48 Hours Later, Smith Breaks His Foot

Remember how Andre Smith’s contract is tied to his weight? According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter), Smith came in to camp overweight:

It’s hardly surprising that Smith might have packed on a few extra pounds while he sat around waiting for his contract to get done - especially given his well documented motivation issues. And while he might be able to shed the weight relatively quickly once he gets back on the practice field, I’m guessing being relatively immobilized with a broken foot shouldn’t help matters in the short term.

Angst is an understandable emotion when you’re a Bengals fan. But perhaps the comparisons between Andre Smith and Ki-Jana Carter were a bit overblown. While SB Nation blog Cincy Jungle wondered whether Smith’s rookie year was already a bust, word out of Cincinnati is that Smith may only miss 7-10 days. From PFT:

See, not so bad. Repeat after me Bengal’s fans: it’s not your fault. It’s not your fault. It’s not your fault...

SB Nation blog Cincy Jungle has a quick reaction to the Andre Smith news, and it is not favorable:

And after all that holding out and all that concern about fitness, Andre Smith busts his ankle on the first day of practice. Ouch, in more ways than one.

From Bengals.com:

So maybe it took the Bengals so long to come to terms with first round pick Andre Smith not just because they’re...well, you know, the Bengals. Apparently, the Alabama tackle’s ballooning waistline had the folks in the Bengals’ front office a little nervous. ProFootballTalk reports:

Congratulations to the Bengals for showing a bit of prescience. The history of talented offensive linesman with weight problems is very poor (ahem, Mike Williams). As for Smith, this has to be easily the worst rookie contract anyone has signed since Ricky Wiliams had Master P representing him. Master P was a rapper. What’s your excuse, Alvin Keels?