Offense star of the show

[Kazkal]

Offense star of the show

5/23/2005 - 6:40 a.m.

BY GEOFF HOBSON

Palmer: "Best QB in the division," says Esiason.

Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis brought the celebrities in for his golf tournament Monday like linebackers on third down.

Sterling Sharpe. Tubby Smith. Tony Siragusa. Merril Hoge. Anthony Munoz. Cris Collinsworth. How many? So many that NFL Films jumped on the chance to fly in and get some sit-down interviews Sunday night at the reception for the Marvin Lewis Golf Classic, as well as shoot a piece for the NFL Network Monday at Shaker Run Golf Club.

But even with all the celebs, the star of the show turned out to be the Bengals offense.

“Carson Palmer is the best quarterback in the division,” said Boomer Esiason of CBS TV and Radio and the man to last quarterback the Bengals to the playoffs. “Everything is around him to be great.”

Ozzie Newsome, the Ravens general manager, isn’t just trying to catch the Steelers any more in the AFC North.

“It’s all about can you slow Cincinnati down on offense,” said Newsome, who answered Palmer’s fourth-quarter barrage last season by signing cornerback Samari Rolle. “They can put a lot of points on the board.”

Esiason just came back from broadcasting Palmer’s efforts in a quarterbacks challenge that is going to be seen on CBS in mid-July, so if he divulged the outcome he’d have to commit mass murder. But he saw enough over the second half of Palmer’s first 13 NFL starts last year.

“Once he started to get comfortable, all of a sudden you could see the player they drafted,” Esiason said. “Sometimes the light goes on at different times for each player. Maybe it would have helped him to have played a little bit as a rookie and he would have been a little farther along his second season. But I have seen nothing that gives me any shred of doubt that he’s going to be a great player. Over the next five years if he doesn’t become one of the top two quarterbacks in the conference, something is wrong.”

Esiason gives “all due respect” to Cleveland’s Trent Dilfer. He says the jury is “still way out” on Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger. And Palmer is not Kyle Boller, the much-maligned Baltimore quarterback who has struggled to catch on.

“Carson is clearly the best at his position in the division,” Esiason said. “Everything is around him to be great. The wide receivers. The running backs. The offensive line. Above all, he’s got the ability.”

Gaining respect

If anyone knows that, it’s Newsome, Lewis’s draft mentor. Newsome not only went out and got defense when he signed Rolle in free agency, but he also got Boller another first-round receiver in Mark Clayton to replace Travis Taylor. He got an up-close view of Palmer generating 24 points in the last 14:55 as the Bengals won in Baltimore last December.

“We’re all chasing Pittsburgh,” said Newsome of the AFC North. “Obviously, Cleveland has got some changes. Now it’s all about can you slow down Cincinnati on offense. They can put up some points. If they can get to a point they do a better job stopping the run - and I’m sure that kept Marvin up all offseason - if they can do that, they’re going to be tough to deal with.”

While Lewis has gone 16-16 in his first two seasons, the Ravens have been three games better at 19-13. Pittsburgh is five games better at 21-11. Newsome thinks the Bengals have closed the gap on his club, in part because of Cincinnati's first two draft picks in Georgia linebackers David Pollack and Odell Thurman.

“I think so. We like Pollack. We liked Odell,” Newsome said. “They’ve got some good young players now coming along. But it’s not closing the gap on us. It’s closing the gap on Pittsburgh. We were dreaming thinking we were going to get Pollack at (No.) 22. We all saw him the same way. We felt like we could use him the same way. One thing he can do is rush the passer.”

Newsome worked with new Bengals defensive coordinator Chuck Bresnahan in Cleveland a decade ago and has a pretty good idea what to expect this season. It’s not so much using a 4-3 or 3-4 defense. The Ravens are moving to a 4-3, but still figure to show a lot of 3-4. The Bengals are sticking with a 4-3, but also figure to show a lot of 3-4.

“I know Chuck,” Newsome said. “They have the ability to be multiple. What they’re going to try to do is upset the offense a little bit whether they are 4-3 or 3-4.”

But the offseason star continues to be the Bengals offense.

“They can score some points, no question about that,” Newsome said. “I like (Palmer). Very much so.”

But don’t talk to Esiason about Palmer's arm, his numbers, his speed, or his new svelte 230 pounds.

“Presence,” he said. “I like his presence.”

Palmer’s presence, along with that of his backup, Jon Kitna, and Pro Bowl wide receiver Chad Johnson is expected to be part of Monday’s glittering lineup at Shaker Run. Lewis plans to present a $401,000 check to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. The money is earmarked for the Angelo Papastamos Research Grant named after Lewis’s brother-in-law.

[derekshank]

Yeah, I read that article too, and frankly I was a lot more excited about Newsome's comments than Boomers. Anyone who watches his broadcast on CBS knows he is a homer. I have heard him refer to Cincy as "my Bengals" and he's even thrown a "we" down before. He makes no attempt to hide the fact that he is rooting for the Bengals.

As far as CP being the best QB in the division, I agree, but I am a self-proclaimed homer too. I really don't see how you can claim that the jury is "still way out" on Roethlisberger, but that the jury is somehow "in" on CP.

The only reasonable argument that CP is better than Big Ben is that Ben's numbers were dwindling at the end of the year (seemingly defenses were figuring him out) whearas Palmer's numbers were getting better (seemingly he was figuring defenses out).

