Palmer might not like it, but Bengals need HBO exposure

First there was a sigh. Then a roll of the eyes and a turn of the head. I had just asked quarterback Carson Palmer how he feels about his teammates becoming HBO’s latest stars this summer when “Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Cincinnati Bengals” unfolds from Georgetown College.

ALERT: Warrant Issued for Former Bengal

Chris Perry #23 of the Cincinnati Bengals runs with the ball during the NFL game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Paul Brown Stadium on November 16, 2008 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

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Bengals Team Report (Yahoo! Sports)

Three months of conditioning workouts, 11 organized team activity sessions and five minicamp practices later, the Bengals feel like they are in better shape.

“I think we’ve had a really good offseason of work on the field. The 1,000 snaps gives us an opportunity to get through some things on defense and offense,” said coach Marvin Lewis after the final practice, which was held at Paul Brown Stadium. “Our team has worked hard to be in shape and play football. The key now is to be in the best conditioned shape going into camp. The will be the first time in a long time we have the chance to go to camp healthy.”

The minicamp practices continued a theme of the offseason on-field work - the receivers standing out.

Laveranues Coles made a nice one-handed grab along the…

Director Interview: Is HBO’s “Hard Knocks” Ready for the Cincinnati Bengals?

The rest of the world is about to find out what we in Greater Cincinnati already know: The Bengals are good television.

ALERT: Warrant Issued for Former Bengal

Chris Perry #23 of the Cincinnati Bengals runs with the ball during the NFL game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Paul Brown Stadium on November 16, 2008 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

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VIDEO: Schein rants on Brandon Marshall
With a rap sheet, injury issues and his stock at an all-time low, Brandon Marshall’s trade demand is a fantasy, Adam Schein says.

Positional Power Rankings: RB packages
The best ballcarriers usually come in pairs. Adrian Hasenmayer ranks the NFL’s top RB packages, headlined by a pair of Panthers.

Summer two-a-days: AFC South, NFC North
Can Peyton uphold Indy’s playoff streak? Will Cutler win in Chicago? Peter Schrager continues our summer two-a-days by division.

NFL’s top 10 smurfs
Height isn’t everything in the NFL. Jets RB Leon Washington is just one of Adrian Hasenmayer’s top 10 smurfs in a league full of giants.

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Vick plan offers more money to creditors
Suspended NFL Star Michael Vick would give up more of his future income under a revised bankruptcy plan. Vick’s lawyer, Paul Campsen, disclosed the basic outline of the new plan Tuesday in U.S. Bankrupcy Court in Norfolk. The full plan is still being finished. It’s due to be filed by Thursday. A judge in April rejected the first plan, saying it was not feasible. Under the new plan, Campsen said 10 percent of the first $750,000 Vick earns would go to creditors.

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NFL looks into Dolphins WR’s fake Twitter account
“Tweets” are not so sweet for Miami Dolphins wide receiver Davone Bess.

NFL players among sports’ leaders on Twitter (Yahoo! Sports)
Players are using the site to send unfiltered messages, a trend that could force the league to react.

Today’s NFL rookies face many obstacles
All right guys, you’re in the NFL now. That means it’s time to come to Roger Goodell’s good behavior boot camp, Alex Marvez says.

Supreme Court to hear NFL licensing case
In taking a case involving the National Football League’s exclusive licensing deal for sports merchandise, the Supreme Court could go beyond caps and give leagues more leeway in areas such as team relocation, legal scholars said Monday. “A broad ruling in favor of the NFL could rewrite almost all of sports antitrust law,” said Gabe Feldman, associate law professor and director of the Sports Law Program at Tulane University in New Orleans. The court will hear an appeal from American Needle Inc.

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VIDEO: Marvez on Steelers’ O-line
The Steelers are champs but far from perfect. Alex Marvez details their plans to fix a running game that fell off big time last year.

Bills owner in no hurry to add games in Toronto
Buffalo Bills owner Ralph Wilson is in no hurry to have his team play more than one regular-season game in Toronto. Wilson told The Associated Press on Sunday he’d prefer waiting “two or three years” to determine whether the northern experiment is a success before he’d consider reworking the contract reached last year with Toronto-based Rogers Communications. Under the agreement which runs through 2012, the Bills will play one regular-season and three preseason games in Toronto.

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Bengals put new wrinkles in the O

The Bengals‘ 2009 offense won’t be new. Just different. It sure can’t get any worse.

NFL asks high court to weigh in on antitrust case
In the legal equivalent of running up the score, the National Football League is going to the Supreme Court in search of a bigger victory in an antitrust tussle over team merchandise than it already won from a lower court. The Supreme Court could decide as early as Monday whether it will hear the case, which involves American Needle Inc.’s challenge to the league’s exclusive contract for selling headwear such as caps and hats with team logos on them. American Needle of Buffalo Grove, Ill.

Buzzwords: Latest news from every team’s camp
The NFL season can’t get here soon enough for Broncos coach Josh McDaniels. Until then, check out the latest NFL Buzzwords.

7 Points: Ravens need a receiver now
Nearly every WR trade rumor involves the Ravens. Ed Thompson warns them to nix high-risk, high-reward options around Joe Flacco.

VIDEO: Should PEDs affect Canton votes?
With Rodney Harrison’s recent retirement, should a past positive drug test void his HOF status? Adam Schein urges an open mind.

