NFL Trade Rumors: Should Carson Palmer Force a Trade?

With the news that the Cincinnati Bengals fired offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski, it became clear that the front office was doing everything in their power to keep disgruntled quarterback Carson Palmer.

Earlier this year, Palmer requested a trade, citing the lack of success that both the Bengals, and himself, have found while together.  The former USC quarterback seems interested in trying to thrive elsewhere before he gets too old.

But should Palmer force the trade?  Can he really be better off elsewhere?

The answer is both yes and no.  By my account, there are six NFL teams that should be actively looking for a quarterback during this offseason: Arizona (starting QB last year: Derek Anderson), Carolina (Jimmy Clausen), Tennessee (Vince Young/Kerry Collins), Miami (Chad Henne), San Fransisco (Alex Smith) and Minnesota (Brett Favre).

Now out of that list, which team has better weapons available to Palmer than Cincinnati? 

Minnesota, and Minnesota alone.

The Cardinals have no one but Larry Fitzgerald.  The Panthers are a mess.  Tennessee's only asset is Chris Johnson.  Miami has Brandon Marshall.  San Fransisco has nothing.

All the other teams out there seem rather content with their current QB situation, so unless Palmer miraculously landed in Minnesota, he won't be seeing much success. 

Now if he could strong-arm a trade to the Vikings, he should definitely go for it.  Having Percy Harvin and Bernard Berrian to throw to is much nicer than Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco. Not to mention, there is a tremendous upgrade from Cedric Benson to Adrian Peterson.  

If a trade to Minnesota doesn't materialize, what should Palmer do?  Demand improvements, of course.

The first thing the Bengals need to do is pick up another running back.  The Chiefs, Jets, Bears and Patriots all reaped the benefits from a two-headed running attack.  Teams like Tennessee and Minnesota had stellar enough backs to not need a reliable second option.

Cedric Benson is a quality running back, make no mistake about it.  He can consistently pick up two to three yards and will occasionally get double digits.  But that isn't good enough in the NFL.  Teams can't win with just a bruiser running back.  They need that quick and speedy outside guy to keep defenses honest.

That can mainly be addressed with a late round pick or even a potential free agent pick-up.  The Bengals need to focus on receivers in this year's draft, badly. 

It has already been confirmed that Terrell Owens will not be returning to the team next season and it seems as if Chad Ochocinco will finally be parting ways with the team as well.  That leaves the Bengals with Andre Caldwell, Jordan Shipley and Jerome Simpson as their starting wide receiver corps. 

They are all adequate slot/position guys who can run underneath routes and pick up the occasional first down, but none of them provide that go-to threat every play.  

Mock drafts are showing A.J. Green out Georgia going to the Bengals with their fourth overall pick.  That's definitely a start.

The simple fact of the matter is that there really aren't many better options than Cincinnati right now.  They have a serviceable running back with Benson and reliable, albeit unspectacular, receiving options with Jermain Gresham, Jordan Shipley and Andre Caldwell. 

Instead of pointing fingers around him, Palmer needs to pick up his own slack in the offseason.  With a few pick-ups and better quarterback play, the Bengals just may get back into playoff contention.