Carson Palmer: Bengals Making Huge Mistake Not Realizing Palmer's Value

I’m not sure what’s wrong with the Cincinnati Bengals organization, but I do know that they are making a huge mistake not trading Carson Palmer.

Why they think it’s a better move to force him into retirement than to trade him to a new team I will never understand. It doesn’t make any logical sense, especially considering the value that he could bring back to their team.

Essentially, it’s like the Bengals have a collector’s piece that everybody wants and they have no use or need for, yet just to prove a point, they are hiding it away.

It’s the classic “if I can’t have it than nobody can” syndrome.

I used to think that concept only applied to little kids on the playground and crazy ex-girlfriends, but apparently it's running rampant through an NFL organization as well.

I don’t see where the logic in this situation exists. Palmer may not be the star that he once was, but he can still be a very formidable starter in the NFL.

In fact, even though this seemed like a cold case at one point, Michael David Smith of NBC Sports writes that Palmer has actually started working out:

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Mike Florio reported on Versus’ NBC SportsTalk that Palmer has spent the last three weeks working out with former NFL quarterback Ken O’Brien. Presumably, Palmer wouldn’t be doing drills with a former NFL quarterback unless he thought he had some time as an NFL quarterback ahead of him.

And so Palmer is at least keeping his options open, staying ready to play in case the opportunity arises. Now we’ll see whether the Bengals reconsider their stance that they’d rather he retire than play for another team.

If the Bengals do reconsider, there are bound to be some teams interested in a quarterback who threw for 3,970 yards and 26 touchdowns last season, especially considering that that quarterback is getting himself ready to play.

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There are plenty of teams that would give up just about anything for his services, yet the Bengals feel it’s better to prove a point.

By proving that point, though, they are essentially hurting their team and the future of their organization.

They drafted Andy Dalton to be their quarterback, and everything points to him being a pretty good NFL quarterback in time.

Truthfully, though, right now they are throwing him out to the wolves, and he isn’t looking too good.

The Bengals could use the value that Palmer would bring back in a trade to help build a team around Dalton and give him more weapons to play with. Instead, they feel punishing their former quarterback is the best option.

Do they not realize that they are also punishing their current quarterback with this act of selfishness?

The smart move would be to trade away Palmer, get what you can out of him and wipe your hands clean of the situation.

That would be the mature thing to do.

They say that the NFL is a man’s league, but the Bengals are apparently bucking the trend.

They are holding onto their grudge, and they are left looking less mature than a kid on the playground that doesn’t want to give up their toy.