After five years of blocking for Carson Palmer, Bengals tackle Andrew Whitworth says he’s done.
Whitworth told NFL.com that he takes Palmer at his word when he says he’ll retire rather than return to Cincinnati, and that the team is perfectly fine going forward without the man who has been the franchise quarterback for almost a decade.
"[Palmer is] the kind of guy when he says something he means it,” Whitworth said. “I feel like people are taking him seriously and we’re prepared. He made a decision he feels is best for him and his family and we’ve moved on.”
Although Bengals owner Mike Brown continues to say he won’t trade Palmer, Cincinnati’s players and coaches seem content to see him leave. Bengals coach Marvin Lewis has said Andy Dalton is ready to be an opening-day starter, and Bengals players including Adam Jones, Tank Johnson and Carson’s brother Jordan Palmer are all talking like they’re OK with Palmer becoming a former teammate.
So everyone in Cincinnati seems to think it’s time to move on from Palmer to Dalton. At least, everyone except the owner.