When one thinks of the quarterback history of the Arizona Cardinals, minds go to the likes of Jim Hart, Neil Lomax, Jake Plummer, and even Kurt Warner. But one former Cardinals quarterback believes the team is in a place to rebound quickly. That would be Carson Palmer, who became a part of the Arizona Cardinals in the 2013 season. Palmer went on an interview with USA TODAY Sports and had the following to say about his final team
“I mean from Kyler getting hurt you know firing Kliff Kingsbury, firing Steve Keim.. [it’s] another new coach. This is the third new coach since I left, and I feel like I just left…so it’s just been a mess. .. to give Cardinals fans some hope when I first got there, it was a mess. And then we went to the playoffs in two years.
So I’ve seen Michael Bidwell the owner of the Cardinals turn things around quickly, and from my perspective being a fan now (and my kids are Cardinal fans, so I’m always following and hoping and keeping my fingers crossed)… my hope relies on on Michael figuring this out. Finding the right combination of head coach,GM, and quarterback- and they’re still searching, but I’ve seen him turn [things] around quickly. I’ve seen things happen quickly and go from really bad to really, pretty good quick and and turn around that trajectory. so I’m hoping that happens”
That’s a lot to take in, but it offers some great perspective. As bad as the team was last season, it wasn’t nearly as bad as in 2012 or 2018. The 2012 season saw the infamous 58-0 blowout by the claws and beaks of the Seattle Seahawks, and 2018 was a dumpster fire from the moment the offseason began. Palmer’s coach in Oakland was Dennis Allen in 2012- and while Palmer’s stats weren’t the worst, the then-Oakland Raiders defense couldn’t support him at all en route to a 4-12 record.
In contrast to now, the pairing of alleged/supposed offensive Megamind Kingsbury and the uber-athletic Kyler Murray just didn’t work. A lot of Arizona Cardinals fans and everyone else in the football world knew that Kingsbury had a slippery slope to climb- almost like he was the modern-day equivalent of Sisyphus. No matter what Kingsbury did, he had to continue to push that boulder up the hill- even after a 7-0 start in 2021.
It’s also worth noting that Palmer himself is a former first-overall quarterback, being drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2003. So we can take real stock in Palmer’s advocating here. Now we all know that new Arizona Cardinals Offensive Coordinator Drew Petzing isn’t Bruce Arians in any sense of the imagination, but Cardinals fans had to take Arians for what he was worth in 2013. Arians propelled a handful of great quarterbacks in the past (including Ben Roethlisberger in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Super Bowl XLIII victory over the Cardinals), and had just taken the “Chuck Strong” offense in 2012 to the playoffs.
Additionally, one thing that Johnathan Gannon can hang his hat on already is that he actually has an offensive coordinator; something that good ol’ “Kliff Bar” Kingsbury never wanted to do. So this way the head coach can focus on his specialty- ala the defense. As Murray continues his recovery process, here’s to hoping that his bond with Petzing becomes strong and we don’t see another angry outburst on primetime TV this season.
Carson Palmer believes Arizona Cardinals can turn it around fast, dishes his own opinion on the new uniforms
Before Palmer expressed his faith in the turnaround, Palmer was asked about his thoughts on the new uniforms the team unveiled earlier this year. Palmer added the following, “I personally like the old-school ones- remember the ones that Jake Plummer wore? A bright, shiny red, red pants, white socks…But I’m an old-school guy and I like the old-school look”. It was indeed time for new uniforms, but these were underwhelming. Palmer added that “We’ll [see] what they look like when there’s 11 guys out there” as his final remark. I wish they would go back to the 90s duds too, but we need to move on. Let’s hope they look better in battle than on a runway.
Switching gears, it’s awesome to know that Palmer is a fan (One of us! One of us!) of the Cardinals and his kids are too. It’s refreshing to hear a player who helped the Cardinals to their best year ever in 2015 (statistically) not bash the team for once after they’ve left. There is a lot of positivity in this interview that it’s even changed my own outlook for this year- and I’m usually a very critical person. We all just want to win, and Palmer is helping our patience with this process. With two top-five, if not top-ten draft picks next year, there is a ton to look forward too.
Let’s take our lumps this year- we all know they’re going to be there. When Murray returns healthy, we will be ready to see what he can do with the new coaching regime. Brace yourself, Cardinals fans and take a trip back to 2013. Trust the process now like you did back then- it may just be a quicker turnaround then we think.
