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QB Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals

HT: 6-5, WT: 230, Born: 12-27-1979, College: Southern California, Drafted: Round 1, Pick 1

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2009 Projections

	CMP	ATT	PYD	Y/A	PTD	INT	RSH	YD	Y/R	TD	FPT
David Dodds	299	500	3500	7.0	21	15	20	30	1.5	0	253
Bob Henry	309	500	3618	7.2	24	15	24	35	1.5	0	274
Jason Wood	317	509	3650	7.2	23	15	24	40	1.7	0	272
Maurile Tremblay	288	469	3400	7.2	22	15	66	115	1.7	1	268

Average draft position

Current as of September 7th. [Full ADP list]

Overall: C Benson (77), C Cooley (78), Carson Palmer (79), K Winslow (80), O Daniels (81)
Position: M Schaub (67-QB10), J Cutler (70-QB11), Carson Palmer (79 - QB12), B Roethlisberger (86-QB13), E Manning (99-QB14)
Click here for a comparison of these players.

PPR Average draft position

Current as of September 7th. [Full PPR ADP list]

Overall: J Cotchery (75), L Coles (76), Carson Palmer (77), B Berrian (78), D Driver (79)
Position: M Ryan (71-QB10), M Schaub (72-QB11), Carson Palmer (77 - QB12), B Roethlisberger (94-QB13), M Hasselbeck (101-QB14)
Click here for a comparison of these players.

Click here to go to the Carson Palmer spotlight, our staff's most detailed analysis.

Click here to go to the Carson Palmer faceoff, our staff's look at the pros and cons.

Best Case

Palmer returns with a vengeance this season. All reports from the summer are true and he's healthier than ever. Although T.J. Houshmandzadeh is no longer with the team, the Bengals added veteran Laveranues Coles during the offseason to make up for the receiving gap. Coles is a solid veteran who knows how to break apart opposing defenses. This frees up Chad Ochocinco to do what he does best: make big plays. With the addition of a big OT in No. 6 overall rookie pick Andre Smith, Palmer gets some much needed protection.

Worst Case

If Palmer is healthy, he'll be on the field. If he's on the field, he'll be throwing. Yet setting the league on fire with attempts and incompletions isn't going to win you any fantasy games. In a 'how bad could it get?' scenario, Palmer could try his best, but fail to make a bad team good by himself. The Bengals running game flames out and defenses stack five and six DBs against Palmer. He finishes the season as a fringe Top 20 QB, and is a total let down given the price you'll pay for him.

Outlook

Palmer has all the potential to be the comeback kid this year. Ochocinco seems to be minding his Ps and Qs, and a crafty veteran like Coles can only add to the mix. The big rookie OT helps protect Palmer, and he shakes off the rust early and hits his stride by Game 1. Look for Palmer to return to his Top 10 form and prove to be a solid addition to any fantasy roster.

Relevant Articles

Why he is undervalued

according to three of our writers (based on an ADP of 77, QB 12 on June 7 --- go here for the complete article)

Colin Dowling - See if this makes any sense: Carson Palmer is an All-Pro quarterback who has averaged 28 touchdown tosses and just less than 4,000 passing yards in each of his last three full seasons. Carson Palmer is being drafted as a BACKUP (QB13) right now. Palmer has been throwing just fine lately and has a new tackle to protect him. For those who say, "yeah, but he's injured!" think about this: you can get Palmer more than two rounds after Matt Schaub, a player who has never been able to stay healthy.

Will Grant - Palmer has moved up the charts a bit as reports from the pre-season have him playing at full strength. However, people are still nervous about taking him as their No. 1 QB. Don't be! Palmer is playing at full speed and hungry to put last year behind him. Yes TJ has moved on, but Laveranues Coles is a solid replacement and will keep defenses from double teaming Chad Ochocinco. The running game is more consistent, even if it's a RBBC with Benson and Leonard. An improved offensive line will give him more time to throw and Palmer should be able to finish in the Top 10 this year for sure.