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Jurevicius sues Browns over staph infection
Former Cleveland Browns receiver Joe Jurevicius is suing the team and the Cleveland Clinic, accusing doctors of negligence over a staph infection in his right knee that kept him off the field last year. Shannon Polk, an attorney for Jurevicius, said the lawsuit was filed Friday in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court. It alleges that team physicians failed to warn Jurevicius that therapy equipment was not always cleaned at the team’s training facility.

Goodell starts reviewing Burress shooting incident
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has started his review of the Plaxico Burress shooting incident under the league’s personal conduct policy. The league confirmed Friday that Goodell was examining the incident in which Burress shot himself in the thigh in late November in a New York City nightclub. The commissioner could suspend him if he finds that the receiver violated the NFL policy on personal conduct.

7 Points: Ravens need a receiver now
Nearly every WR trade rumor involves the Ravens. Ed Thompson warns them to nix high-risk, high-reward options around Joe Flacco.

Positional Power Rankings: QB packages
Tom Brady is the game’s best QB, but one injury and the Pats miss the playoffs. Adrian Hasenmayer ranks every team’s QB corps.

Bengals Team Report (Yahoo! Sports)

•? Three months of conditioning workouts, 11 organized team activity sessions and five minicamp practices later, the Bengals feel like they are in better shape.

“I think we’ve had a really good offseason of work on the field. The 1,000 snaps gives us an opportunity to get through some things on defense and offense,” said coach Marvin Lewis after the final practice, which was held at Paul Brown Stadium. “Our team has worked hard to be in shape and play football. The key now is to be in the best conditioned shape going into camp. The will be the first time in a long time we have the chance to go to camp healthy.”

The minicamp practices continued a theme of the offseason on-field work - the receivers standing out.

Laveranues Coles made a nice one-handed…

2009 Bengals Ticket Packs

Ticket Packs for 2009 Bengals games at Paul Brown Stadium will be on sale this Monday .

VIDEO: Marvez Minute on Peppers
Julius Peppers didn’t get a long-term deal or a trade, but he is getting $16.7 million. Alex Marvez asks if the holdout was worth it.

Jets claim WR Mario Urrutia off waivers

The New York Jets have claimed wide receiver Mario Urrutia off waivers from the Cincinnati Bengals.

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Goodell focuses on Vick; no decision on timeline
Commissioner Roger Goodell says he is beginning to focus on evaluating Michael Vick’s future in the NFL. But Goodell said Thursday his decision on the former Atlanta Falcons star quarterback will come “in due time” and not necessarily before the season begins. “I haven’t given a timeline,” on a decision about reinstatement, Goodell told The Associated Press during a telephone interview.

Source: Lions C Raiola banks $20M in new deal
In 2008, Detroit Lions center Dominic Raiola was a member of the worst team in NFL history.

Popularity: 7% [?]

Estefans join Dolphins as minority owners
Singer Gloria Estefan and her husband, producer Emilio Estefan, are bringing the Miami Sound Machine to the Miami Dolphins. Dolphins owner Stephen Ross announced at a news conference Thursday that the Estefans are joining the NFL franchise as minority owners. Gloria Estefan says she is a “hard core” sports fan and is happy to be a part of her hometown team. Last month, Ross also began a partnership with Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville enterprise, which includes Land Shark Lager.

Bengals‘ Benson comfortable carrying the load

When Cedric Benson was selected by Chicago with the fourth overall pick in the 2005 draft, the Bears were expecting big things from the running back.

Packers lock in star WR Jennings with $27M deal
The Green Bay Packers have accomplished perhaps their most important goal of the offseason: signing wide receiver Greg Jennings to a contract extension. The Packers announced Wednesday that they had struck a new deal with Jennings, a second-round draft pick in 2006 who has blossomed into one of the league’s most dangerous receivers. Terms were not disclosed, but the new deal was expected to put Jennings among the NFL’s highest-paid receivers.

Rookie revelations before training camp
Matt Stafford and Mark Sanchez aren’t the only rookie QBs gunning for a starting job. Alex Marvez checks in on the new class.

Chiefs sign former Pro Bowl safety Brown
The Kansas City Chiefs added depth to the defensive backfield, signing former Pro Bowl safety Mike Brown. Terms of the deal announced Thursday were not disclosed. Brown played nine seasons with the Chicago Bears, earning a trip to the Pro Bowl in 2005. He holds team records with seven defensive touchdowns and three fumble return TDs, and his four interception returns for touchdowns matches the team record.

Schein’s Nine: Cutler should grin and bear it
Jay Cutler may want the Bears to add a certain former teammate, but Adam Schein says his current wideout options are just fine.

NFL’s top 10 clutch players
Forget what stat-heads say. Numbers just can’t fully define someone. Adrian Hasenmayer ranks the best players under pressure.

Top 50: Rebounding Palmer leads second-25 elites

When putting together my list of the top-50 NFL players, it’s usually quarterback heavy and youngster heavy.

Peppers ends stalemate, signs with Panthers
Julius Peppers’ long stalemate with the Carolina Panthers is over. The four-time Pro Bowl defensive end signed his one-year, $16.7 million tender under the franchise tag Wednesday, ending the chances that Peppers could hold out at the start of training camp. Peppers said at the end of last season that he wanted to play elsewhere and pleaded with Carolina to allow him to become a free agent. The Panthers still placed the franchise tag on him, limiting his movement.

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