The Bengals will be without 35-year old starting right guard Bobbie Williams for the rest of the year due to a broken ankle.  Williams played in 9 games (all starts) for the Bengals last year.  He has now played in 118 games (all starts) in his first 8 years for the Bengals.  This is going to hurt the Bengals as Williams has plenty left in his gas tank.

The Bengals will be without 26-year old CB Leon Hall for the rest of the year.  They have placed him on I.R. due to a ruptured left Achilles tendon.  Hall played in 9 games for the Bengals last year and he had 32 tackles, 7 passes defensed, 2 interceptions and 1 fumble recovery.  He has now played in 73 games in his first five years with the Bengals and he has 290 tackles, 78 passes defensed, 20 interceptions (1 returned for a TD), 5 forced fumbles, 2 fumble recoveries and 6 tackles for a loss.  This is a HUGE loss for the Bengals as Hall is one of the best corners in the NFL.

The Bengals have waived 25-year old cornerback Morgan Trent.  Trent played in six games for the Bengals this year and he had six tackles.  He played in 30 games in his three years with the Bengals and he had 60 tackles, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery, 1 interception, 7 passes defensed and 1 tackle for a loss.  This isn’t much of a loss for the Bengals as Trent wasn’t helping out too much this year.

The NFL has reduced starting RB Cedric Benson’s suspension for off field conduct from three games to one game.  Benson is going to serve the suspension after the bye week when the Bengals play the Seahawks.  Benson has played in all six games for the Bengals so far this year and he has carried the ball 117 times for 458 yards (3.9 ypc) with 2 TD runs.  He has also caught 5 passes for 24 yards (4.8 avg) so far this year.  Bernard Scott will get the chance to replace Benson as the main man against the Seahawks.  He has played in six games for the Bengals so far this year and he has carried the ball 30 times for 85 yards (2.8 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Scott has also caught 5 passes for 13 yards (2.6 avg) so far in 2011.  Brian Leonard will also pitch in for the Bengals against the Seahawks.  He has played in 6 games for the Bengals so far this year and he has carried the ball 9 times for 64 yards (7.1 ypc).  Leonard has also caught 9 passes for 104 yards (11.6 avg).  The Bengals are averaging 105.3 yards per game and 3.8 yards per carry so far this year.  They hope to improve on those numbers after the bye week.

Owner Mike Brown softened on his stance concerning dealing 31-year old Carson Palmer, when the Raiders offered a king’s ransom for him.  The Bengals have dealt Palmer to the Oakland Raiders for a first round pick in 2012 and a conditional first round pick in 2013.  To steal a line from “The Godfather”, Mike Brown was offered a offer than he couldn’t refuse.  31-year old Carson Palmer played in 97 games (all starts) in his career with the Bengals and he completed 2,024 of 3,217 passes (62.9%) for 22,694 yards with 154 TD passes and 100 INTs (86.9 QB Rating).  Palmer also carried the ball 179 times for 316 yards (1.8 ypc) with 5 TD runs with the Bengals.  Palmer made it to two Pro Bowls in his time with the Bengals.  He is also #3 all-time in passing yards, passing TDs and interceptions in Bengals’ history behind Ken Anderson and Boomer Esiason.  Owner Mike Brown comes out of the Carson Palmer saga smelling like a rose.

UPDATE:  The 2013 draft pick will be a first rounder if the Raiders get to the AFC Championship Game in either 2012 or 2013.  If they don’t, the pick in 2013 will be a 2nd rounder.

28-year old RB Cedric Benson has been suspended for three games by the NFL for violating the league’s off-field conduct policy.  Benson has played in all 3 games for the Bengals so far this year and he has carried the ball 58 times for 244 yards (4.2 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He has also caught 4 passes for 19 yards (4.8 avg) so far this year.  Benson has appealed his suspension (the league won’t turn it over), so he will get to play until they either hear his appeal or he drops it.  27-year old RB Bernard Scott will be the main man in the running game for those three contests.  He has played in all 3 games for the Bengals so far this year and he has 8 carries for 23 yards (2.9 ypc).  Scott should be up to the challenge as he played well in his first two years (2009 and 2010) with the Bengals.  He played in 29 games coming into this year for the Bengals and he carried the ball 135 times for 620 yards (4.6 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Scott also caught 16 passes for 127 yards (7.9 avg) in his first two years with the Bengals.  Brian Leonard will also see an increased workload due to Benson’s suspension and he is a solid back.

The Bengals have lost 25-year old WR Jordan Shipley for the rest of the season due to a torn left ACL.  Shipley played in both games for the Bengals this year and he caught 2 passes for 14 yards (7.0 avg).  He has now played in 15 games in his first two years for the Bengals and he has caught 52 passes for 600 yards (11.5 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  The Bengals will need 26-year old Andre Caldwell to step up and be the #3 WR the rest of this year.  Caldwell has played in 2 games for the Bengals so far this year and he has caught 3 passes for 27 yards (9.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Andre Caldwell has now played in 40 games in his first four years with the Bengals and he has caught 90 passes for 882 yards (9.8 avg) with 4 TD grabs.

The Bengals have released 24-year old cornerback Rico Murray.  Murray played against the Browns last Sunday and he had 1 tackle.  Murray played in 9 games in his first three years with the Bengals and he had 19 tackles and 2 passes defensed.  The Bengals won’t miss Murray too much going forward as he really didn’t show them anything special in his three years on the team.

The Bengals have signed 31-year old TE Donald Lee.  Lee played in 15 games (6 starts) for the Packers last year and he caught 11 passes for 73 yards (6.6 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  He has now played in 124 games (64 starts) in his first 8 years in the NFL and he has caught 198 passes for 1,875 yards (9.5 avg) with 19 TD grabs.  This was a good signing for the Bengals as Lee is a pretty solid all-around TE.

The Bengals have claimed 23-year old WR/KR Brandon Tate off waivers from the Patriots.  Tate played in 16 games (10 starts) for the Patriots last year and he caught 24 passes for 432 yards (18.0 avg) with 3 TD grabs and he carried the ball 1 time for 4 yards.  Tate also returned 41 kickoffs for 1,057 yards (25.8 avg) with 2 TD returns and 1 punt for 4 yards.  Tate has now played in 18 games (11 starts) in his first two years in the NFL and he has caught 24 passes for 432 yards (18.0 avg) with 3 TD grabs and he also carried the ball 6 times for 73 yards (12.2 ypc).  Tate also has returned 45 kickoffs for 1,163 yards (25.8 avg) with 2 TD returns and 1 punt for 4 yards.  I think this was an excellent pickup for the Bengals as Tate should give them a nice boost on kickoff returns.  He is also a very underrated WR.