On February 1st, future Hall of Fame wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald announced that he would be returning for a 14th season with the Arizona Cardinals. One week later, Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer announced he too would be coming back for his 15th season. Palmer is coming off a 2016 season that saw him throw for over four thousand yards with twenty six touchdowns and fourteen interceptions. The Cardinals were a year removed from being in the NFC Championship and would wind up finishing 7-8-1. Palmer is entering the second year of a 24.35 million dollar extension and played in all but one game when he had a concussion following the week 6 loss to the Rams. Despite the extension it was widely speculated that Palmer could very well retire given his age and the down season he experienced.
For the Rams fans and their defense this is a welcome announcement as Palmer has been sacked a total of fourteen times in the course of his four year stint with the Cardinals and thrown five interceptions. Palmer’s struggles against the Rams isn’t entirely his fault as their offensive line has struggled in pass protection the last few seasons. Luckily for Palmer, he still has Fitzgerald and management will have to find a way to keep Rams linemen Aaron Donald and Robert Quinn from injuring him as has happened twice in the last four seasons. The Cardinals offense has started to shift away from Palmer being the gunslinger he had been the last few years as running back David Johnson has become an all purpose monster and that certainly takes the burden away from the now 37 year old quarterback.
Mobility issues aside, Palmer has been able to throw against the Rams and despite the five interceptions he’s thrown he’s also thrown ten touchdowns. Newly hired Rams defensive coordinator Wade Phillips has to be salivating at unleashing his front seven against the least mobile quarterback in his division and his only major challenge will be to find a way for his defensive backs to keep their receivers in check.
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