"Any time you get more than third-and-5, they're going to blitz somebody," Palmer says. "As you come up to the line, you have to be looking for any indicator that might tip off where a blitz is coming from. There are so many little things to look for."

Tens of decisions. Three seconds.

"You may be looking at one guy. If he blitzes, you gotta throw hot" to a receiver designated as the safety valve if a sack seems imminent.

"If (the blitzer) doesn't come, you have to look at the two guys on the other side."

INSIDE CAMP Friday's photos

Coming up • 1 p.m., mock game (with NFL officials) • After an off day Sunday, the Bengals return to practice twice on Monday: 8:45-11 a.m. and 4-5:30 p.m. Directions From downtown: Take I-75 South about 70 miles to Exit 126 (Georgetown, Ky.). Turn right off ramp onto U.S. 460 West. Stay on 460 for about 2 miles. Turn right at light onto Lemons Mill Road (1962 West). Turn right into driveway flanked with Georgetown College/Bengals signs Injury report • Tackle Levi Jones (car accident), wide receiver Patrick Johnson (unannounced) and cornerbacks Reggie Myles (groin) and Greg Brooks (intestinal virus) might be back Monday. • Guard Eric Steinbach (elbow) and wide receiver Maurice Mann (ankle) could be back midweek. • Offensive lineman Scott Kooistra (knee) could be back late next week or early the following week. • Linebacker Kevin Hardy (back spasms) is day-to-day. Palmer watch Quarterback Carson Palmer worked the first two series of the intrasquad scrimmage Friday. Friday's highlights A few members of an NFL officiating crew have worked the past couple practices. They called several defensive holding and illegal contact penalties in the 5-yard chuck zone, reflecting a point of emphasis for the season. On one play Friday, cornerback Terrell Roberts was called for illegal contact on a pass intended for T.J. Houshmandzadeh. "They're still adjusting," umpire Jim Quirk said. "They just don't believe it. They think we'll lighten up after the season gets started. Word is from above that we are not to lighten up." Preseason schedule Aug. 14 - at Tampa Bay, 7 p.m. Aug. 21 - NEW ENGLAND, 7:30 p.m. Aug. 28 - at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 3 - INDIANAPOLIS, 7:30 p.m.

Are those guys blitzing? Are they in coverage? Are they laughing hysterically at this first-year QB trying to think and play? You can't do both. This ain't college; thinking will get you killed. Welcome to the league, kid.

"I'm already three steps into my drop," Palmer says, "and I'm asking myself, what coverage are they in? Who's breaking what way? What if I have to run?"

Who is blocked? Who isn't? Where are the safeties? Where's my mother?

Playing quarterback in the NFL is like driving the space shuttle while doing a crossword and writing the Declaration of Independence. Think of hitting off Randy Johnson while filing your nails and your tax return. It is the hardest position in professional sports.

"It's not even close," says Bengals QB coach Ken Zampese, the man charged with Creating Carson. Someone suggests catcher in baseball. It requires similar, all-points knowledge, total involvement in the game and occasional physical encounters with large men capable of inflicting pain.

"There is not a point in time when a catcher is going to be hit in his blindside by a very big man," Zampese says.

We like Carson Palmer. We like his size. We like the way he kept quiet last year when the public drumbeat sounded his name. Carson Palmer throws a pretty ball. He throws it farther than most quarterbacks. Compared to Palmer, the other quarterbacks in Bengals camp are throwing hot air balloons.

Marvin Lewis likes Palmer so much he is staking his sophomore year as head coach on him. Lewis is handing the momentum of 8-8 in 2003 to a kid who has never taken a snap in anger, across a schedule that looks like a mush through the Himalayas in January.

It will not come down to Palmer's ability to throw a football through a car wash and keep it dry. As Zampese says: "Carson can get the ball out in a hurry. But if it's not on time, he might as well be throwing it underhanded."

It will come down to Palmer's ability to react like a fighter pilot and adjust like Michael Jordan in mid-air. The job is getting Palmer to see things quickly enough to make his skills matter.

It's why Palmer and Zampese are connected at the brain. "I see him more than my wife," Palmer says. "I'm not happy about it."

Seven hours a day. Four in practice, three in meetings. "He's a workhorse, a perfectionist," Palmer says of Zampese. "He gets every minute of your time he can. I need that. This blitz, that coverage. What am I looking at? Seeing it in your mind. Going through the footwork and the mental repetition."

Zampese likes to say he's "creating an atmosphere that promotes confidence. When a guy's confident, he's decisive. He sees things clearly. I'm very detailed with him about where we're going with the ball, and why."

Palmer is smart enough to know what he doesn't know. "It is overwhelming," he says. "You never have just one thing going through your head. It's all instinct. That's why you do this twice a day for four weeks. It becomes repetition. You don't have to think.

"You know what else?" Palmer asks.

What?

"I never realized how simple the college game was. I should have thrown for a zillion yards."

Zampese likes Palmer's openness to instruction. He likes that Palmer's teammates have accepted him as The Man. He likes that Palmer is tall enough to throw over angry defensive lineman, with an arm rubbery enough to throw from different angles. Zampese thinks he has hit the lottery.

Palmer likes that things that confused him or outright eluded him last year are becoming natural. "Looking back (not playing last year) was the best thing that could have happened to me," he says.

It all looks good. But the Jets are a month away. They have a new defensive coordinator, with an entirely new system. They won't be giving anything away in August. Not much tape to peruse for tendencies.

Third down-and-7, Bengals 30-yard-line, 12th of September, first series of the opening game. Now what, Carson Palmer? We'll see.

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E-mail pdaugherty@enquirer.com

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