Carson Palmer Trade Rumors: Power Ranking the Most Likely Suitors for the QB

I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure Carson Palmer is shouting to get the heck out of Cincinnati in that picture. Would you wanna play for them? 

Palmer hasn't been the same QB since his knee injury in 2005, and now he wants out of Cincinnati. He's asking to be traded, but if they don't he will retire. Palmer stated he had $80 million in the bank. If you can't live off that for the rest of your life please let me know what you do everyday because that's one expensive lifestyle.

For this article to work and make sense we must assume their will soon be a new collective bargaining agreement. There is hope for that too since they agreed on an extension of seven days. The labor talks will continue on Monday.

Now that that's settled, here are my rankings for the most likely destinations for a Carson Palmer trade.  

10. Denver Broncos

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ENGLEWOOD, CO - JANUARY 14: Denver Broncos vice president of football operations John Elway (L), owner Pat Bowlen and new head coach John Fox share a laugh before Fox addressed the media at Dove Valley on January 14, 2011 in Englewood, Colorado. Fox was

New head coach John Fox would love to have a legit quarterback under center. Right now Fox has a big question mark at the position and there will be a battle for the job over the summer. 

Denver could trade away Kyle Orton or Tim Tebow for Palmer and be quickly in contention for the AFC West. It's a win-win because the Bengals get a a quarterback with more experience than a rookie and the Broncos can start winning games. 

9. Oakland Raiders

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ALAMEDA, CA - JANUARY 18: Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis speaks during a press conference on January 18, 2011 in Alameda, California. Hue Jackson was introduced as the new coach of the Oakland Raiders, replacing the fired Tom Cable. (Photo by Justin Sul

Al Davis knows his team has potential. They are a good quarterback away from being a great team. If they could somehow get Palmer on their team then not only could the sweep the AFC West they could also win other games as well and finish above .500 for a change. 

Palmer wouldn't be to thrilled about going to a team that's been known as a loser for quite some time now, but he has no choice in where he goes. And with him running the plays he could turn Oakland from losers to winner over night. 

Another quarterback for quarterback trade plus some draft picks and the Raiders would be a team to watch out for in the AFC, especially if they re-sign Nnamdi Asomugaha. 

8. Washington Redskins

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ARLINGTON, TX - DECEMBER 19: Quarterback Donovan McNabb #5 of the Washington Redskins on the sidelines against play against the Dallas Cowboys at Cowboys Stadium on December 19, 2010 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Things haven't really worked out for Donovan McNabb in Washington so a Palmer for McNabb and draft picks trade would work out very well here. Mike Shanahan and the Redskins get a leader at the QB position that they will get along with.

The Bengals get a veteran QB that gives them hope for winning while they draft a young QB and develop his game in the final years McNabb has left. It's a smart trade on both ends if Cincinnati were smart enough to actually trade Palmer before he retires. 

7. Miami Dolphins

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EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - DECEMBER 12: Chad Henne #7 of the Miami Dolphins against the New York Jets at New Meadowlands Stadium on December 12, 2010 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images)

The Bengals would want Chad Henne in this deal plus a mid round draft pick. The Dolphins would be dumb not to pull a deal like that. Henne hasn't done much for the Dolphins, and although he just had his career best season throwing for 3,000 yards for the first time in his career he cannot win games.

Carson Palmer has proven he can win games and Miami would love to have him. Palmer and Brandon Marshall would make for once heck of a team, kind of like Palmer and Chad Johnson used to be when Johnson cared more about football than himself. 

With Palmer at QB the Dolphins could make some noise in the AFC East and shock a few people. Everybody always views the division as New England and New York on top but Palmer would make the Dolphins contenders.  

6. Carolina Panthers

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SAN DIEGO, CA - NOVEMBER 23: Defensive Coordinator Ron Rivera of the San Diego Chargers looks on against the Indianapolis Colts during their NFL Game at Qualcomm Stadium on November 23, 2008 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Image

Rivera has a lot to think about in this draft. He is without a second round pick and when you take over a job that's in rebuilding mode you need all the draft picks you can get, especially the early rounds. Rivera also needs a quarterback for his team to have any chance at winning. 

Acquiring Palmer gives the Panthers a shot and would most certainly give new life to veteran wide out Steve Smith. The Panthers could swap first round picks, give up Jimmy Clausen and possibly get addition picks in the draft. Palmer is not worth the No. 1 overall pick so the Bengals would have to add some other incentive. 

