The combination of Akili Smith's on-field failures last season and his pending DUI hearing find the Bengals quarterback “at the depths of hell.”

        Smith broke his four-month silence with the independent local media Tuesday and said he is looking forward to competing with newcomer Jon Kitna in the Bengals' new offense.

        “I was fine with that,” Smith said of Kitna's signing. “I know we needed another quarterback, a veter an quarterback, and were going to bring one in. I'm my worst enemy. If my game is on, I don't care who the Bengals sign.”

        Smith was arrested Feb.8 in his hometown of San Diego for investigation of drunken driving. He was pulled over for driving the wrong way on a one-way street at 2a.m. and pleaded not guilty March 1 to a misdemeanor drunken driving charge.

        He faces a readiness hearing March 29.

        Smith, who was beginning his second week of workouts with receivers at Paul Brown Stadium, would not discuss the case directly but referred to it.

        “I've been through so much know it's ridiculous,” he said. “The only way to go now is to go up. Hopefully, these things will go away.”

        In February 1998, after his junior season at Oregon, Smith was pulled over on suspicion of DUI and later was acquitted. “It feels like a parallel,” he said. “I went through this at Oregon, and I responded with a phenomenal senior year. Hopefully the same thing will happen this year.”

        Smith has shown up for workouts with a new attitude and a reshaped body in an attempt to win back the job he lost after 10 games last season. He is much thicker through the shoulders and chest, thanks to an offseason weightlifting program. But he said the biggest changes are taking place in his mind.

        Here are excerpts from Tuesday's interview:

        Question: You had rookie wide receivers, and Rod Jones struggled at left tackle. Was it fair to blame you?

        Answer: “It really wasn't fair to blame me, but that's what comes with the position. The offense is not going well. The first thing we're going to do is look at the quarterback and see what the quarterback is doing. I think I was second in the league with fumbles in the pocket, and I think some of the time — half the time — the line was getting beat from the blind side, and I can't tell what's going on back there. It was a tough situation. Rod had a tough year. He'll get better. I had a tough year. I'll get better. The receivers are going on their second year, and (injured) Darnay (Scott) will be back.”

        Q: What was your reaction to being benched?

        A: “I wanted those last few games to learn out there on the field as opposed to the sidelines. That was the lowest point of all.”

        Q: What was your teammates' reaction to you last season?

        A: “I talked to my teammates all the time, and they all told me they got my back to support me. "You're going through some things right now. You'll be a great quarterback someday.' But I wanted to be a great quarterback last season. You don't want to hear that. You want it to happen now.”

        Q: Do you regret anything that happened last year?

        A: “I regret not playing better. I have another year coming up. I'm looking forward to competing with (Jon) Kitna and the other quarterbacks.”

        Q: What has been discussed about the upcoming season?

        A: “I told Coach (Dick) LeBeau, I just want a fair shot at starting. He said, "You'll get a fair shot.'”

        Q: You had 17 fumbles last season. What adjustments, if any, are you making?

        A: “I'm trying to keep the ball down. Last year, I had the ball real high. Keep it a lot lower and get rid of the ball a lot quicker.”

        Q: What are your impressions of new offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski?

        A: “I like him a whole lot. They did a tremendous job sorting through all the coaches and picking the best guy suitable for us. I love the system. It's what we did at Oregon. You come to the line of scrimmage and go — boom, boom, boom.”

        Q: Some people said you were thinking too much and not letting your natural ability happen. Do you agree?

        A: “That was one of my biggest problems. Kind of hesitating in the pocket instead of just dropping back and relaxing it and letting it happen. That was what I did in college. I'm looking to have a big year this year.”

        Q: What are the differences between the offense last year and this year?

        A: “The biggest difference is we're now able to audible at the line of scrimmage as far as the quick game is concerned. If there are eight (defenders at the line) getting ready to stop (running back) Corey (Dillon), we can just check it to a pass play.”

        Q: Are they going to get you another receiver in the draft?

        A: “I was talking to (quarterbacks coach) Kenny (Anderson) about that. That lineman from Texas (left tackle Leonard Davis) is the last (possible pick) I heard. I don't know.”

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