Thanks to one of the new provisions in the NFL collective bargaining agreement, teams now have the ability to roll over remaining cap room into the following season.

Cincinnati will have the third most amount of cap space in the NFL at $60 million after moving over $15 million dollars from the 2011 season.

Only the Kansas City Chiefs ($62.995 million, after rolling over $24.014 million from the 2011 season) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers ($60.496 million, after rolling over $23.519 million) have more money than the traditionally conservative and penny-pinching Bengals.

After coming of a 9-7 AFC Wild Card campaign—that would end with a 31-10 loss to the Houston Texans—the Bengals with their promising duo on offense of Pro Bowl quarterback Andy Dalton, tight end Jermaine Gresham and wide receiver A.J. Green, stout defense and some money to spend, Cincinnati could be the team to watch in the rugged AFC North.

With the possibility of losing acrobatic wideout Jerome Simpson and linebacker Manny Lawson via free agency, big names such as Dwayne Bowe, Vincent Jackson and Mario Williams are a real possibility for Cincinnati

One name in particular that may interest the Bengals is free agent wide receiver—and former Pittsburgh Steeler—Mike Wallace.

Wallace, the explosive and speedy four-year veteran out of Ole Miss, is widely considered one of the most dangerous deep threats in the NFL.

Wallace would have 72 receptions for 1,193 yards and eight touchdowns in 2011-12. Wallace would see his production from his breakout 2010-11 slip due to the breakout of fellow Steelers wide outs in Antonio Brown and Emmanuel Sanders.

With the likelihood of Green being double-teamed more in 2012-13, and the need of a speedy downfield threat for Dalton in the passing game, the addition of Wallace opposite Green would be a perfect fit.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter would state that Wallace would be a realistic target for the Bengals due to the Steelers being constrained by the salary cap—and in theory—If the Bengals were to sign Wallace to a offer sheet with a pro-rated signing bonus, Pittsburgh would then have to either match it, or risk seeing Wallace defect to a division rival.

Is Wallace worth a possible first round pick for the Bengals? Or does Cincinnati go in a different direction and look for a speedy wide out in the likes of Baylor’s Kendall Wright or Rutger’s Mohamed Sanu in the 2012 NFL Draft in April?

That is the question surely on the mind of Bengals owner and president, Mike Brown.

And only Brown can answer it, but the thought of seeing the explosive tandem of Wallace and Green is sure to be tantalizing none the less.

If the Bengals display the “eye of the tiger” in free agency, then the AFC North will soon become their proverbial jungle to rule in 2012.

Follow me on Twitter, @RobertCobb_76 and @The_BoxScore   

According to Fox 19 in Cincinnati via Josh Katzowitz of CBS Sports, Maualuga is being accused of punching and injuring a bar manager in downtown Cincinnati last weekend. While Maualuga hasn’t been officially charged with anything as of late Thursday, the report claims the incident took place at a bar called Luxe.

For those of you that remember, Maualuga was arrested and charged with driving under the influence two years ago in Covington, Kentucky–so this isn’t the first time the linebacker has been in trouble with the law.

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Through 12 games, Dalton has thrown for 2,644 yards to go along with 17 touchdowns and just 12 interceptions while completing nearly 60 percent of his passes. What’s even more impressive is Dalton has posted these type of numbers with a young receiving core consisting of rookie A.J. Green, Jerome Simpson, and Jermaine Gresham–which is good enough for Kubiak to compare Dalton to Favre.

Here’s what Kubiak had to say about the Bengals rookie courtesy of Kevin Goheen of the Cincinnati Enquirer:

“He obviously threw the ball a lot more than Brett did coming out but just the way you watched him play the games, the way you watched him find a way to win, find a way to make a play,” Kubiak said. “That’s what it’s all about in this league. You’ve got to be able to improvise and he can definitely do that. I don’t see any throws he hasn’t been able to make. I’ve got one in my mind down in Seattle where he moved to his left and hit (AJ) Green down the middle of the field. I see him making every throw you need to make and that’s all that matters.”

