Carson Palmer: 10 Possible Trade Destinations For Cincinnati Bengals Quarterback
Amid the tension of the AFC and NFC Championships this weekend, no one expected to hear any earth-shaking news out of Cincinnati Bengals camp, but Carson Palmer delivered a bombshell.
Palmer has requested a trade from the team that drafted him with the No. 1 overall pick, and according to ESPN's Adam Schefter, he's willing to play the retirement card if necessary.
As usual, there are more than a couple teams that could benefit from picking up a new quarterback, especially one with plenty of NFL experience like Carson Palmer. Here are 10 of the teams I think could make a play for the former USC quarterback.
Seattle Seahawks
1 of 10
Predicting the Seahawks as a trade destination for any player may not be an astute statement. The Seahawks made nearly 300 roster moves since Pete Carroll joined the fold.
Still, Palmer to Seattle makes sense on a number of levels. The bond between Palmer and Carroll goes back to their days working together at USC. Even though Carroll has already gone on record as saying he wants Matt Hasselbeck back in Seattle, he's not getting any younger.
Sure, the Seahawks have Charlie Whitehurst waiting in the wings, but if they're even the slightest bit uncertain about his status as the "quarterback of the future" then they need to look into trading for Palmer.
Miami Dolphins
2 of 10
The Dolphins have been sorting out many of their issues over the past few weeks. From flirting with Jim Harbaugh to bringing back both Tony Sparano and Jeff Ireland, the Dolphins are figuring out long-term answers at several key positions. Next on the list needs to be quarterback.
The Dolphins weren't shy about bringing in veteran Chad Pennington when the franchise clearly lacked a quarterback, and they had hoped his veteran presence would help groom Chad Henne. The Michigan quarterback has had two seasons to convince the Dolphins and their fans but has done little to do so.
Having a franchise quarterback becomes much more important with the departures of Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown. If Carson Palmer is available, the Dolphins need to do their diligence to make sure they don't miss out on a great opportunity to bring in a veteran quarterback that could quickly right the ship.
Washington Redskins
3 of 10
Dan Snyder is no stranger to snagging highly touted players from the trade block and the free agent list. It remains to be seen whether the Redskins will activate Donovan McNabb's $10 million option, and even though last year was just his first as a Redskin, it wouldn't be the first time Snyder has pulled the plug early on an experiment.
Perhaps Palmer would be a better fit for Shanahan's system than McNabb was. If he can learn how to run that two-minute offense, he should be fine.
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Tennessee Titans
4 of 10
When Bud Adams said he wasn't bringing back Vince Young in 2011, it marked a big step forward for the Titans organization. The next step is to find his replacement.
Kerry Collins is 38 years old and isn't getting any younger. The Titans have a big play threat in Kenny Britt, and they could certainly use a big arm like Carson Palmer to take advantage of that. One other thing that should also help Palmer is the threat of Chris Johnson running out of the backfield. That would open things up on the outsides.
Jeff Fisher is fond of pocket passers and would be doing himself a good favor by picking up Palmer in the event that Collins doesn't stick around.
Arizona Cardinals
5 of 10
If ever there was proof of how much of a difference a quality quarterback can make, the 2010 Cardinals were it. After the retirement of future Hall of Fame candidate Kurt Warner, the Cardinals were stuck in a Derek Anderson v. Matt Leinart quarterback controversy.
Talk about going from the creme of the crop to digging at the bottom of the barrel.
Larry Fitzgerald is commanding some big dollars for a contract extension, and to get the most out of their big investment, the Cardinals need to be aggressive in seeking out an improvement at quarterback. Unless, of course, they're just planning to mortgage the 2011 season for a shot at Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck.
Denver Broncos
6 of 10
Kyle Orton. Tim Tebow. John Fox.
These are just a few of the key names that will determine the outcome of the Broncos growing quarterback controversy. It seems odd to think that the Broncos would dump their former first-round pick Tim Tebow without even giving him a chance to start a full season, but many in the NFL are of the belief that Tebow will never evolve into a "true" NFL quarterback.
Needless to say, Palmer is an NFL-ready quarterback despite his struggles over the past couple of seasons.
The Denver "Donkeys" are flat on their asses after a tough 2010 season that saw the firing of their head coach. Sure, the Broncos have a lot of quarterbacks on the roster, but if John Fox and his staff don't think any of them are the answer, Palmer may be worth a glance. Who knows? Maybe the Bengals would be interested in one of Denver's many quarterbacks in a trade.
Carolina Panthers
7 of 10
The good news of the Carolina Panthers' two-win season was that they won the Andrew Luck sweepstakes. The bad news is that those sweepstakes ended posthumously to the Panthers' miserable season, when Luck pulled out of the draft to finish his senior year at Stanford.
Franchise quarterback or not, the Panthers still sit pretty with the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, a pick that, coincidentally or not, was once used on Carson Palmer back in 2003. That's not to say that Palmer will command the No. 1 overall pick this year or that the Bengals even want it, just an interesting point of...well, interest.
It remains to be seen whether the Panthers will give Jimmy Clausen another chance as their quarterback of the future, but adding Palmer as insurance can't hurt. Just like many other positions on the roster, you can never have too many quarterbacks.
Minnesota Vikings
8 of 10
No franchise is surrounded by more uncertainty than the Vikings. Not only is their stadium in shambles, but with an expiring contract at the Metrodome, they may not even be back to play in Minnesota next year. Oh, yeah, and some guy named Brett Favre "officially" retired just under a week ago.
Needless to say, the Vikings are stuck with more questions than answers and would be wise to start finding those answers sooner than later.
Zygi Wilf is no stranger to pursuing a veteran quarterback in favor of drafting one, and even if Carson Palmer has some question marks, he's certainly marred by less controversy than, say, Tarvaris Jackson.
San Francisco 49ers
9 of 10
In true Alex Smith form, the former No. 1 overall draft pick did just enough at the end of the 2010 season to plant a seed of doubt in the minds of 49ers fans as to whether he would be back for another season as the starter. He brought back the age old question, "Is Alex Smith the answer?"
No.
With the Singletary era over in San Francisco, Jim Harbaugh can quickly begin rebuilding the franchise in the mold he envisions for the team. Michael Crabtree could certainly benefit from a quarterback who has already played in the NFL for awhile and has done so at a high level in the past.
Cincinnati Bengals
10 of 10
Oftentimes, trade demands go unanswered. That's the nature of professional sports.
This marriage doesn't seem to be beyond repair. It remains uncertain exactly what must be done to fix the problem at hand, but there's no certainty in saying that Palmer wont' be wearing black and orange next year, either.
Not every scenario goes down a la Jay Cutler in 2009. Sometimes, cooler heads prevail. We'll have to wait and see if the Bengals front office and Carson Palmer are willing to put their differences aside, or if this trade demand is the beginning of the end.
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