Is Carson Palmer Still Suffering From the Lingering Effects of His 2006 Knee Injury?

The Bengals have had another busy offseason, and, as usual, it's primarily been dealing with various off-field issues. Chad Ocho Cinco and Chris Henry spent much of the spring and summer in the news, and right before the season, the team released running back Rudi Johnson and offensive tackle Willie Anderson, two guys they certainly could've used during last week's dreadful effort against the Bengals.

For all the distractions, Michael Lombardi writes on SI.com that the Bengals should be more concerned about quarterback Carson Palmer, who had one of the worst outings of his football career -- at any level -- last week. He was 9 of 24 for 94 yards, 0 TDs, and 1 pick against Baltimore. Lombardi wonders if Palmer's mediocre play -- not just last Sunday, but the past few seasons -- are tied to the devastating knee injury he suffered during the 2005 wild card loss to the Steelers.

If I were the Cincinnati Bengals, I would be worried about the play of quarterback Carson Palmer. He has not been the same since the knee injury two years ago and neither has the Bengals offense.

The Bengals are perceived as being an explosive offense, but in reality there is nothing explosive about them. The Bengals need to find some answers for their lackluster offense. They need to get more production from their running game when teams play coverage on them, which is what Baltimore did last week.

Eh, I'm not convinced Palmer's still suffering from the lingering effects of having his knee explode; he followed up an impressive '05 season (3,863 passing yards, 67.8 completion percentage, 7.5 yards per pass attempt, 32 TD, 12 INTs) with almost-as-impressive numbers in '06 (4,035 yards, 62.3%, 7.5, 28, 13).

Last year he threw for 4,131 yards -- he also tossed 20 picks against 26 TDs -- but that, as Lombardi points out, is a function of not having a running game. Chris Perry was supposed to solve that problem, but he only managed 42 yards on 19 carries against the Ravens. With Ocho Cinco trying to play through a shoulder injury, and the defense as abysmal as ever, Lombardi's overall point remains: the Bengals should be worried.

Next up: the Vince Young-less Tennessee Titans.