This season, Carson Palmer has the 4th highest QB Rating of his career(highest since 2007), is on pace to duplicate his two previous 4,000+ yard seasons of 2006 and 2007, has already matched his touchdown total in 10 games last season in 8 games this season with 13 with the Raiders, and has cut his interceptions in half as well. As of right now, Carson Palmer is right on the bubble of statistically being a Top 10 NFL quarterback again...And no one has seemed to notice because of the "eye patch of inferiority" the Raiders organization has worn since their Super Bowl loss to Tampa Bay back in 2002. Everyone should watch the Raiders now however(Yeah, I said it), because Carson Palmer appears to be back to his old form, and it looks like the Raiders finally have a "franchise" quarterback on their roster...and he is not named Jamarcus Russell.
Carson Palmer after being named Pro Bowl MVP: Image provided by NFL
If we take a look at Carson Palmer's career, it is hard not to cheer for him. We have seen him suffer multiple career threatening injuries, from broken noses and torn elbow ligaments, all the way down to the gruesome hit in 2005 that led to what is known by fans as the "Oelhoffen Rule". During the 2005-2006 NFL postseason, the Bengals faced the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the AFC playoffs. After Palmer released a pass, Steelers player Kimo von Oelhoffen blatantly dove into Palmer's leg, contorting Palmer's knee taking him out of the game and almost out of the NFL. Palmer's MRI revealed a severe knee injury, the former Heisman Trophy winner had tears of both the ACL and MCL ligaments, as well as damaged cartilage and meniscus in his left knee, leading to a tragic layoff for the 2005 AFC Player of the Year.
Palmer suffers horrific knee injury: Image provided by CNN.com
Palmer worked as hard as he could to return for the season opener of the 2006 season...And he did. In fact, Palmer was less than a year removed from complete reconstructive surgery and only missed a single snap the entire 2006 season. Palmer also amassed 4,035 passing yards, 23 touchdowns, 13 interceptions and a 93.9 Passer Rating. 2007 saw more of the same from Palmer, but still the Bengals weren't winning games.
Carson Palmer bloodied during a game: Image provided by the NFL
In 2007, a week 15 loss ensured that the Bengals would finish the season with a losing record for the first time with Palmer under center. In that loss, Palmer threw his 100th career touchdown pass, becoming the 5th fastest player ever to reach the milestone in NFL history needing just 59 games. Palmer finished the 2007 season with 376 completions for 4,131 yards and 26 touchdowns, with 20 interceptions. His 20 interceptions were a career high, but his 376 completions and 4,131 passing yards set new Bengals franchise records, the Bengals were 7-9.
In the 2008 season, Palmer saw only four games of action before being shut down for the year with an elbow injury. The injury was a torn ligament and tendon, the Bengals finished 2008 with a record of 4-11-1. Palmer returned in 2009, but clearly wasn't in his top form on the playing field, Palmer lead the Bengals to the playoffs only to have a poor performance against the New York Jets, but considering his recovery from yet another tragic injury...This seemed to only be a hiccup...Until 2010.
2010 was the year the Bengals went on a 10 game losing streak after starting the year 2-1. They would finish the season at 4-12. Yet Palmer proved to be the most productive asset the Bengals had, yet again. Palmer improved from 2009's campaign throwing for 3,970 yards, 26 touchdowns, and 20 interceptions(he only threw 13 INTs in 2009, but had 120 more passing attempts in 2010). Following the Bengals' 4–12 finish in the 2010 season, Palmer requested to be traded, and his ugly departure from Cincinnati began.
Carson Palmer looking on in an unhappy manner: Image by NFL
When Palmer asked for his trade, Bengals president Mike Brown turned down Palmer's request in less than 24 hours. Reports then surfaced stating Palmer is prepared to retire from the NFL if necessary. A friend of Carson Palmer's quoted him saying, "I will never set foot in Paul Brown Stadium again"; "I have $80 million in the bank,"; "I don't have to play football for money. I'll play it for the love of the game, but that would have to be elsewhere." Palmer gave the Bengals enough time to find a replacement quarterback however and the Bengals selected TCU quarterback Andy Dalton in the 2nd round of the 2011 NFL draft. Dalton lead the Bengals to a 6-2 record over the first half of the season, and this security led to Mike Brown finally dealing Palmer to the Oakland Raiders for Oakland's first-round pick in the 2012 draft and a conditional 2nd round pick. The trade was deemed to be one of the most one-sided trades in recent memory, and then Palmer started to show brief flashes in a pan.
Carson Palmer introduced as a Raider: Image by SI.com
In his first start for the Raiders, Palmer threw for over 330 yards and had three touchdowns. He also threw three interceptions and lost a fumble. In his second start as a Raider, Palmer showed improvement as Raiders QB, completing 14 of 20 passes for 299 yards, two touchdowns, and only a single interception. Palmer had a QB rating of 125.0 in a 24-17 road win that would give the Raiders a lead in their division. The playoffs didn't happen however, as the Raiders finished 8-8. But, fans in Oakland had a promising player at quarterback for the first time in a long time and Palmer seemed to be on the cusp of finally clicking in the Raiders offense which leads to this year's optimism from Raider fans.
That optimism seems to be more good than bad for once in Oakland. At 3-5, the Raiders are not out of the playoff race by any stretch, division leader Denver is only 5-3 and the Raiders possess the #6 passing attack in the entire NFL at 281.3 yards per game. But the real fun is on November 25th, 2012...When Carson Palmer sets foot in Paul Brown stadium once again, this time to face the team that was once his own. And it is looking like Palmer will be in top form. Palmer is 16th in QB rating, 10th in passing yards, and 10th in touchdown passes this season...Making you wonder, just how good could Carson Palmer be without those years of futility and setbacks in Cincinnati?
Carson Palmer unphased by the pass rush: Image by NFLPassers.com
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