Well, they do call it preseason for a reason. The Eagles and Bengals starters combined for no points for most of the first half on Friday night. The two offenses looked like junior high school kids sitting across from each other at a dance.

The Bengals — or at least QB Carson Palmer — seem to really be intent on making Terrell Owens happy. Owens again was in the mix early for the Bengals, catching a pass on the first play from scrimmage and running and end around the following play.

The Vikings have their quarterback, but who is going to play receiver?

Terrell Owens has a message for Bengals fans: He’s here to be in the playoffs. Anything less is unacceptable.

Fantasy enthusiasts can certainly be a panicky bunch. One of the kids in the NFL.com fantasy forums was worried that Mike Tolbert was going to take goal-line carries away from Ryan Mathews.

QB Carson Palmer is on the hot seat. An obvious statement, like saying that LeGarrette Blount needs to stop punching people.

The Eagles feel like one of those television shows that have been on the air so long that the producers shuffle the cast to keep things fresh. Kind of like Law and Order. Which to me was never the same once Angie Harmon left. And I feel the same way about the Eagles this season.

Apparently Falcons coach Mike Smith did not run Michael Turner enough in 2008, now he is determined to get Turner involved into the passing game, too.

Patriots WR Wes Welker returned to real game action on Thursday night, making an appearance during the team’s first drive against the Falcons. Tom Brady did not waste any time getting the ball to Welker, either.

Here is all you need to know about C.J. Spiller — he is a playmaker.

The Atlanta Falcons will hold out a number of starters in Thursday night’s preseason game against the Patriots, including starting cornerbacks Brent Grimes and Dunta Robinson.

The season will crumble for the Dallas Cowboys if they can’t protect QB Tony Romo and open holes for the running game.

Patriots WR Wes Welker is out running wind sprints on the turf at the Georgia Dome — in anticipation of tonight’s game in Atlanta — and the Twitter universe is blowing up.

Colts WR Pierre Garcon and TE Dallas Clark will sit out tonight’s contest against the Bills, as noted here on Tuesday. So one of the keys that I will be watching Thursday night is who gets the start at receiver opposite Reggie Wayne.

In what could only be viewed as one of the most surprising developments of the summer, former Cowboys and Dolphins coach Jimmy Johnson went a month without hairspray.