With Marvin Lewis back in the fold for at least 1 more season as the Bengals’ head coach, you can expect Carson Palmer & Jordan Palmer back at QB for 2011.  31-year old Carson Palmer played in all 16 games for the Bengals last season and he completed 362 of 586 passes (61.8%) for 3,970 yards with 26 TD passes and 20 INTs (82.4 QB Rating).  Palmer also carried the ball 32 times for 50 yards (1.6 ypc) last season.  Palmer has now played in 97 games in his career with the Bengals and he has completed 2,024 of 3,217 passes (62.9%) for 22,694 yards with 154 TD passes and 100 INTs (86.9 QB Rating).  Palmer has also carried the ball 179 times for 316 yards  (1.8 ypc) with 5 TD runs so far in his career with the Bengals.  Carson Palmer will be the Bengals’ starting QB for at least the 2011 season, but he will have to play better than he did in 2010 to keep the starting job past next season.

26-year old Jordan Palmer is lucky his big brother is the starting QB for the Bengals or he might not have a job in the NFL.  Palmer played in 1 game for the Bengals last season and he completed all 3 of his pass attempts good for 18 yards.  Palmer has now played in 4 games in his NFL career and he has completed 10 of 15 passes (66.7%) for 59 yards with 0 TD passes and 2 INTs (34.4 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 1 time for 4 yards in his career so far. 

VERDICT:  Don’t be surprised to see the Bengals use a 2nd or 3rd round pick next April on a QB to develop behind Carson Palmer.  Whenever the Bengals decide to get rid of Carson Palmer, his brother will follow him right out of town.

UPDATE:  (3/3/2011) – Carson Palmer has said that he will retire before stepping on the field with the Bengals again.  It looks like the Bengals are going to deal him and probably cut his brother.  Don’t be surprised to see the Bengals draft a QB in the first round of the NFL Draft next month.

The offense turned the ball over five times yesterday and it wasted a outstanding effort by the D.  Carson Palmer completed 32 of 45 passes for 305 yards with 1 TD pass and 2 INTs.  He also lost a fumble in this game.  Cedric Benson (21 carries for 53 yards) and Bernard Scott (5 carries for 32 yards) led the way for the Bengals on the ground in this game.  WRs Jerome Simpson (12 rec, 123 yards, TD) and Andre Caldwell (7 rec, 94 yards) led the way for the Bengals in the passing game.  But, Simpson also lost two fumbles yesterday.  The Bengals finished up with 90 yards rushing on 31 carries (2.9 ypc) and they also completed 32 of 45 passes for 305 yards as they had possession of the ball for 34:42.

The defense was on fire for the Bengals yesterday.  Safety Roy Williams (7 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit) and LB Michael Johnson (7 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 2 QB hits) led the way for the Bengals’ on D in this game.  Safety Reggie Nelson (4 tackles, 2 passes defensed and a interception that he returned 56 yards) and DE Carlos Dunlap (4 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 1 tackle for a loss, 2 QB hits and 1 fumble recovery) also had solid games for the Bengals yesterday.  The Ravens finished up with 98 yards rushing on 27 carries (3.6 ypc) and they also completed 14 of 19 passes for 101 yards.  The Bengals finished up the season in last place in the AFC North with a 4-12 record.