5. Tennessee Titans

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ATLANTA - AUGUST 22: Offensive line coach Mike Munchak of the Tennessee Titans directs play against the Atlanta Falcons at the Georgia Dome on August 22, 2008 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)

Yeah I'd make that face too if I were Mike Munchak and I had to figure out who was going to play QB for the Titans in 2011. 

Tennessee has options via free agency and the draft but adding Carson Palmer is the best thing they could do to improve their team. They face two of the leagues best quarterbacks in Peyton Manning and Matt Schaub twice a year.

If they had their own top quarterback, plus Chris Johnson running everywhere, the Titans would have a very strong chance of winning the AFC South, particularly because there isn't much defense played in that division. 

Munchak would probably make that face again if he found out Carson Palmer would be his QB. 

4. Seattle Seahawks

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CHICAGO, IL - JANUARY 16: Head coach Pete Carroll of the Seattle Seahawks looks on from the sideline in the first quarter against the Chicago Bears in the 2011 NFC divisional playoff game at Soldier Field on January 16, 2011 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo

The connection between Pete Carroll and Carson Palmer is very strong. Pete would gladly trade Charlie Whitehurst to the Bengals, not have to re-sign Matt Hassleback, and have one of if not the best quarterbacks he coached at USC. 

A reunion of Carroll and Palmer would be very dangerous, especially since the NFC West is a very weak division. Carroll's Seahawks won it with a losing record in 2010! That's not supposed to happen folks. 

A young strong QB would make the Seahawks a viable threat in the NFC. Can Pete make a deal? You better believe he's already talked to Carson about it. 

3. Arizona Cardinals

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA - JANUARY 2: Larry Fitzgerald #11 of the Arizona Cardinals catches a touchdown against the San Francisco 49er during an NFL game at Candlestick Park on January 2, 2011 in San Francisco, California.(Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

The Arizona Cardinals would like to make Larry Ftizgerald happy. They would also like to win. To do both of these things they need a legit quarterback. Not some washed up one hit wonder scrub or an unproven rookie, a bonafide quarterback.

Palmer and Fitzgerald teaming up would be very scary for the NFC. The defense continues to improve plus the Cardinals have the fifth pick in the draft. It's doubtful they would trade that away for Palmer but they could trade the rights to whoever they draft, or this year second or third round picks plus a decent pick from the 2012 draft.

There a many options for the Cardinals to present the Bengals with. Unfortunately for them one of the options doesn't involve a decent quarterback which could hurt Arizona. The Cardinals would do everything they could in order to get Palmer because that would mean Fitzgerald would re-sign with them, and that is their number one goal.  

2. Minnesota Vikings

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DETROIT, MI - JANUARY 02: Interim head coach Leslie Frazier of the Minnesota Vikings looks on from the bench while playing the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on January 2, 2011 in Detroit, Michigan. Detroit won the game 20-13. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Gett

Brett Favre is gone. He won't be coming back to save, or ruin, the Vikings season no matter how many teammates go down to Mississippi to try and convince him. He's done. 

So this puts new head coach Leslie Frazier in a tough position. Who is going to play quarterback for the Vikings? Whoever it is will have a ton of talent surrounding him, especially if the Vikings find a way to re-sign Sidney Rice. So why not Carson Palmer? 

The Vikings don't really have a quarterback to trade to Cincinnati unless they re-signed Tarvaris Jackson just to send him away. While that isn't likely, the Vikings would consider giving up the 12th pick in the draft but that seems a bit too much. In the end I could see the Vikings drafting a quarterback trading him for Carson Palmer, adding a future pick and calling it a day.

If Palmer finds himself in Minnesota then the NFC North would be the toughest division in football. There would certainly be some great games between the Vikings, Bears, Packers, and yes even the Lions.  

1. San Francisco 49ers

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA - JANUARY 07: Jim Harbaugh speaks at a press conference where he was introduced as the new San Francisco 49ers head coach at the Palace Hotel on January 7, 2011 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

One former No. 1 pick for another. Alex Smith and a draft pick or two sent to the Bengals in exchange for Carson Palmer. If that happens Jim Harbaugh will quickly turn the 49ers from a losing team to a winning team. Palmer throwing to Vernon Davis and Michael Crabtree would be very fun to watch. 

Anybody else think it's funny three of the four teams in the NFC West are on this list? It just goes to show that it's a very weak division. It also makes a strong case that Sam Bradford might be the best quarterback in that division. That's pretty sad. 

Adding Palmer to the 49ers would return San Fran back to it's glory days. They need a legit QB to run the show and Carson Palmer could definitely do that. Plus he'd be back in California and much happier so surely he'd play better.