It’s one thing to be praised for your ability to win as a young rookie, but to be compared to a quarterback like Favre? No big deal for Dalton, right?

Heading into Week 14, the Bengals currently have the No. 6 seed in the AFC, but there are three other teams that have the same 7-5 record–which means every game from here on out is important. Luckily, Cincinnati’s two toughest remaining games against Houston and the Baltimore Ravens will be played at Paul Brown Stadium–so let’s hope Dalton can display some Favre-like performances in front of the home crowd and keep the team’s playoff hopes alive.

Dan Parzych is the Lead NFL Content Editor for RantSports.com/NFL,  where he writes and edits NFL content for RantSports.com.

Like Newton, Dalton has been nothing short of phenomenal over his first eight games in the NFL and has the Bengals tied with the Baltimore Ravens for best record in the AFC (6-2) at the halfway point of the 2011 season. Not only has Dalton already thrown for 1,696 yards to go along with 12 touchdowns, but the rookie’s latest win over the Tennessee Titans was the third time this season he’s helped Cincinnati rally from a second-half deficit to pick up a win.

Even if Newton ends up with one of the greatest statistical rookie seasons in NFL history, it doesn’t compare to what Dalton’s done so far for the Bengals. Here’s a player that was thrown into the mix right away when Carson Palmer refused to return for the 2011 season and was supposed to experience the typical growing pains in his first year as a starter–just like most rookies do.

Instead, Dalton has played like anything but a rookie so far and appears to have a bright future ahead of him as the franchise quarterback for the Bengals. The race for Rookie of the Year will be close between Dalton and Newton, but when the voters take wins into consideration instead of just statistics–there’s no question Dalton will come out on top to take home the honors.

Dan Parzych is the Lead NFL Content Editor for RantSports.com/NFL,  where he writes and edits NFL content for RantSports.com.

Les Carpenter of Yahoo! Sports discussed on Thursday how Andy Dalton has helped Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis and company move on from Palmer after the former TCU standout has played a big role in the team’s surprise 4-2 start. However, it was Lewis’ comments towards Palmer about last season–mainly how he believes his quarterback “quit” in the middle of the season.

From Carpenter’s article:

“At what point did Carson quit?” Bengals coach Marvin Lewis asks, repeating a similar question. “At some point last year he decided he didn’t want to be here. This didn’t happen at the end of the season. There was a point earlier on when he said, ‘This isn’t the place for me.’ ”

There were high expectations for the Bengals in 2010 after winning the AFC North the previous year, but their season was nothing but frustrating as they finished with one of the worst records in football at 4-12.

Palmer did admit his decision to never set foot in Paul Brown Stadium again was selfish, but he strongly believes it was the right one after eight seasons. Mike Brown has been cricicized numerous times for his inability to run the organization and became the quickest owner to reach 200 losses–so it should be no surprise Palmer was feeling the frustration.

Still, there’s no reason for Lewis to be taking a shot at his former quarterback. In the end, the move needed to be done and Cincinnati received two high draft picks in the process–so there’s no reason for Lewis or the team to still be upset about everything.

Dan Parzych is the Lead NFL Content Editor for RantSports.com/NFL,  where he writes and edits NFL content for RantSports.com.

According to Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports, the Raiders are “trying hard” to work out a deal for Palmer, but it’s difficult to determine whether or not Bengals owner Mike Brown would give in and trade his once beloved franchise quarterback. Palmer threatened to retire last January if the organization failed to meet his demands for a trade and with Tuesday’s deadline quickly approaching–Brown continues to refuse his quarterback’s wish.

Considering the Bengals impressive 4-2 start being Andy Dalton and a revived defense, Brown should at least see what the Raiders have to offer. Both individuals are ready to move on in their careers without one another and the least Brown could do is at least gain a draft pick or two for his former No. 1 pick–especially since it’s clear Dalton is the team’s new quarterback of the future.

