Being wrong never felt so good...

[derekshank]

Ok, here is a post that I made back in June on a topic of Palmer's interceptions:

I thought I would look it up again, just to see how all those interceptions broke down. There was only one game last season where he didn't throw an INT, and it was against Dallas... the game we beat them 26-3, however, even there he threw only 1 TD. I think both stats are due to the fact that we got a lead, and could rely on Rudi, instead of making Palmer throw it every single down.

He threw at least one INT in each of his last 5 games, including 3 INT's against Cleveland. I remembered that great 4 TD game... I had forgotten about him throwing 3 INT's though.

It seems that if we get in a shootout Palmer will throw some INT's. Also, in that great game against Baltimore where Palmer threw for 3 TD, and 200 yards in the 4th quarter... he threw for 182 yards, 0 TD's and 1 INT in the first 3 quarters.

That game did a lot to show that he is resilient, but I don’t see it as a ringing endorsement that he is going to lead this team to a Superbowl this year. Palmer was clutch in the 4th quarter, and he will be able to win games for us down the stretch this year too, but we are going to need a defense that can allow Rudi and Perry to carry some of the load.

I think one reason for his large number of INT’s last year was because we forced him to throw it so often. If we can get a lead, and focus on controlling the clock, Palmer’s TD/INT ratio will look good.

If the defense continues to struggle, look for 20 or more INT’s this year.

Now I will systematically go through, and dismantle my own argument, showing why I was in fact a wank back in June.

My problem back then was focusing on the negative. Focusing on interceptions began to make me think that Palmer was not coming along in his development as well as everyone else thought. I failed to notice that Palmer has thrown for more TD's than Interceptions 7 of his last 8 games.

He has shown great resilience after his INT's, which have been becoming increasingly rare, and he clearly has enough confidence not to allow one bad throw to negatively effect the rest of his game. A sign of greatness.

He also has a Quarterback rating of over 100 in 5 straight games, and has won 6 of his last 8 starts (One of those losses was to NE where he was unable to finish the game, and Kitna threw a INT in the endzone).

While both of the INT's he has thrown this year have been in the endzone, costing us possible points, this is far better than the beginning of last year where he was throwing them in our opponents territory, leading to easy points for the other team. Not to mention the fact that the 2 INT's he has thrown have been with the lead, and the game seemingly in hand.

It is too easy to focus on that one turnover stat, and while I would like to see him get even better, I have reason to believe he. In his last 8 games he has had a 1.8/1 TD/INT ratio. In his last 6 games, the ratio has been 2/1. In his last 4 games, it has been 2.5/1.

He is getting better and better, and he looks more and more comfortable. I think some of my points still stand about our defense needing to give Palmer a break, but he has shown that he is up to the task of carrying this team on his back. The Vikings defensive line kept Rudi in check for a good portion of the game, and Palmer torched them over and over again. In fact, I think he is going to be our defense's greatest ally... not vice versa.

Final point in this long rant... and the main reason I became excited enough to make this post. I was at work this morning (I'm an out of state guy, and the only Bengals fan I know in the area) and two guys were talking about who the best QB in the league was right now. They were talking about McNabb, Manning, and Brady, like usual. I was listening in, and decided to throw in the comment "Palmer is on his way into this discussion". I recieved no laughs, but instead, in unison both guys said "Palmer is a stud".

Once again... the temptation is to be a fantasy football stat nerd, and dislike those INT's. But anyone with an ounce of actual football knowledge can watch him play and realize that he is dominant. You can't quantify his leadership and drive to win with a stat that shows up in the newspaper. So I'm taking back anything negative I've ever had to say about him, because he's a winner... and am waiting for Bax to get on here and admit his foolishness when he said this in reference to the Bengals record this season:

3-13 if Palmer starts

4-12 if Kitna starts

6-10 if Jesus of nazareth starts

We suck

[membengal]

Phenomenal post derek...thanks for taking the time to put up something that is as good a read as that is. Much appreciated.

[Stripes]

Well Bax isn't wrong YET but he will be in 2 weeks.

That was an excellent post, informative and enjoyable, good work!

I loved the part about Palmer being "dominant." I hadn't yet thought of him in that light, but in recalling both games this year, than has been an accurate statement.

Next week we will see him against a highly thought-of defense, and I expect that to make little difference. Our receivers have proven they can get open against any defenders, and Palmer has proven he can get them the football.