Because he’s rehabbed a previous devastating knee injury, Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer has a frame of reference.
So while the team waited a day to confirm the news of his torn ACL via an MRI, he didn’t need it.
Palmer told reporters today that he “felt a pop,” and knew immediately his season was over as he was being carted off yesterday.
The 34-year-old quarterback also admitted the frustration of losing a chance to lead a team to the playoffs, as the Cardinals are 8-1 and could control home field advantage all the way to the Super Bowl if they keep it up.
He said the “toughest part is that I’m having more fun now than I’ve ever had in my career,” and that this was the best team he had been a part of.
But at the same time, he’s also aware of the business implications of what happened to him yesterday. Though he just signed a three-year contract extension with the team last week, he also knows this injury could compromise that.
“I’m going to play football again. I hope it is here,” he said. “I just know how this business works. The team will do what is best for them. They should. Hope I’m part of it.”
Having been around so long, that awareness of the uncertainty has to hurt as much as his knee at the moment.