No gain on this return

He wanted to bust through the line of scrimmage and carry a couple of his former teammates on his back. That didn't happen. They were waiting for him. And the Bengals' fans were waiting for him, too. With every stop of No. 28 in the white jersey, they cheered. With every sighting of Dillon, they booed.

To Bengals fans, this was like Roger Clemens returning to Boston in pinstripes.

Dillon, who gained 10 yards on seven carries against the Bengals' first team (11 carries for 31 yards overall), rightly downplayed his return during the week. But it wasn't just Dillon who played poorly. The Patriots' offense was stuffed all over the field -- outgained, 176-7, in the first quarter and 276-122 for the first half, when the Bengals raced to a 28-3 lead.

"I don't care about the crowd, who cares?" Dillon said. "I don't care about them. I want to play here [with the Patriots] and I'm happy and content where I'm at. Believe me, I'm more than happy. They can say what they want. They're not making plays on the field. "If I had the opportunity to do it all again, I would do the same. No regrets, no looking back. I'm happy where I'm at or I wouldn't be here. Regardless of the outcome of the game, these are my boys. We're going to win and lose together. No hard feelings. They can say whatever they want. I ain't got no excuses. They just won, period."

Dillon's most significant work was probably making a first down with a 3-yard gain on third and 2 from the Bengals' 6 in the second quarter, but much as the Patriots wanted Dillon to score, the Bengals came back at him just as hard, stuffing him twice and forcing a field goal attempt.

Dillon broke an 11-yard run against the Bengals' scrubs, at one point running out of bounds, where Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis gave him a pat on the behind. But later in the third quarter, after catching a screen pass from Rohan Davey, Dillon coughed up the ball, resulting in yet another roar from the Bengals' crowd. Dillon was hit by Caleb Miller and the loose ball was recovered at the Cincinnati 21 by free safety Kevin Kaesviharn.

Johnson, meanwhile, whom the Bengals felt correctly was ready to assume the starting job, looked forward all week to Dillon's return. He wanted to show the Bengals made the right choice trading Dillon to New England for a second-round pick.

Johnson gained 71 yards on 14 carries in the first quarter alone, 76 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown in all. Considered a more patient runner than Dillon, Johnson looked more like Dillon on this night, slamming through the line of scrimmage. On the Bengals' first possession, Carson Palmer handed to Johnson three straight times on first and 10 from the Patriots' 18. That's when Johnson rumbled for 13, 4, and 1 yard for the score.

The only salvation for Dillon and the Patriots is that it was only a preseason game and the teams will meet again Dec. 12 at Gillette Stadium.

"I'll worry about Dec. 12 when Dec. 12 comes along," Dillon said.

But in this dress rehearsal, he heard the message from his former fans that perhaps "C.D. ain't no Rudi."