Ocho Cinco’s shoulder popped out and then back into the joint during Sunday’s 27-10 loss to the Lions. Everyone is toeing the company line, saying Johnson will be ready for the Sept. 7 season opener with Baltimore. But these types of injuries tend to linger. Some players just play through the pain, while others opt for surgery.

“I think he should be ready for the opener (Sept. 7 at Baltimore),” Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said. “But it’s just going to be time on task. He has to gain the strength in the shoulder and how he feels.”

Losing Johnson for any amount of time is a blow for an offense already missing the services of Pro Bowl wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh and running back Rudi Johnson because of hamstring injuries. And rookie receiver Andre Caldwell has a sprained foot.

The Bengals released Henry on April 3 after his fifth arrest in three years, but his legal issues are behind him after an assault charge was dismissed in July. He was suspended for the first eight games of last season - the team was 2-6 while Henry was out and 5-3 in the second half of the season with Henry in the lineup.

Henry, who also was suspended the first four games of this season by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, will be eligible to practice and play in the final two preseason games. The earliest he can return is Oct. 5 at Dallas.

It seems bringing in Henry again goes against the earlier wishes of Lewis, who said this on July 22: “I’m not interested in bringing him back. That wouldn’t be productive for our football team. You have to be a productive part to be an NFL player. There are responsibilities to being an NFL player; it’s a privilege, it’s not a right.”

The Bengals will now be financially liable for any of Henry’s potential negative off-field behavior. On Aug. 1, a new NFL policy went into effect that allows the league to fine teams for legal problems their players might incur.

Henry, 25, has been productive when he has played. In 35 games over three seasons, 11 starts, he has 88 receptions for a 15.6-yard average and 17 touchdowns.

I cannot wait till football season begins. With each passing week, it just keeps getting more exciting.

This week I’m talking all about the quarterback.

What impact will Brett Favre have on the Jets?

How will Chad Pennington impact the Dolphins?

And I take a look at the most interesting and hotly contested starting QB competitions around training camp.

And as always if you have any questions that you would like answered on the show, just send them in and I’ll see what I can do.

- Mark Scott, theredzonereport.com

The 12-year veteran went in for surgery to repair the injury that occurred on Wednesday in practice, while running through some pass-blocking drills.

This was not Thomas’ only injury, as he has already missed numerous practices during camp with a cyst on the back of his knee. Thomas had just returned to practicing when the injury to his right arm happened during a joint practice with the Houston Texans.

The question for the Saints is whether they should hold an active roster spot for the veteran for the first six weeks of the season or place him on injured reserve, therefore ending his season. The answer should come over the next couple of weeks depending on how quickly Thomas can recover from surgery.

Thomas started 14 games in 2007, recording 58 tackles and three sacks.

The huge defensive tackle had been bringing the rookie along and teaching him the ropes, and Ellis couldn’t be more sorry to see his new teammate go out with an injury.

“He’s a great guy to take the time to help a younger guy, but I’m going to have to pick it up on my own now,” Ellis said. “We wish him a great recovery and we’ve got to move on. It’s the whole defensive line’s responsibility to help in those situations that Hollis has left open from his injury, but I don’t feel any pressure personally.”

The injury to Thomas leaves a massive void in the lineup for the Saints, but Ellis’ teammates are confident that he can fill that void.

New Orleans linebacker Scott Fujita said. “With the new guy, obviously he’s got a whole different level of athleticism that’s going to help him get a lot more involved in rushing the passer and making plays on the ball….So a lot of that remains to be seen,” Fujita added. “We have high expectations for him, but once you get into games and see how he performs, the jury’s still out.”

Ellis will likely move into the starting lineup, and his pass-rush skills should dramatically improve a defense that allowed a league-worst 32 passing touchdowns. The often erratic and non-existent rush allowed for 245.2 passing yards per game and 45 completions of 30-plus yards, with one-third of those between 40 and 80 yards.

Last year as a senior at USC, Ellis played in all 13 of the Trojans’ games, recording 58 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, and 8.5 sacks with 7 passes batted down and two fumble recoveries. He was named the Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year and an All-American for his efforts in 2007.

Shortly after arriving in Colorado for a joint practice with the Denver Broncos, Jones typed a one and a half page letter to the Commissioner asking for official reinstatement. The letter was mailed on Thursday.

“I’m feeling real good,” Jones said. “It’s just a letter on why I feel I should be reinstated. It’s my chance to respond, and we’ll see how it goes.”

The Commissioner would also like an update from Jones today on how he has kept out of trouble. According to the Dallas Morning News, he has done more than just drop the “Pacman” moniker to stay out of trouble.

For starters, he hired a security team to track his every move and drive for him if need be. Jones is also planning on donating school uniforms to fifth graders in the Dallas Independent School District.

The Cowboys hope a decision comes by August 26, when they are obliged to cut down their roster to 75 players. Owner Jerry Jones says the letter to the Commissioner is vital to the final decision.

“The curtain has come up for him,” (Jerry) Jones told reporters. “So I think it [the letter] is real important in terms of influencing the commissioner’s decision.”

