The Bengals' bid to trade for Drew Bledsoe officially ended Sunday when Buffalo traded its first-round 2003 draft pick for the former New England quarterback.

        “We gave it a good shot,” Bengals coach Dick LeBeau said after the final round of the 2002 draft. “We swung and missed. We intend to take our next swing.”

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        The Bengals did not draft a quarterback with their six picks and will now enter the market for a veteran free agent backup for starter Jon Kitna.

        “Jon's the guy to get the shot,” Bengals president Mike Brown said. “If something happens to him, we've got to have a guy who can carry the freight.”

Some of the quarterbacks available are Gus Frerotte, Dave Brown, Jonathan Quinn, Tony Banks, Jason Garrett — brother of Bengals tight ends coach John Garrett — and former Bengals quarterback Jeff Blake.

        Bengals management is still unsure whether Akili Smith will be completely healed from hamstring surgery.

        Noting that the Bengals play the Bills in the preseason opener and the season finale, LeBeau also said, “I think Bledsoe is a fine man and I wish him well. Better get ready for the firezone (blitz) when we see him.”

        The Bills and Bengals were considered the top contenders for Bledsoe, the former Pro Bowler who lost his job to Patriots Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady.

        “The Bledsoe thing has been dead for some time,” Brown said. “But it seemed to have a life of its own outside the building. You can't make deals unless you have cap count room to make deals. We came to a point where we decided we couldn't sit on the sideline indefinitely in the free-agent market.”

        After waiting to try to swing a trade for Bledsoe, the Bengals signed free agent cornerbacks Artrell Hawkins and Jeff Burris and defensive end Reinard Wilson.

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