There's been a perception among talent evaluators that the torque in Carson Palmer's right arm and the zip on his ball hasn't been the same since he underwent elbow surgery back in 2008. That elbow is now rested, and those around Palmer think the layoff did the quarterback some good in that sense, hard as it may have been to spend the last 10 months away from the game. "He's healthy as a horse," said former NFL quarterback Ken O'Brien, who's been working with Palmer during the ex-Bengal's time off. "I just helped him get through drills. And from where he was, he had to get healthy after the end of the season. That's the good part of the layoff. He rested his body up. … Everyone wants to be in top shape, but when you have an injury inside of you, with ligaments or cartilage, that takes time to heal, no matter how strong or muscular you feel. "And athletes are gonna push it to get back sooner. The teams want them to play sooner. And that can be a detriment to the player long-term. So being forced to be out, I think, helped him in the healing process." O'Brien added, more specifically on Palmer, "I do know that he pushed himself (with the elbow) to play sooner, and in my eyes -- he'd never say this, or make an excuse -- he wasn't 100 percent natural. He didn't look like his old self." Over the past few months, Palmer and O'Brien would pick a park or high school to stage their workouts with some receivers, and work through drills -- footwork, drops, the passing tree -- to keep Palmer sharp. O'Brien was Palmer's quarterbacks coach his first three years at USC, working under then Trojan offensive coordinator Hue Jackson, and has been called on for "QB tune-ups" by Palmer periodically since. This offseason provided the two a chance to work together more frequently and, for what it's worth, O'Brien saw a player whose drive hadn't waned in the least. "I never asked, but it was unsaid," O'Brien told me. "He's working hard at it. He's loved the game since he was a young kid, and being extremely talented doesn't hurt. He still has that desire, that competitive nature. Things didn't work out (in Cincinnati), but it's not because he didn't want to play. He stuck to his guns. Everyone has an opinion on that, and mine is it took balls to do it." Source: NFL.com
I don't believe stories that come out of the Raiders camp. These are the same people who kept saying what great shape Jamarcus Russel was in right before training camp a few years ago. We will see it when he hits the field, no need to say this.
Several people have said the same. One is Houshmanzadeh...take it for what it's worth, but he's been working with Palmer for a while now and has said he has seen the difference... It's quite possibly that he is "fully healed." We'll find out soon enough...
You know, I doubt that his arm is "more strengthened" by the layoff as much as it isn't tired and worn down. But here's hoping that he's going to have a great show of things. I like Carson a lot.
This!!! however I kind of agree with Duke here, common knowledge points to the fact this layoff would harm him not help him. Even if he was working out with Housh I however, do not like Carson