When asked if the letter was hard to write, Jones reminded people he is quite the scholar.

“No, not at all. I was an A student. We’ll know something soon,” he said.

While “the cornerback formerly known as Pacman” deserved his indefinite suspension, he has certainly done enough to get reinstated. Sure, there are still possible charges that could come his way, but Jones and the Cowboys have both put a lot of stock in changing his life around as best as they can. Making them wait even longer would be unfair to all those who have worked hard to turn Adam Jones into a “model citizen.”

McGahee also reported to training camp out of shape, leaving some to question his overall motivation. His surgery could force the Ravens to look for a veteran back to not only take practice reps in practice but possibly be ready to go against the Bengals on opening day. Those available include Shawn Alexander, Travis Henry, Samkon Gado, Najeh Davenport, Mike Bell and Ron Dayne. 

“We were confident without the scope that he would have been ready,” new Baltimore coach John Harbaugh said. “We just feel like this is a cautionary procedure and [we want to] make sure we’re right.”

McGahee, 26, rushed for 1,207 yards and seven touchdowns in 15 games last season, his first in Baltimore. He also caught 43 passes for 231 yards and one TD.

Traditionally, it takes two to four weeks to recover from a standard arthroscopic knee surgery.  In the case of McGahee, who didn’t report to camp in optimum condition, it’s likely going to come down to how much swelling there is and how diligently he works at his rehabilitation.

Harbaugh acknowledged that there are potential scenarios where McGahee may be unavailable for the opener against Cincinnati, which would open the door for rookie Ray Rice to start.

“There’s always a possibility,” Harbaugh said. “You never say never on those things.”

Cory Ross, Allen Patrick and Alex Haynes are working behind Rice on the depth chart. Rice has been impressive in camp, but didn’t produce big numbers against the Patriots in the preseason opener with six carries for 12 yards and four receptions for 17 yards.

Engram could be back early in the regular season, the bye week, Sept. 28, at the latest, coach Mike Holmgren said. He is still expected to be on the final 53-man roster when it is set on Aug. 30; he will remain on the active roster because being placed on injured reserve would end his season.

“Injuries are a part of this thing and you deal with it,” Holmgren said. “The young ‘uns have to step up and play. We’ve said that already, and now they just have to do it for a while.”

The 35-year-old Engram set a Seattle franchise record last season with 94 catches and then skipped offseason minicamps while in a dispute over his contract that expires after this season.

Compounding the situation at receiver is that Deion Branch remains on the physically unable to perform list as he recovers from reconstructive surgery on his left knee in January.

Holmgren remains hopeful that Branch will be ready for the regular-season opener, but Nate Burleson could now be the only available receiver with starting experience when the season opens. Courtney Taylor will get the first look to start at flanker in place of Engram.

Holmgren also said that QB Matt Hasselbeck’s back is still bothering him after it tightened up in Friday’s preseason opener. The coach added that the team had yet to discuss whether to hold Hasselbeck out of this Saturday’s game against Chicago.

The coach added that Julius Jones will get the start at running back against the Bears after Maurice Morris‘ impressive performance as the starter against Minnesota. Morris gained 62 yards on six carries, while Jones got four carries and gained 15 yards against the Vikings, but played primarily behind the No. 2 line.

Reports are out that Pennington has agreed a two-year, $11.5 million deal with his former team’s division rival and Week 1 opponent, the Miami Dolphins.

Take a quick look at the figures for the deal, and you’d be quick to surmise a key piece of information for John Beck, Chad Henne, and Josh McCown - Pennington is getting paid to come in start, not to sit on the bench and just be an extension of the quarterback coach.

Matt Severance called this one the other day in a post about Pennington’s release following the Jets’ trade for Brett Favre, so it isn’t exactly a surprise.

It does show that while Bill Parcells and Co. know that there’s a long rebuilding job ahead, they’re not looking to just mail it in and think solely of the future by handing the ball to someone they may not be fully confident in just yet.

Besides that, even though Beck and the others might be a little disappointed that they may be getting jumped over in the depth chart, there’s nothing like a little competition, especially from a proven, veteran quarterback, to help bring out your best, and when you’re a pretty green prospect, it doesn’t hurt to have someone like Pennington to learn from.

On the flip side, It is also a great leap of faith to pay a lot of money to a guy whose injury problems and lack of arm strength are well-documented. Pennington’s TD-to-INT numbers also haven’t exactly been stellar over the last couple of seasons (17 TD, 16 INT in 2006, 10 TD, 9 INT in 2007).

However, one thing that Matt pointed out that should be remembered is that Pennington is an extremely accurate passer, and in the end, it’s not about how far you can throw it, but if the ball ends up in the receivers’ hands, and that’s something that Pennington a relatively good job of throughout his career, with a career completion % of 65.6, 82 touchdowns to 55 interceptions in his career, and a career passer rating of 88.9, numbers that aren‘t shabby by any means. On top of that, he led the Jets to the playoffs three times, including just two seasons ago.

