Last week, before the Bengals played that debacle of a preseason game, the number one concern for most fans was how well Carson Palmer and Terrell Owens were syncing up.

The word “rapport” kept being tossed around. Cincinnati Enquirer writer Joe Reedy commented several times about how Palmer and T.O. looked “way off.”

Fans kept saying that it’s just training camp and whatever, but any life-long Bengals fan had to have some panic attacks.

Palmer did connect with Owens twice in the preseason game, but nothing spectacular.

On Tuesday, however, Joe Reedy had this report:

“Carson Palmer was 4 of 5 for 40 yards on a two-minute drill, including a 23-yard strike to Terrell Owens to put the ball in opposing territory…
Owens caught a bomb from Palmer in stride earlier in the practice and beat Morgan Trent in coverage. Owens also made a nice tip and catch while being guarded by Johnathan Joseph.”

The part that I omitted in the ellipsis, however, mentioned how the drive had stalled due to a sack…

Okay, before I start bitching about the offensive line, let’s just bask in the glow of T.O. and Palmer hooking up…

(Does it feel good? Hold on, let’s bask some more)

(Ahhhhhhh… it’s good).

With T.O. and Palmer both being veterans, getting their timing in sync should be a matter of when and not if.

Man, who’d’ve thought, way back in January after the Bengals lost to the Jets, that the words “Palmer to T.O.” would be music to Bengals fans ears…

EEERREEEK!

Did you hear that sound? It was the sound of my fantasy-land record being scratched.

Everyone who watched the preseason game saw how poorly the offensive line played. Another fellow Bengals blogger, Josh Kirkendall of www.cincyjungle.com, discussed how the offensive line did not play as poorly as it seemed. One of the sacks on Carson happened after he had the ball for five seconds, and very few offensive lines can block the defenders for that long.

And, once again, it’s preseason. I can’t absolve the entire offensive line because it’s early, but there’s plenty of time to get them to clean things up.

And to get Andre Smith back.

I know, I know. The only people on this planet who like Smith happen to be related to him. Smith did show up to camp out of shape and overweight (which go hand-in-hand, believe it or not). Still, he’s trying hard. Smith seems to be the kid who can’t do his homework unless his mom is breathing down his neck.
According to Geoff Hobson, during a training session with strength coach Chip Morton, Morton “was going to call it off because Smith had reached his timed goal.  ‘But [Smith] wanted to keep pushing it into the end zone,’ Morton said. ‘He wants go that extra. He’s taking it upon himself.’”

Hey, I’m as pissed as anyone that we wasted a first-round pick on him, but at least he’s trying, and I’m hoping he’s going to be prepared to contribute and possibly start as early as possible.

With T.O. and Chad Ochocinco both getting in sync with Palmer, all the Bengals need is some good protection up front. This offense can be one of the best in the history of the franchise, but it won’t go anywhere without a good offensive line. Let’s hope they shore it up.

Any comments, questions, or suggestions, you can email David Jacob at djacob@gearupforsports.com. You can also join his facebook group, or you can follow him at http://twitter.com/HoldenCarraway.