Monday, October 12, 2009

Thoughts on Carson Palmer and His Taming of the Cardiac Cats

"I knew if we kept throwing the ball downfield, we would get some pass interference calls," said Carson Palmer. "Being the quarterback, I'm always looking for those."

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I detect some "swagger" in that quote. And some team-ownership.

If you watched the Bengals win the AFC North and make a playoff appearance in 2005, then you watched Palmer checking at the line of scrimmage and changing plays from the no-huddle offense. You could probably tell that it was his offense on the field. And since he is healthy and running the show full-time again, it still is his offense on the field, albeit with some new players.

But when he talks so readily about knowing things from the standpoint of "being the quarterback" after another last-minute victory, you get a new vibe. You feel that it is not just his offense anymore, but his team. He may have felt that the whole team was his all along. But to those of us on the outside looking in, it is clear that this is his team, because he is the starting quarterback who happens to be orchestrating early-season greatness.

I have heard from different individuals that when he went to the huddle before the final drive against Pittsburgh, Palmer said something along these lines: "When we score, we're going for two." I would believe it. It reeks the smell of that "swagger" word.

When you have swagger, you have to be cool and confident. When you have swagger, you have to be tough. Palmer's cool, confident, and tough swagger has lead to consistent acts of late-game heroics, and has lead to fans of Cincinnati seeing his ownership of an entire team, not just an offense.

I hope the toughness and swagger stick around, because that means the thrill of victory will stick around.

Palmer's swagger has tamed his Cardiac Cats.

2 comments:

  1. i do not like the bengals. yet i enjoy this article. keep them coming iceman

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  2. I love your blog sugarballs!

    ReplyDelete