Cardinals and TE Gresham agree to deal

The Arizona Cardinals were expected to enter the tight end market after team-leader John Carlson suddenly announced his retirement at the end of last season.

That problem may have been solved after they and former Bengals tight end Jermaine Gresham came to terms on a deal on Friday afternoon, the team announced.

Consistently thought the best at his position on the free agency market this offseason, the 27 year old Gresham signed a one-year deal.

He had 62 receptions on 79 targets last season with Cincinnati on 460 yards and five touchdowns, though he missed the final game of the 2014 campaign after a surgery to correct a herniated disk in his back. 

The former Oklahoma Sooner has 280 career catches for 2,722 yards and 24 touchdowns since entering the NFL as a No. 21 overall selection in 2010.

@MrJamesParks

Veteran QB Jason Campbell to announce retirement

When a 33-year-old man retires from any business, it's because he's done extraordinarly well, or was an unmitigated failure.

A bit of both could be said of Jason Campbell, who plans to announce his retirement following an eleven year professional campaign with five franchises.

Campbell, who declined offers from the Bengals and Ravens following last season, fell victim to that all-too-common NFL disease, being a moderately good talent that could have done something if he wasn't shackled to some legendarily awful teams. 

A first-round pick to the Redskins out of Auburn in 2005, he last started in 2014, throwing 19 pass attempts as Andy Dalton's backup with the Bengals. 

He spent five seasons with Washington, tallying 52 starts, before the arrival of Donovan McNabb, suddenly finding himself in Oakland. As per Raiders tradition, it went downhill from there. A six-game starting stint ended after he broke his collarbone in 2011, resulting in the eventual trade for Carson Palmer from the Bengals. He started a game for Chicago the following season and eight for Cleveland the year after, going 1-7 for the Browns.

He compiled a 32-47 career record in the professional ranks, tossing a respectable 87 touchdowns to 60 interceptions.

@MrJamesParks

Bengals' Jeremy Hill: "It's now or never"

CINCINNATI - So close, yet so far have the Cincinnati Bengals been in recent years in their quest for their first Super Bowl championship.

For four straight seasons this club has been in postseason contention behind quarterback Andy Dalton and head coach Marvin Lewis, and four straight seasons they were excused in the first weekend.

Any sense of urgency that should be felt in that town seems to be felt the greatest by the guy who has only seen one of those defeats, second-year back Jeremy Hill.

"It's now or never," he told ESPN. "It's been four years in a row, and if it doesn't happen this year, then it's probably never going to happen. That's the mentality and the sense of urgency that we bring in every day. Something has to change."

What won't change is the man leading them from the sideline, who owner Mike Brown, son of Paul, who founded the franchise after being fired from his namesake Browns by Art Modell, has seen fit to keep around for twelve years, even signing him through 2016. 

The Queen City has failed to secure a victory in the playoffs since 1990, the longest drought running in pro football.

"Getting to the playoffs every year, that's cool and all, but we want to get to the next level," Hill added. "The sense of urgency needs to pick up and just the get-up and the want-to-do it. Everyone has that mentality right now and that's going to definitely help us going into the season."

These Bengals have the talent to get into a fifth straight playoff berth, but if they get bounced again on that first Sunday, somebody in that front office may just get the brilliant idea to go shopping for a new head coach.

Bengals sign QB Terrelle Pryor

CINCINNATI - The wobbling and wearisome NFL career of Terrelle Pryor isn't over just yet.

Pryor was signed by the Bengals on Sunday after being cut by the Chiefs, who signed him four months ago. He was with Oakland the three previous seasons, compiling nine touchdowns and 12 interceptions in 15 games, 10 of which he started. 

A gifted athlete who had a stellar career at Ohio State, came to the Bengals for a minicamp tryout, and apparently they liked what they saw. He'll serve as backup behind Andy Dalton, alongside AJ McCarron and Josh Johnson.

There was some talk among team officials that he could be fit into the team at another position, something the 25-year-old says he won't consider.

"If I can't play quarterback, I can't play football," Pryor said at the workout. 

Something he may prove in his time in Cincinnati.

Bengals sign WR Moore

CINCINNATI - Former Raiders wide receiver Denarius Moore has been signed by the Bengals to a one year contract, the team announced on Monday.

Moore, a fifth-round pick by the Raiders in 2011, will join former Oakland head coach Hue Jackson, who was signed on as the Bengals' offensive coordinator in January.

The 26-year-old wide-out fell out of favor last season with the Raiders, snagging only 12 catches for 115 yards and no scores, though this season will join a talented pass-catching group that includes A.J. Green, Mohamed Sanu, and Marvin Jones. 

2012 was Moore's best season in the professional ranks, hauling in 51 receptions for 741 yards, adding seven touchdowns. He has 17 touchdowns in his career on 2,169 yards.

Bengals cut Geathers, Little

CINCINNATI - Veteran defensive end Robert Geathers and wide receiver Greg Little was released from the Bengals on Friday, according to the team.

Geathers featured on the Bengals' line for eleven years, drafted by the club in the fourth round of the 2004 NFL Draft. He ranks third in franchise history in games played by a defensive lineman, behind Tim Krumrie (188) and Eddie Edwards (170), and featured in all five postseason appearances under head coach Marvin Lewis.

"Robert has been with us for all my seasons except the first one," Lewis said in a team statement, "and he has been a team leader as well as a very productive player. He's an incredible teammate and a true professional, a big part of the winning seasons we've achieved. If Robert elects to pursue an opportunity with another NFL team, the timing of this move will allow him the best possible chance at that."

Geathers finished his tenure in Cincinnati with 325 tackles and 34 sacks, adding six forced fumbles. His release was not surprising, as it had long been thought either he or tackle Domato Peko would be cut.

"I had a good run in Cincy," Geathers said on Friday. "Eleven years with one team. Not many can say that. If the right opportunity presents itself, I might entertain that. If not, I'm content on having the career I did in Cincinnati. It's on to the next chapter and being the best husband and father I can be."

Also expected to be leaving the club was Greg Little, signed in October of last year to aid an injury-plagued receiving corps, though the fourth year man from North Carolina only caught 6 passes for 69 yards during his time there. Little has eight career touchdowns on 1,890 yards.

The release of Geathers and Little will save the Bengals $3.2 million in available cap space.