Updated: 9 p.m.
While his teammates practiced in full pads Sunday, Carson Palmer threw lightly on the side before heading inside to work out with strength and conditioning coach Chip Morton and rehab trainer Nick Cosgray.
Before practice Palmer said there had been no change in his mildly sprained left ankle. He has said he can walk, but it's tender when he pivots and pushes. Then he went out and mostly threw from about 30 yards standing still. When he did drop back a few times, he did it lightly. He showed no signs of a limp when he exited the field with Morton early in the workout, and even negotiated a small incline pretty effectively.
Also Sunday, following an afternoon-long session at Paul Brown Stadium with Bengals executive vice president Katie Blackburn, Andre Smith agent Alvin Keels said "little progress" had been made.
"That's all I'm going to say," said Keels as he prepared to board a plane Sunday night. "I guess we'll keep talking."
Keels prefers to elaborate on Twitter. An hour later on his page he said that Bengals president Mike Brown said, "The ship has sailed on the (NFL) slotting system."
That would seem to suggest the two sides are having trouble getting past their major principles, never mind getting to the numbers It is believed Keels-Smith are looking for more than the player drafted behind him one slot at No. 7. The Bengals, according to a Hard Knocks clip last week, are looking for a deal more in line with the rest of the first round rather than what has been described as an exorbitant deal at No. 7.
SLANTS AND SCREENS
» Also not working out Sunday were defensive end Antwan Odom (sore Achilles), SAM linebacker Rashad Jeanty, and backup center Jonathan Luigs. Odom said he's fine and that he thinks he could practice but the team is going slowly and is sitting him out. It's not known what ails Luigs and Jeanty also didn't practice Saturday. But the Bengals have been trying to rest him frequently this preseason because of a broken leg he suffered two preseasons ago.
» Before the workout the Bengals did sign Wake Forest product Sam Swank to kick Thursday night against the Rams. He beat out three others in Sunday morning's tryout at Paul Brown Stadium, among them former University of Utah kicker Louie Sakoda, a guy that kicked for the Bengals coaches in this past January's Senior Bowl. Swank signed with the Eagles after this past draft as a free agent and was cut a month later.
Also in the workout were former Ohio State kicker Ryan Praetorius and veteran Nick Novak.
The 6-0, 201-pound Swank finished his Wake Forest career as the leading scorer in school history with 337 points and a school-record 71 career field goals.
"I think kickoffs were my best asset out there," Swank said of the workout. "The stadium atmosphere was great. Everyone had a good day. You just wanted to know if your name was going to be called and mine was. ... It's a great opportunity for me. I'll definitely make the most of it and try to have some fun."
Swank worked out for the Bills but didn't get signed before he came here. He smiled when asked if he had heard of Chad Ochocinco's extra point on Thursday.
"I heard good things about it. I knew he got some good height and all that," Swank said. "Maybe I won't kick off in practice, who knows?"
» Also, Sunday before practice caught defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer in a rare mood. He was so expansive in his praise of tackle Domata Peko that he urged his linebackers to pony up.
"No one knows about this kid. I'll say this. I wouldn't say this very often. However long I've been a coordinator (10th season), he's the best nose tackle I've ever had," Zimmer said. "Solid, tough, makes tackles all over. He's much more active than a nose tackle typically is. If he can get his pass rush, he'll get recognized more.
"That's what everybody looks for. How many sacks did he get? Where this kid allows the linebackers to make a lot of tackles that people don't realize. Then he makes tackles once the double teams come off. Some of these linebackers should pay him a little extra money. I think they should slip him some money after the game."
» Despite holding the Patriots without a touchdown, Zimmer thought his unit played sloppy last Thursday night. But he did admit that his starting cornerbacks, Leon Hall and Johnathan Joseph, are playing well. And he agrees with Joseph.
"We have to play well," Joseph said, "because with what we do as a defense we're always one-on-one."