Dan Parzych is the Lead NFL Content Editor for RantSports.com/NFL,  where he writes and edits NFL content for RantSports.com.

Thanks to a strong defense and great leadership by rookie quarterback Andy Dalton, Cincinnati is off to an impressive 4-2 start–matching last year’s win total with 10 games left in the 2011 season. After losing two of their first three games, the Bengals have won three straight following a 27-17 win over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday and head into their bye week on a positive note by already matching last year’s win total–which nobody could have predicted.

Mike Zimmer has done a phenomenal job at defensive coordinator as the Bengals’ defense ranks in the top five overall in the NFL and has yet to allow an opponent to score more than 24 points in a game. Dalton has looked like anything but a rookie by exceeding all expectations in his first six games–including two impressive come-from-behind wins back-to-back weeks against the Buffalo Bills and Jacksonville Jaguars.

Even if they fail to reach the postseason, this year could still end up being a win for the Bengals considering how impressive they’ve looked so far this season. For a team that most analysts expected to win four or five games at most, it’s unbelievable to think how many problems Cincinnati will cause for other teams this season–especially when it comes to the AFC North.

Dan Parzych is the Lead NFL Content Editor for RantSports.com/NFL,  where he writes and edits NFL content for RantSports.com.

Although what was said may never be known, what IS known is that with the NFL trade deadline looming, Palmer may be getting his wish of getting traded out of Cincinnati.

It is believed that Brown may try to trade the nine-year veteran to a QB-needy team such as Seattle, Indianapolis or even Miami.

While the fore-mentioned teams have starters in Tavaris Jackson, Curtis Painter and Matt Moore, none of them are of the caliber of the two-time Pro Bowl QB and 2002 Heisman Trophy winner.

In 98 career starts—counting post-season, Palmer has a record of 44-51, including an 0-2 mark in the playoffs.

For his career, Palmer has completed 2,024 passes for 22,694 yards. Palmer has thrown 154 touchdowns, 100 interceptions and posted a QB rating of 86.9

Follow me on Twitter, @Dawgfather_76 

Jones was a key member of the Bengals’ defense since coming on board in 2007 and had started all 16 games in each of his last three seasons. On top of football, Jones was best known for his Bow Tie Cafe in Cincinnati and Dhani Tackles the Globe–a show on the Travel Channel in which Jones traveled the world and learned about popular sports in other countries.

Below is a video of Jones discussing his retirement in which he thanks all of the people that helped him become the man he is today. Thanks for a great 11 seasons in the NFL Dhani–you were always one of my favorite players to watch and inspirational players that always have a positive attitude like you are one of a kind.

On Friday, Collins released a statement through his attorney, Robert Lotz, about what happened on Tuesday that can be found below courtesy of the Cincinnati Enquirer’s Joe Reedy:

This past Tuesday morning I stopped by the house of my teammate, Jerome Simpson, on my way to the stadium. While I was at his home, several law enforcement officers unexpectedly entered the house. I had no idea what it was about and after identifying myself and speaking to the officers, they let me go on my way.

Unfortunately I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. However, I do want to take this opportunity to let my fans, friends and family know that I had no part in the reported activities at Jerome’s home. I have done nothing wrong and I have not been charged with doing anything wrong. So far as I know, I am no longer a part of any investigation.

In due time, I am confident that authorities will clear my name and announce I am not a person of interest and my name will be completely cleared from Tuesday’s incident. In the meantime, my focus will continue to be on playing football and helping my teammates, coaches and the rest of the Cincinnati Bengals organization have a successful 2011 season.

Simpson has been excused from practice the last two days and whether or not he’ll play Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers is still unknown as the organization continues to gather information about this incident. Unfortunately, things don’t look good for Simpson as of now considering authorities found six more pounds of marijuana in his household and the wideout could even face jail for this incident.

Dan Parzych is the Lead NFL Content Editor for RantSports.com/NFL,  where he writes and edits NFL content for RantSports.com.