Quietly last week, quarterback Akili Smith slipped to No.3 on the Bengals' depth chart.

        When Scott Mitchell's sprained ankle healed after the opening-day win Sept.9 against New England, he was promoted to No.2 behind starter Jon Kitna.

        For Smith, the third overall pick of the 1999 draft, the demotion caps a year that saw him drop from franchise savior to emergency third QB — for the first time — for Sunday's game vs. Baltimore.

        His throwing-shoulder tendinitis, which sidelined him three weeks of training camp, has healed. He blames the injury, in part, for his roster spot.

        “Injuries are a big part of the game,” he said. “That's what I'm telling myself to keep from going crazy.”

        Smith took some extra snaps in practice Thursday afternoon. Kitna tweaked a lower back muscle and sat out the final hour; he will practice today and start Sunday.

        “If it's meant for me to play this year, I might play the last six games,” Smith said. “I might play Sunday. That's the way I have to look at this thing.”

        Before last season, former coach Bruce Coslet and team president Mike Brown said the Bengals would go as far as Smith took them, even though Smith had played in seven games and started only four.

        They were 2-8 when Smith was benched in favor of Mitchell. He started two weeks later when Mitchell was injured. The Bengals lost again.

        Smith was 2-9 as a starter with a 52.6 passer rating.

        In the offseason, the Bengals made runs at free agents Elvis Grbac, Gus Frerotte and Brad Johnson. Grbac and Johnson would have been clear starters. Kitna — and Frerotte, who turned down the same offer Kitna ended up signing — left the chance for Smith to win his job back.

        “I worked hard in the offseason,” Smith said. “I studied; I worked out.”

        But Smith's shoulder injury, suffered Aug.10 in Detroit kept him out of the final two preseason games. “With me being hurt, that automatically pushed me to third string,” he said.

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