Other than that, the non-homer would most likely have to conclude that the jury is "still way out" on both of them. They simply haven't played enough NFL football to make any type of "scientific" judgment on what kind of careers they will have.

My opinion is that Big Ben with be really really good, but that C.P. will be one of the great ones. We'll just have to wait and see. Concerning the article, I think responsible journalism would make note of Boomer's "homerism". But that is just my opinion.

[bengal4life]

you had some good points as far as Esiason being a homer he some times almost sounds as bad as Jamie Sharper.

I also think CP is better than Big Ben, just for the jact that Ben had the number one defense that won 2-3 games for him last year and CP had to come back from behind in a few games and that tells me that the pressure won't effect CP when he gets to the playoffs like it did Ben.

[Kazkal]

you had some good points as far as Esiason being a homer he some times almost sounds as bad as Jamie Sharper.

I also think CP is better than Big Ben, just for the jact that Ben had the number one defense that won 2-3 games for him last year and CP had to come back from behind in a few games and that tells me that the pressure won't effect CP when he gets to the playoffs like it did Ben.

I think their defense won them more then 2-3 games more like 14-15 hehe

Also they ran the ball so much it was a suprise when he had to throw the ball...then we saw what happens when he has to throw it often.

[derekshank]

Don't get me wrong guys... I do think CP is better than Roethlisberger. Big Ben had a defense that allowed them to rely on the run rather than his arm, and I think that is why he developed so well. He was able to learn on the job and he had a curve.

CP had no such curve. Their defense sucked from day 1 against the Jets, and his development took some time, until he was looking good against teams like the Ravens and Patriots AND the Bengals were relying on great play from the QB, not the defense. So I think there are lots of reasons why CP is better than Big Ben.

All I am saying is that we should take Boomer's words with a grain of salt, because I've seen him not hear what Marino has said to him, because he was watching the Bengals game in one of the monitors. (very funny to watch take place by the way)

Most non-biased people still seem to think that Roethlisberger is the best QB in the division, so Palmer still has something to prove. I think he will prove it, but Boomer's endorsement isn't exactly what I get excited about when I am looking for national recognition of our talent at QB.

[HoosierCat]

Don't get me wrong guys... I do think CP is better than Roethlisberger. Big Ben had a defense that allowed them to rely on the run rather than his arm, and I think that is why he developed so well. He was able to learn on the job and he had a curve.

Yup. Steelers had the league's top defense, whether you look at yards or points, last season. Toss in a solid running game and zero expectations 'cause Cheeslisburger wasn't supposed to start anyhow, and you can't possibly have a better chance to succeed as a rookie QB. That isn't to take anything away from Cheesy, he made a lot of nice throws, but he landed in a sweet, sweet spot.

As for Palmer, well, to paraphrase former HC Bruce Coslet, this team will go as far as Carson can take it. He's got a run game to support him, but not the kind of D that Big Ben had...which means he's going to be called on to pull the team's cajones out of the fire more often. And expectations...at least judging by the comments on this board, they couldn't be much higher. So come this fall, we'll find out just how broad the kid's shoulders really are.

[HairOnFire]

The only reasonable argument that CP is better than Big Ben is that Ben's numbers were dwindling at the end of the year (seemingly defenses were figuring him out) whearas Palmer's numbers were getting better (seemingly he was figuring defenses out).

Yup. I don't know if it was a case of defenses figuring out Roethlisberger or teams finally being able to beat the Steeler offensive line often enough to get steady pressure on him, but I thought it was the Bengals who put the first major pass rush heat on Big Ben in the 2nd Bengal/Steeler game....and he looked pretty bad as a result. Other teams repeated their trick after that, bringing more pressure upfront rather than trying to confuse him by dropping extra defenders deep or disguising coverages.

Oddly enough I thought the opposite seemed to be true with Palmer. Teams stopped bringing jailhouse blitzes after Palmer showed better-than-average composure and the O-line play improved. By midseason Palmer was beating pressure with regularity while Roethlisberger had begun to throw forced interceptions.

That said, there's no guarantee that Ben will continue forcing the ball after an offseason of work.

[turningpoint]

Chad Johnson playing golf on Monday...

ROFL!

[DesperateDerelict]

What's ROFL!

[bengalboy40]

Quote:

"Other than that, the non-homer would most likely have to conclude that the jury is "still way out" on both of them. They simply haven't played enough NFL football to make any type of "scientific" judgment on what kind of careers they will have."

i am in a sports forum with people from all around the country. most of these guys think cp is gonna be one of the top qb's next year. in a "top-5 qb's (production-wise) topic a few weeks ago, over half the forum had carson in the top-5, partly citing our receiving corps, but also talking about how he has the tools and got better as the season went on last year...was SWEET to see that.

[Rimington over Marino]

Baltimore went out and got Samari Rolle to match up with the Bengals cause of what Palmer and CJ and TJ did in the 4th quarter to beat them. So we need Warrick to come back and put 3 receivers out there and they won't have anyone to cover all 3.

Part of Palmer's development deal (poor start) was Warrick's injury. Once TJ became more a part of the offense, Palmer took off. The more options Palmer has the better.

It would be cool to see a fast break type offense. Keep the pressure on the defense by playing no huddle. 3 receivers and TE, one back.

[jditty47]

What's ROFL!

rolling on (the) floor laughing.