Will Carson Palmer return to full strength?

[Chris Raiden]

With all due respect to the Bengals offense of 2009, this ain't exactly the offense they had that frightened defenses earlier this decade.

With the pieces as currently assembled, will Carson Palmer return to the top tier of NFL quarterbacks this season, or will the talent level around him fail to get the job done, relegating him to the just above average?

[Texecutioner]

I think that Palmer could easily turn back into an elite passer again this season. Johnson should be playing harder this year, Coles has had a new change of scenery that might revitalize him possibly, and all indications have been that Henry is playing his ass off and finally becoming mature. Add a Benson/Coffee running game to that, I like Palmer's chances to have a nice season this year. I think I'll be hunting for him in Fantasy this season and I plan on getting him for a bargain, because people many people have forgotten what he can do with some nice weapons to use and a solid running game like what they had in Rudi Johnson was there.

[|(evin|(olb|(ritik]

The answer to this question is more reliant on the Bengals offensive line and its defense than it is anything Palmer or the WR's can do. Look the guy is a fantastic passer and has one of the best arms in the league but he may as well play with buckets of cement for shoes because he can't move at all. Pound for pound he's gotta be the least mobile QB in the entire NFL. If they can't protect him it doesn't matter if Chad is motivated or if Henry is working his tail off or if Coles is revitalized, he'll get buried everytime. He's a big armed gunslinging gambler and if they don't get him on the ground they'll force him to make bad throws, its his MO. Defensively it would help dramatically if they could field a solid unit (I know they made strides last year but its still not where it needs to be) that didn't force Palmer to play from behind as much. Its nice that Cedric Benson looks to have revived his career but its not gonna matter much to Palmer if he's constantly gunning for the endzone trying to play catchup and win every game with his arm the way he's been asked to every year since he took the job.

[CatClaw]

the defense was playing well last year and they have added enough (minus CB depth) to contend as a top ten defense this year IMO.....Carson's success will all come down to the re-vamped O-Line. Kyle Cook is starting at center (he was supposed to last year before blowing out a toe), who is probably a top five guy in the league strength wise, so hopefully he won't get bowled over like Guia-suck did last year. Andre Smith needs to sign and get reps in if he's going to be the starting RT and Whitworth needs to prove he donesn't have issues with speed rushers playing LT....lot's of questions marks on that O-line. The only main stay the Bengals have are Bobbie Williams and Whitworth. Throw in that apparently the offensive playbook has been almost completely revamped and all you really have is questions. I think Carson is going to have a good year. I'd say no better than his 2006 year if he once again has no run game and a leaky O-Line, but the sky's the limit if both come around this year.

[Who Dey]

I've seen a few of the national columnists says the Bengals should be better because Palmer is back but they seem to forget the one thing you two have mentioned- the offense line is the largest question mark on the team. They were atrocious last year. I'm still not convinced A. Smith was the right pick, and I hope turns out to be a big improvement over Eric G.

[CincyJay]

Considering the question.."Will Carson Palmer return to full strength?...Yes he will. Let's not forget the question. Now for the other opinions stated, I believe this is a founding year for the O-line. We need to find a set of players on the line that will gel. This is going to be a good year for determining/finding/getting back the team chemistry. The defense will continue to improve, but it remains to be seen if the offense can continue to put up enough points. As stated above by O'Doyle , we have to stop playing form behind. We need to learn to get the lead and keep it. So many of our drives over the past few years started out good in our own territory, but fizzled out as soon as we crossed the 50-yard line. We have to finish those drives and get points more often. It is going to be an interesting year to say the least.