Could the return of Andre Smith be the answer for the Cincinnati Bengals' offensive line?

Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle Andre Smith block against Cleveland Browns defensive end John Hughes during an NFL game in Cleveland on Dec. 6, 2015.

After the Cincinnati Bengals became the first NFL team since 1939 to open a season with two home games and fail to score a touchdown, quarterbacks coach Bill Lazor replaced Ken Zampese as the team's offensive coordinator.

The Bengals reached the end zone three times in their first game with Lazor calling the plays, although they lost to the Green Bay Packers 27-24 in overtime on Sunday.

There was something else different for the Cincinnati offense against the Packers, too: Veteran tackle Andre Smith got to play.

Smith didn't play in the season-opening play and got on the field for three special-teams snaps in Game 2. Against the Packers, Smith played 26 snaps with the Bengals' offense - 14 in relief of Jake Fisher at right tackle, a spot that Smith filled for five seasons for Cincinnati, and 12 in relief of Cedric Ogbuehi at left tackle.

Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis said the Bengals used Smith because Sunday's game was the hottest in the history of Green Bay's Lambeau Field, although the team's other three offensive linemen played every snap.

"We went into the game knowing about the heat, and I said after the game that we (had planned to) rotate those guys," Lewis said.

But Smith's play gave the Bengals something to think about.

"We will evaluate that as we move forward," Lewis said of the tackle rotation.

Lazor said Smith had shown in practice he could handle left tackle even though he'd been strictly a right tackle in the NFL.

"I thought even in the practice week he looked pretty natural doing it," Lazor said. "I asked him, and I don't think he has too much of a preference. Some guys struggle to go back and forth. He looked pretty natural to me."

Smith was just glad to play again.

"I was just happy to be out there, get back to playing football," Smith said. "... It felt really good to go out there and compete."

Smith spent seven seasons in Cincinnati after being selected out of Alabama with the sixth pick in the 2009 NFL Draft - two injury-filled seasons to start his career and five as the Bengals' right offensive tackle.

Smith left Cincinnati for the Minnesota Vikings in free agency in 2016, but a triceps injury suffered in the fourth game ended his season.

Smith re-signed with Cincinnati in March. The announced plan was to have him play right guard.

Free agency hit Cincinnati's offensive line hard in the offseason. Left tackle Andrew Whitworth, an 11-year starter, went to the Los Angeles Rams for a three-year, $33.75 million contract, and Kevin Zeitler, the right guard, left for a five-year, $60 million contract from the Cleveland Browns.

In the 2015 NFL Draft, the Bengals had used their first two picks on offensive tackles -- Texas A&M's Ogbuehi in the first round and Oregon's Fisher in the second. When Smith left for Minnesota, the Bengals moved Ogbuehi in at right tackle. With Whitworth gone, he switched sides of the line and Fisher took over at right tackle for 2017.

Cincinnati ended up going with Trey Hopkins at right guard, even though he had one game of NFL experience. When Hopkins suffered an injury in the season-opening game that has kept him sidelined since, the Bengals plugged the right-guard hole with T.J. Johnson, who'd started one game in three previous NFL seasons.

That left Smith on the bench and quarterback Andy Dalton under fire, the victim of eight sacks in the first two games.

Smith said he felt good about how he played against the Packers after sitting for two games.

"I did some good stuff," Smith said. "On the road with 80,000 people yelling, it was pretty good. There's room for improvement. (The transition to left tackle) wasn't that hard. I tried to just stay true to my technique and just make sure I didn't do anything off the wall or crazy. I played right tackle for nine years. I know how to do that. I saw Whitworth do it the right way (at left tackle) for seven years. I know what it's supposed to look like."

The Bengals are looking at what to do with their offensive line as they head into the Battle of Ohio. The Bengals play the Browns at noon CDT Sunday in Cleveland, and neither team has won a game this season.

The Browns might have defensive end Myles Garrett, the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft in April, ready to attack the Cincinnati line. Garrett hasn't played this season after suffering a high-ankle sprain on Sept. 6, but he returned to practice on Thursday and is listed as questionable on the Browns' injury report.

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Smith was a prep star at Huffman High School in Birmingham -- a Parade All-American, the Class 6A Lineman of the Year and the ASWA's Mr. Football for the 2005 season. Smith is the only offensive lineman who has earned Alabama's Mr. Football honor.

Smith started for three seasons as Alabama's left offensive tackle before leaving the Crimson Tide for the NFL after his junior season. He was a unanimous All-American in 2008, when he won the Outland Trophy as college football's best interior lineman.

Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @AMarkG1.

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