Cincinnati Woes: The Bengals Miserable Offseason Gets Worse With Palmer Dilemma

It has been one of the worst off seasons in recent Bengals history, and the news got worse yesterday as Carson Palmer packed up his stuff, put his house up for sale and started plans to head back to his birth state of California.

Carson is seriously considering retirement, and is sending the signs to the Bengals that no matter what changes they make he is sticking to his original demand to be traded or retire. As the father of three young children, Palmer's wife has been urging him to retire so he can focus on home.  Add to that, his family has been getting heckled by upset Cincinnati fans.  

Palmer has banked millions, and does not have any financial pressure to come back. In addition, his love for the game has seemed to take a dip as he has been “Bengalized” by major injuries, bad coaching, and losing seasons.  

The Bengals are trapped in an awful tailspin and their options are dwindling. They are unable to meet Palmer’s trade demands until a new CBA is signed and the price they could get for him is dropping as the rest of the league knows that the Bengals have zero leverage.

While in a normal circumstances teams like Oakland, Seattle, and Arizona all could offer anywhere from a first pick to a second and a third pick for Palmer going public with his frustration and demands will inevitably leave the Bengals begging to get whatever they can for their former number one overall pick.

Palmer is sending a strong message that brings back memories of Barry Sander’s early retirement when no one believed he would follow through on his threat.

The Bengals are also stuck because the QB pool in the draft is considered to be one of the worst in the last decade and many believe no QB in this years draft is worth a top 20 pick...let alone the 4th overall one that the Bengals own.

Also the free agents out this year are not very good, and the options are a declining Donovan McNabb or the mentally unstable Vince Yong.

Regardless of Palmer’s struggles, if fans get what they want in Palmer leaving Cincinnati they may very well end up regretting that wish. It took the Bengals nearly 12 years to find a franchise QB in Palmer, and they went through many heartbreaking QB busts for years.

Bengal fans, please remember the two AFC North championships because you just may be praying to have those days back if Carson Palmer leaves. The Bengals are on the verge of entering another long QB search, and should be working on a plan B immediately in case Palmer follows Sander’s footsteps and exits the game early.