Many Bengals fans remember how Carson Palmer ended his seven-year career in Queen City: in a challenging position against Bengals owner Mike Brown, insisting he would never play in Cincinnati again. But before that sour note that marked the end of his tenure with the Bengals, Palmer was highly regarded by the team and the fans. He had brought long-sought stability at quarterback to Cincinnati, replacing the carousel of failed draft picks and unwanted veterans that preceded him. And he was rewarded with being one of the highest paid quarterbacks in the NFL.
In seven years as a starter, Palmer made a pair of trips to the Pro Bowl and helped lift the Bengals out of the NFL basement, leading them to their first playoff appearance in a decade and a half. He averaged more than 3,600 yards and 25 touchdown passes in his six healthy seasons as the team’s starter.
Palmer’s second season was his best, setting the standard for his Bengals career with a 67.8 completion percentage and 32 touchdowns with just 12 interceptions. after that season, which ended with a devastating knee injury in the playoffs, his game slowly declined, as evidenced by his steadily declining passer ratings; from 101.1 to 93.9 to 86.7 to 83.6 and finally to 82.4.
when andy dalton joined the bengals after palmer’s final season, he didn’t come in as the best overall pick in the draft, nor did he possess a beautiful deep pass along with all the physical attributes one desires in a franchise quarterback . In fact, he was the fifth quarterback selected in the 2011 draft, after such notable counterparts as Jake Locker, Blaine Gabbert, and Christian Ponder had already been chosen.
Expectations weren’t that high for Dalton, but he arrived and immediately went to work, amassing a record five straight wins and playoff trips with the Bengals, reaching three Pro Bowls in his first seven seasons. his best season came in 2015 when he set career highs with a 66.1 completion percentage and 6.5 touchdown percentage. Like Palmer, his best season was also cut short by injury, and also at the hands of the Steelers.
Comparing the teammates around him, Palmer had much better offensive lines in front of him, and his sack numbers bear that out (only one season with 27 or more sacks, compared to four for Dalton). , and zero seasons of 37 or more bags, compared to three for Dalton). Palmer had stalwart protectors like Willie Anderson, Levi Jones, Andrew Whitworth, Rich Braham, Kyle Cook, and Eric Steinbach in front of him.
Palmer’s teams were noted for great wide receivers (chad johnson, t.j. houshmandzadeh, terrell owens and chris henry), while dalton has had better receiving options at tight end (jermaine gresham and tyler eifert) and running back (giovani bernard) to throw the ball to him in most of his seasons.
Dalton also had much better defense on the other side of the ball, helping his teams secure five trips to the playoffs, compared to just two for Palmer’s teams.
Comparing his career numbers, Palmer has slightly better completion percentage and touchdown percentage. although these hardly exceed the daltons. palmer also has far fewer sacks and a much lower sack percentage. Dalton has played more games and has a much better winning percentage. he also has a better quarterback rating and interception percentage.
Comparing his best seasons, Dalton had the best passer rating and the lowest interception rate. He also has more yards per game, while Palmer took the lead in completion percentage and was sacked fewer times.
Based on the numbers, what do you think? Dalton leads the Bengals into their eighth season in the NFL today, while Palmer begins Week 1 in retirement.