Refreshing enthusiasm

USC's Palmer actually likes idea of heading to Cincinnati

INDIANAPOLIS -- Carson Palmer took pains to make one thing clear Friday at the NFL Scouting Combine: He's not scared of anything. And we mean anything, folks.

Not of jeopardizing his top-ranked predraft standing by daring to work out at the combine, which he plans to do on Sunday. Not of falling prey to the reverse Midas touch of Mike Brown. Not even of donning the ill-fated tiger stripes of the Cincinnati Bengals, who hold the draft's No. 1 pick.

Cincinnati may be where quarterback careers go to die, but Southern Cal's Heisman Trophy winner did everything but strike his Alfred E. Neuman pose Friday -- "What me worry?" -- when peppered with questions about his potential future employer.

"I don't know what the big knock is," said Palmer, apparently looking past the Bengals' 12 consecutive non-winning seasons. "It doesn't look bad to me. It's a great place for a quarterback to go."

Attempts to reach David Klingler, Neil O'Donnell, Jeff Blake, Scott Mitchell, Jay Schroeder, Paul Justin and Akili Smith for reaction were not made. But all would have been rendered speechless by Palmer's mixture of bravado and naiveté.

Despite everything the Bengals have going against them, there's something refreshing about Palmer's insistence that he's not wary or intimidated by Cincinnati's sorry history on the quarterback front, which includes 10 different starters since 1992.

Though it's far from a lock that he'll end up in the Queen City, Palmer seems to be inviting the Bengals to climb on his bandwagon. Either way, you get the feeling that somebody's in for one heck of a ride.

"All I kept hearing was negative things [about the Bengals] coming into this," Palmer said. "But my agent [David Dunn] and I sat down and he started telling me about the offensive line and the defensive line coach and Corey Dillon -- who my agent also represents -- and the receivers that they have.

"But any time you're losing, they're going to talk bad about you and find all the things wrong. Of course they're not going to say any good things about a team when they're losing games."

Air Force None The Bengals' NFL ranking in pass offense the past 12 years: Year  Rank  Leader  Rating  2002  13  Kitna  79.1  2001  23  Kitna  61.1  2000  31  Smith  52.8  1999  23  Blake  77.6  1998  17  O'Donnell  90.2  1997  13  Blake  77.6  1996  12  Blake  80.3  1995  11  Blake  82.1  1994  18  Blake  76.9  1993  27  Klingler  66.6  1992  27  Esiason  57.0  1991  11  Esiason  72.5

Well, yes. But not always without reason. Those lovable losers that we call the Bengals are 55-137 since last making the playoffs in 1990, so somebody is due a tad bit of blame.

In reality, Palmer is taking the smart approach regarding his potential marriage with the Bengals. What was he supposed to do on Friday, come out and issue his ABC edict ("anywhere but Cincinnati") before the assembled national media? Play the part of a young John Elway trying to avoid being sentenced to Baltimore?

True, Palmer probably laid it on a little thick when he called Brown, the Bengals' vilified team president/owner, "an awesome guy." But he quickly went into credibility damage control, admitting that he had "only met [Brown] for a couple of seconds" at the Senior Bowl. We can all assume Brown has never made a better first impression.

What we don't know yet is what kind of impression Palmer has made on Cincinnati. But give him credit for staring down his potential fate with the Bengals without blinking. When asked why his story will play out differently if he winds up in orange and black, Palmer flashed a trait in short supply among recent Bengals quarterbacks: confidence.

"I think I'm different than those guys, than the guys they've drafted in the past," Palmer said. "Not to say that I'm better than them or anything like that, but I haven't met a whole lot of people like me. I look for the positives going into everything. And whether it be Cincinnati or wherever, I'm going to go in and think I'm going to be able to turn it around and win a lot of games."

The Bengals' 2-14 record last season aside, there is talent to win with in Cincinnati, and it's not in short supply, especially on offense. Tell me another team drafting first overall that has the following already in place: A premier running back (Dillon), two bookend tackles (Willie Anderson and Levi Jones) and a bevy of young receivers (Chad Johnson, Peter Warrick and T.J. Houshmandzadeh, and Ron Dugans).

Throw in the fresh start that the Bengals are making under first-time head coach Marvin Lewis, who so far has inspired comparisons to Tony Dungy's turnaround job in Tampa Bay last decade, and there's finally reason for real hope in Cincinnati.

"Looking at the Cincinnati deal, it's a great deal," Palmer said. "Great receivers, one of the better running backs in the game, very good young offensive line and defensive-minded head coach. So it's a great opportunity for whoever winds up there."

Will Palmer, the Pac-10's all-time leading passer, be squarely in the middle of a long-awaited Bengals resurgence? If he is, Cincinnati historians will want to mark down Friday, Feb. 21, as meaningful, given that Palmer and Lewis met for the first time, albeit briefly, after the quarterback was weighed (232 pounds) and measured (6-5) by NFL talent shoppers.

"Carson's developed every year," Lewis said. "[USC] changed offenses and changed coaches in midstream. There's been a lot of change to occur in his life. But he's been able to deal with it. He's got that temperament you're looking for."

Even Lewis' contention Wednesday that a poll of Bengals veterans would probably yield a consensus to stick with veteran Jon Kitna at quarterback rather than start over with a rookie passer didn't seem to shake Palmer's confidence that he could be the missing link in Cincinnati. He shrugs off the failed legacies of the Bengals' past two first-round quarterbacks -- Klingler going sixth overall in 1992, and Smith No. 3 in 1999 (both of whom were represented by Dunn).

And why so? Because he's different. "I think my leadership is different," Palmer said. "I think the way I approach the game. I'm very meticulous about my preparation, and going into games. I'm meticulous about how well I know what's going on and what situation I'm in."

This week, Palmer is in a situation where most of the draft's elite players have declined to do much more than meet and greet NFL team officials. But not Palmer. He's not only willing to throw on Sunday, he's eager to air it out. What's the big deal, he wonders?

"Everybody keeps saying, 'Why are you going to throw?'" said Palmer, who also will conduct a personal workout day at USC on March 12. "And they're surprised when I say I am. But I'm looking forward to it. I mean, how many opportunities do you have to throw footballs to the best receivers in the country and the best backs in the country?

"I'm not worried about looking better or looking worse. I'm just looking forward to the opportunity to do it. I love throwing. It's why I play football."

If not being afraid to fail is the first test of whether a player belongs in the NFL, Palmer might already have earned his stripes, Bengal or otherwise. Come to think of it, being fearless about failure is an attitude that might just serve him well in Cincinnati.

Don Banks covers pro football for SI.com.

 

Related information

Stories

SI.com's 2003 Mock Draft -- Version 1.0 Newcomer Lewis trying to win back Bengals fans Users' Mock Drafts: Feb. 18 Pauline: Let the infamous combine begin Bengals' Lewis not sure what to do with top pick Notre Dame C Jeff Faine from the combine Grossman determined to taste NFL success Don Banks' Previous Columns

Multimedia

Visit Video Plus for the latest audio and video