mean we will see some inconsistent play that could hurt us and lead to a slow start. If the Bengals go through another start like last season (0-8), my blog may turn into an interesting commentary on importing and exporting window curtains. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.