Posted by ESPN.com's James Walker
Ben Utecht describes his five-year NFL career in one word: spoiled.
The veteran tight end left the Indianapolis Colts for the Cincinnati Bengals this offseason, continuing his trend of playing for high-powered offenses.
"The easy thing is I'm going from one Pro-Bowl quarterback to another; first Peyton Manning and now Carson Palmer is on my team, so that's been an asset,'' Utecht said. "But it's been tough to learn a new offense. There are motions and a lot of things that I didn't have to do in Indianapolis.''
Utecht had 68 receptions for 741 yards as a reserve the past two seasons behind Pro Bowl tight end Dallas Clark. Both players were free agents last year and the Colts retained Clark and allowed Utecht to bolt to Cincinnati.
Utecht, a first-year starter, calls this his "dream job" because he gets to shed his label as a career backup. He was used mostly as a blocking tight end in Indianapolis, but this year he is more involved in the passing game.
Sure, Utecht is leaving Manning. But he likes what he sees so far from Palmer.
"It's really not a whole lot of difference,'' Utecht said of catching passes from the two quarterbacks. "I have not experienced any balls that's been off, and that's the way it was with Peyton. You kind of step back and say, 'Wow. He's always going to put the ball on the money.'
