Bengals quarterbacks Jon Kitna and Gus Frerotte smile during practice last week. (AP photo) | ZOOM |

        Look for quarterback Gus Frerotte to be named today as the Bengals' fifth different opening-day starter in the past five years.

        Frerotte, who signed a one-year, free-agent contract on May1, had the best preseason showing of any of the team's three quarterbacks in Saturday night's loss to the New Orleans Saints. Frerotte threw for 157 yards and one touchdown, and showed increasing comfort with the pass offense.

        He should edge incumbent Jon Kitna, who is expected to be the top backup.

        The No. 3 quarterback will be Akili Smith.

        Kitna started the 2001 opener, Smith in 2000. Jeff Blake was the 1999 starter, and Neil O'Donnell started the first game of 1998.

        Bengals coach Dick LeBeau said he would announce his decision at a noon news conference, which will close a competition that started May 4 at minicamp .

        “We'll evaluate them again and go with who, in my opinion, will give us the best chance of winning,” LeBeau said after the 31-23 loss to the Saints.

        That quarterback is Frerotte. He has the arm strength and mobility that Kitna lacks, and Frerotte doesn't throw interceptions at Kitna's rate.

        Kitna, who threw 22 interceptions and 12 touchdowns last season, has a career interception percentage of 3.9. Frerotte has a career interception rate of 3.0, and the most interceptions he has thrown in one season is 13. That was 1995, the same year he threw 13 touchdown passes for the Washington Redskins.

        If Frerotte can throw the same number of TD passes as interceptions this season, the Bengals should control the ball more consistently and not force their defense to defend short fields.

        Frerotte's best season was 1996, when his 12 touchdown passes, 11 interceptions and 3,435 passing yards landed him on the NFC Pro Bowl team. In fact, the only season in which Frerotte threw more interceptions than touchdowns was 1998, his last in Washington, when he had one TD and three picks in three games.

        Frerotte also appears to have the support of Bengals upper management. Kitna is held responsible for most of the problems the Bengals' pass offense endured last season.

        Besides his 22 interceptions, Kitna also had an AFC-high 13 fumbles in 2001. He threw an interception against the Saints, fumbled a snap and twice failed to get the offense into the end zone from inside the New Orleans 10-yard line. The Bengals twice settled for field goals.

        Another criticism of Kitna is his questionable arm strength. Frerotte has the ability to throw the deep-out pattern that Kitna appears to avoid, and Frerotte can throw with zip off his back foot when the rush is on.

        This is known: Smith will not start early in the season. Though he played well in the first three preseason games, he didn't play against a first-team defense.

        Although he produced seven points and almost engineered a last-second touchdown drive, Smith's scrambling performance in the second half Saturday night might represent a regression for the fourth-year quarterback.

        Offensive coaches would rather see him make good reads in the pass offense and use his arm, not his legs, to move the ball.

        While he played with confidence, Smith was too quick to tuck the ball and run, which -- as he learned when he tore a hamstring last year in his only start -- can lead to trouble. Running quarterbacks get hit hard and don't last long in the regular season.

        Beginning this afternoon, Frerotte will have eight practices with the first-team offense before the Sept. 8 opener at home against the San Diego Chargers.

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