Bob Magaw - Prior to a harrowing 2008 season besieged by OL problems, Palmer finished 9th, 4th and 4th in 2007-2006-2005 (gifted 2009 high 1st rounder Andre Smith should help stabilize the OL). Ocho Loco should return to form after an uncharacteristically poor campaign tarnished more by shoulder injury than trade demand antics. T.J. Houshmandzadeh left, but ex-NYJ WR Laveranues Coles fills the void. Rookie TE Chase Coffman is EASILY the best receiving TE in Palmer's tenure. RB Cedric Benson was born again hard in 2008. The infusion of talented rookie defenders Rey Maualuga (LB) and Michael Johnson (DE) should fortify a long-beleaguered stop unit.

2009 Schedule

Week	Opponent
1	Denver Broncos
2	at Green Bay Packers
3	Pittsburgh Steelers
4	at Cleveland Browns
5	at Baltimore Ravens
6	Houston Texans
7	Chicago Bears
Bye week
9	Baltimore Ravens
10	at Pittsburgh Steelers
11	at Oakland Raiders
12	Cleveland Browns
13	Detroit Lions
14	at Minnesota Vikings
15	at San Diego Chargers
16	Kansas City Chiefs
17	at New York Jets

2008 Game Summaries

Week 1 - After having gone 90 pass attempts without being sacked, Carson Palmer began the game by being dropped on his first two. It was an early sign of what was to become an extremely tough outing for the Bengals' signal caller. After these initial setbacks, Palmer was never able to get into any sort of rhythm as the aggressive Ravens front seven had little trouble hurrying Palmer and regularly succeeded in forcing him out of his comfort-zone in the pocket. That, in turn, resulted in plenty of off-balance throws that regularly sailed high or wide of their intended targets. Out of his ten completions, only two (one each to Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh) went for over twenty yards, a reflection of just how quickly Palmer was being forced to get rid of the ball. Palmer's sole interception of the day came ten minutes into the game as he attempted to force a pass into the hands of T.J. Houshmandzadeh through double coverage at the Ravens' ten yard line. One bad bounce later, and Baltimore's Chris McAlister was headed the other way.

Week 2 - Palmer debuted the 2008 season with his lowest rated game ever (35.2 passer rating). He followed that up with a 41.3 rating against the Titans for his second lowest rating ever. Palmer was never able to get into any real rhythm and struggled with his accuracy. With winds gusting up to 60 miles per hour, Palmer was unable to complete any passes more than 13 yards downfield. (Cincinnati's longest pass play was a 36 yard screen pass to DeDe Dorsey) With the Bengals trailing, Palmer threw two fourth quarter interceptions. The second interception was a high, but probably catchable ball thrown to Reggie Kelly. So far Palmer has been unable to get in sync with his flamboyant pair of star wide receivers.

Week 3 - Carson Palmer put in a great effort on the road, completing 69 percent of his passes for 286 yards and a touchdown. He relied heavily on T.J. Houshmandzadeh, looking his way early and often to move the chains and find the rhythm the Bengals offense has lacked early in the season. Palmer was able to engineer two fourth quarter drives, one that put them ahead late in the fourth quarter while the other allowed them to kick a field goal and force overtime.

Week 4 - Palmer was a surprise late scratch and sat out the game against the Browns with an elbow issue.

Week 5 - Palmer's elbow injury has kept him from practicing the last two weeks, and the lack of work showed in the first half. Palmer looked a little rusty, and at times he didn't seem to be on the same page with his receivers. Palmer came to life after halftime, completing 73% of his passes in the final two quarters, and his intensity seemed to spark his team. He hurried his throws at times, especially in the first half, and for the game he had one turnover (on his first pass) and was sacked twice. Palmer got it clicking late with T.J. Houshmandzadeh, and the two combined for a pair of second half TDs. Palmer seems frustrated with Chad Johnson, and the two have little chemistry right now. At one point in the second half, Palmer became visibly upset at Johnson for running a wrong route.