Quarterback’s retirement was huge blow to Arizona Cardinals

The Arizona Cardinals are rapidly realizing that finding a replacement for signal-caller Carson Palmer is not an easy chore

It’s a shame that the Arizona Cardinals and Carson Palmer didn’t meet much sooner. The respected quarterback was already 33 years of age when he was traded to the club in 2013. Palmer retired at the conclusion of the 2017 campaign, leaving the Cards front office with the unenviable task of replacing him this past offseason.

Arizona is quickly finding out that life without Palmer is not agreeing with them. As it turned out, the former first-overall pick of the 2003 NFL Draft will go down as one of the greatest passers in team history. Obviously, finding someone capable of filling his shoes would be far from easy.

Veteran Sam Bradford was the first candidate chosen to take over for Palmer. The former St. Louis Rams first-round draft pick was far from impressive in his Cardinals’ debut last Sunday. Bradford led an offensive attack that put up a measly six points during a disappointing loss to the Washington Redskins.

Of course, judging Bradford after just one game with the Cards would be unfair. New coordinator Mike McCoy‘s offense is new to everyone attempting to execute it. Bradford was signed to a $20 million free agent deal this past March, so the 30-year old will more than likely be given ample time to round up some points for his latest employer.

If at some point Arizona runs out of patience with Bradford, the Cardinals 2018 first-round pick is waiting in the wings. Josh Rosen is a 21-year old flamethrower who many fans would like to see in the lineup sooner rather than later. It’s Bradford’s show for the time being at least, but that could change if he continues to struggle like he did last weekend.

The Cards were ill-prepared for Palmer’s decision to hang up the cleats. Though the long-time Cincinnati Bengal turned 38 last December, no one was being groomed to take the reigns in case he called it quits. In fact, none of Arizona’s current signal-callers (Bradford, Rosen, Mike Glennon) were even on their roster last season.

Palmer will be sorely missed. There’s an old saying that says, you don’t know what you have until it is gone. After watching that Cardinals offensive debacle of a week ago, no truer words may have ever been spoken.