Will Carson Palmer re-emerge as a No. 1 fantasy quarterback this season?
Something just didn't seem right in Cincinnati last season. Watching Palmer hand off the ball and get out of the way while Cedric Benson ground into the line was more than a little out of character. It was like Lady Gaga suddenly turning into Taylor Swift, or Adam Lambert doing Sinatra. After all, this was the same team that was only two years and one elbow injury removed from a lights-out passing game that provided fantasy owners with top-tier value.
Instead, Palmer owners were left with a quarterback at the reins of the No. 26 passing offense in the NFL. Palmer's 3,094 yards and 21 touchdowns were by far the lowest 16-game totals of his career. As the values of fantasy quarterbacks around the league were heading north, Palmer's was going south.
From Cincinnati's perspective, it's hard to argue with the results. By playing things close to the vest, the Bengals won 10 games and made the playoffs for the first time since 2005. But Cincinnati isn't paying Palmer millions of dollars to do what J.T. O'Sullivan or little brother Jordan Palmer could probably do just as well.
And the club knows that to improve on its postseason cameo, it has to get more out of the passing offense than it did last year. And that's the No. 1 reason to expect Palmer to re-establish himself as a fantasy starter this season. The No. 2 reason is the help the team has given Palmer to get there.
"We've got some guys who can help us right away," Palmer says.
Chad Ochocinco is back for his 10th season, but the rest of the pass-catching corps has a new look. Laveranues Coles, who quickly proved to be no T.J. Houshmandzadeh, is out as Ochocinco's primary complement. Free-agent signee Antonio Bryant is in. Third-round draft pick Jordan Shipley will compete with Andre Caldwell for the third wide-receiver position. Shipley likely will start out in the slot, but either he or Bryant could give the Bengals the vertical passing threat they've been missing the past couple of years.
Another new face is rookie first-round draft pick Jermaine Gresham, who impressed the Bengals' coaches in minicamp. Gresham, who could be a Kickoff Weekend starter, gives Palmer the pass-catching tight end he hasn't had since, well, ever.
While it's true that Palmer has to quickly get in sync with the revamped pass-catching corps, much as he did with limited success last year, he does not have the added chore this year of rehabbing from injury or worrying how his elbow will respond.
Bottom line: Don't expect Aaron Rodgers or Drew Brees numbers, but Palmer numbers circa 2007 might be realistic. That makes him a good value pick in the middle rounds of your fantasy draft.