Really, it’s about the best signing that the Dolphins could make at this point, though I do scratch my head a little at the money that they gave him. Time will tell whether or not he earns it, but if he can be efficient and play the kind of game that he’s capable of, it’ll make the Dolphins a lot more bearable to watch this season.

But whatever the case may be, it’s certainly going to make for a very, very interesting Week 1, though Pennington starting against his former team won’t garner as many headlines as a certain #4 standing on the opposite sideline.

“We have to wait and see…how the rehab is,” Angelo told reporters, “but the good news is we’re going to get him back.”

No one saw this surgery coming. In fact, no one knows when it was even done. It’s being reported that surgery was performed either Wednesday night or Thursday morning. Why don’t we know the day the surgery was done? Well, the Bears have been mum on Chris Williams‘ back ever since he got taken out of the first day of training camp with “back spasms.” Williams was the slated starter at left tackle this season, but his absence will leave an opening for John St. Clair to compete against…well…nobody knows. The Bears are mum on that too.

The Chicago Tribune reports that the Bears are in talks with tackle Fred Miller, who they cut loose in February, about a possible return as a quick fix. It is also rumored that they are talking to the Cleveland Browns about a trade for right tackle Kevin Shaffer, who is currently on the market.

The Bears basically mortgaged the farm on Williams, making him the only new acquisition on a hapless offensive line. Head Coach Lovie Smith said during his post-game press conference following a 24-20 preseason loss to the Kansas City Chiefs that he is “disappointed” by all that has transpired.

“When you draft a player like that, we have big plans for Chris,” said Smith. “We still have big plans for Chris. They’ll just be delayed a bit. We’d like to have him out there.”

Multiple media outlets have reported that Williams’ back injury was not related to a rumored back injury that circulated before the NFL Draft. Whether it was or not, this is just more bad luck for the Bears. Two days ago, projected starting left guard Terrance Metcalf had arthroscopic right knee surgery.

Surprisingly, during their first preseason bout, the Bears offensive line did well in the absence of both guys. In their places were second-year left guard Josh Beekman and left tackle John St. Clair, who seemed to have some chemistry going. However, it’s still too early to bank on that being effective during the regular season.

Like many things this offseason, Chicago fans will have to just grin and BEAR it!

Well, that number wasn’t as important to the New York Jets as 4.8 million and 7.8 million. The former number was the salary Pennington was due this year and the latter was his salary cap number with the Jets, who let Pennington go Thursday as they worked themselves under the cap to absorb Brett Favre’s salary.

Pennington was 1-7 as the starter in New York last year, throwing for 1,765 yards with 10 touchdowns and nine interceptions. The Jets’ first-round pick in the 2000 draft, Pennington was 32-29 as a starter in his career with a passer rating of 88.9. He took the team to the playoffs three times: 2002, 2004 and 2006.

So there will be a market for the 32-year-old. The Dolphins, Vikings, Chiefs, Bears and Bucs are reportedly the leading candidates to land him. Here’s a breakdown of those five clubs and their chances of getting Pennington:

Dolphins: Miami wasted no time in contacting Pennington’s agent. New Dolphins boss Bill Parcells was the guy who drafted him with the 18th overall pick in 2000 when Parcells was Jets’ general manager.

“From what I’ve heard about him, I’ve only heard that he’s a very intelligent player,” Miami coach Tony Sparano said. “And he’s always been pretty accurate, with what he did with the ball. I know the guy’s a competitor.”

Sparano has said that he’s happy with his current three quarterbacks, Josh McCown, John Beck and rookie Chad Henne. All three have struggled somewhat in camp, however, with Henne reportedly looking the best. And you know Parcells doesn’t want to open the season with a rookie QB.

Wouldn’t it be something to see Pennington starting for Miami on Week 1 – against the Jets? Consider Miami the favorite to land him, as Pennington no doubt would like to stick it to the Jets.

Chiefs: Coach Herman Edwards is the former coach of the Jets, and while the team is committed to Brodie Croyle as the starter, Pennington would seem to be a better No. 2 than Tyler Thigpen or Damon Huard. Edwards’ good relationship with Pennington makes the Chiefs the second favorites to get him.

Bears: Sure, Chicago could use someone a little more stable than Rex Grossman and more experienced than Kyle Orton. And the Bears don’t really have a third quarterback, so they could add Pennington and not really have to dump anyone. However, Pennington is basically the same kind of quarterback as Orton: An effective short-range thrower but awful on deep balls. Don’t expect Pennington in the Windy City.

Bucs: Frankly, the Bucs don’t need Pennington, and they already have five quarterbacks in camp. Yes, Chris Simms will be gone soon, but is Pennington an upgrade over Brian Griese as the backup to Jeff Garcia? No. Never rule out Jon Gruden when it comes to quarterbacks, but hard to see Pennington wanting to go to Tampa.

Vikings: Now this makes the most sense. Pennington could be the consolation prize after the team couldn’t land Favre, and Pennington would be more consistent than Tarvaris Jackson. In addition, the Vikings are the best of the five teams listed here. Still, reports out of Minnesota say that Vikings officials believe in Jackson and don’t think Pennington is an upgrade over Gus Frerotte at No. 2. So no sale here.