At the beginning of this season, the sky was the limit for the Cincinnati Bengals and their supposed “high powered” offense. Now that it isn't going the way fans would like, they're diving face first off the bandwagon. With the enthusiasm decreasing everyone is playing the blame game, and quarterback Caron Palmer has been in the midst of the heat.
Palmer has struggled to get on the same page with the new weapon Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco. Whether it is the receivers running the wrong routes or Palmer overthrowing the target, the quarterback always takes the blame.
The oh-so-faithful Cincinnati fans had been wanting Palmer's head on a platter, and been saying he hasn't been the same since his injuries.
The thing that everyone doesn't seem to understand is how hard it is to find a franchise quarterback. Carson Palmer is very well capable of being in the top five in the league at the quarterback position. In a city not used to having a winning team, whatever seems the issue in Cincinnati the solution is get rid of it. Palmer just needs some time to get in sync with the receivers which started showing up this week in Cleveland.
Has Palmer been the same since injuries? No, he has not looked the same. He has looked better. If you think that these injuries are just now affecting him, then what was up last season?
Tell me if I'm wrong, but wasn't it Carson Palmer that had this team nicknamed the Cardiac Cats? Was it someone else throwing late touchdown passes to ice the Steelers in the fourth quarter? Short-term memory seems to be the diagnoses for Cincinnati fans. Greatness does not happen overnight. The team is still trying to find its identity, and everyone needs to be patient.
There is nothing wrong with Palmer, especially after seeing his performance this week at Cleveland. Although the Bengals lost, it was not Palmer's fault as he had his most efficient game of the season.
If there is anyone to blame on why the Bengals offense is not the best in the league right now, ask offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski. If anyone needs to be replaced its him, because he's the one calling three running plays in a row.
When you look at when the Bengals were the most effective Sunday was when Carson Palmer was calling the plays and reading the defense. It was him calling the plays late in the game last season that won them so many late games.
Bratkowski has been in Cincinnati for far too long, and he needs to be out the door right now. He obviously doesn't understand what to do, and it has cost the Bengals a division lead with a loss against the Browns.
There's only so much blame you can put upon the quarterback, and believe me Palmer is not as bad as everyone thinks. He has always made mistakes, but what quarterback hasn't. Even the best quarterback in the league, Peyton Manning, is sitting at 2-2 because he can't win by himself. It's a 16 game season. The Bengals have one more game until they hit the meat of the schedule, and they'll need to be at the top of their game coming into week six.
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