CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Bengals have waived quarterback Jordan Palmer, who came to training camp hoping to compete for a job but didn’t get much of a chance.

Palmer was the backup quarterback last season to brother Carson Palmer, who has decided to retire rather than play another season for the Bengals. Jordan Palmer led workouts with Cincinnati’s offense during the NFL lockout and tutored rookie quarterback Andy Dalton.

The Bengals decided to make Dalton the starter and signed veteran Bruce Gradkowski, an indication they didn’t plan to keep Palmer. Dalton and Gradkowski ran most of the plays during training camp practices and preseason games.

Updated Aug 27, 2011 4:10 PM ET

CINCINNATI (AP)

The Cincinnati Bengals have waived quarterback Jordan Palmer, who came to training camp hoping to compete for a job but didn’t get much of a chance.

Palmer was the backup quarterback last season to brother Carson Palmer, who has decided to retire rather than play another season for the Bengals. Jordan Palmer led workouts with Cincinnati’s offense during the NFL lockout and tutored rookie quarterback Andy Dalton.

The Bengals decided to make Dalton the starter and signed veteran Bruce Gradkowski, an indication they didn’t plan to keep Palmer. Dalton and Gradkowski ran most of the plays during training camp practices and preseason games.

The piling on continues for the struggling and rebuilding Cincinnati Bengals.
First, ESPN.com ranked Cincinnati the worst team in football entering the preseason. (Cincinnati hasn’t done anything the past two weeks to dispel that claim.) Then, Scouts Inc. ranked its top 200 players without a Bengal in sight through the first 80 selections.

In fact, left tackle Andrew Whitworth was the highest-rated Bengal at No. 85. It’s a strong indictment of Cincinnati’s roster. Three AFC North teams had a dozen players rated higher before the first Bengal was mentioned.

Cincinnati franchise quarterback Carson Palmer likely would have made the top 80. But his retirement put him out of the running.

The Bengals have talented, but unproven, young players. But if the preseason is any indication, there will be a lot of growing pains this year in Cincinnati.

Philadelphia Eagles franchise quarterback Michael Vick had some interesting comments about the Cincinnati Bengals in September’s edition of GQ Magazine. Vick said he initially believed that the Bengals and Buffalo Bills were better options than the Eagles.
Vick could not have been more wrong.

Cincinnati was not the place if Vick was seeking instant playing time. In 2009, the Bengals had $100-million quarterback Carson Palmer in the fold. Barring injury, Vick would have had no chance to compete or supplant Palmer in the starting lineup. Vick eventually took the job in Philadelphia from Kevin Kolb, who was a much easier target.

Second, the Eagles’ foundation on offense is much stronger. Philadelphia’s explosive West Coast offense compared with Cincinnati’s system under former offensive coordinator Bob Bratkowski isn’t close. Vick found the right system to learn and perfect. Philadelphia, in turn, tailored the offense to fit his strengths. Cincinnati’s old offense under Bratkowski didn’t have the same flexibility and creativity for Vick’s unique talents.

Finally, the stability of the organization counts for something. From ownership, down to coaching and the players, Vick walked into a much better situation in Philadelphia. Vick is now leading a Super Bowl contender just two years after being released from prison. Meanwhile, Cincinnati is hitting the reset button once again and is considered one of the NFL’s worst teams.

GEORGETOWN, Ky. – Rookie quarterback Andy Dalton will start the Cincinnati Bengals’ pre-season opener on Friday night in Detroit, his first chance to show he can handle the job.

Coach Marvin Lewis said on Tuesday that Dalton and the other starters will play a little longer than a normal pre-season opener as they try to make up for time lost during the NFL lockout. He said the second-round pick has shown a lot of poise while learning the offence in training camp.

“He’s exceptional,” Lewis said.

The move was expected. Owner Mike Brown indicated when camp opened that he wanted Dalton to be the starter.

The last time the Bengals drafted a quarterback was 2003, when they made Carson Palmer the first overall pick. He sat his rookie season behind veteran Jon Kitna, who was more familiar with the offence.

The Bengals went 8-8 behind Kitna that season, Lewis’ first with the Bengals. Palmer took over the next year. Lewis said Dalton will get a chance to start his rookie season because the circumstances are different.

“Had Carson been head-and-shoulders above Jon, he would have been the starting quarterback,” Lewis said. “But at that point, he wasn’t. Andy comes in here in a little different situation.

“The team is put together differently right now. There isn’t a veteran quarterback on this team that has been here and been part of these guys. They are all learning an offence that was different than the past. We are all starting from scratch.”

Palmer decided after a 4-12 season that he wouldn’t return, choosing to retire rather than play out his contract with one of the NFL’s most dysfunctional franchises. The Bengals changed offensive co-ordinators, bringing in Jay Gruden, and drafted Dalton to take over for Palmer.

Palmer’s younger brother, Jordan, was the No. 2 quarterback last season. He hoped for a chance to compete for the job, but hasn’t gotten many chances to run the offence during training camp. Dalton has gotten the overwhelming majority of the plays, while newcomer Bruce Gradkowski has been groomed as the backup.

Dalton embraced the role of No. 1.

“There’s still a lot of camp left, but it means a lot that they would go ahead and put that up there,” Dalton said. “I think it just shows that I’ve been working hard and hopefully I can keep improving and keep my name up there.

“I think it shows they have confidence in me.”

Rookie quarterback Andy Dalton will start the Cincinnati Bengals’ preseason opener on Friday night in Detroit, his first chance to show he can handle the job.

Coach Marvin Lewis said on Tuesday that Dalton and the other starters will play a little longer than a normal preseason opener as they try to make up for time lost during the NFL lockout. He said the second-round pick has shown a lot of poise while learning the offense in training camp.

“He’s exceptional,” Lewis said.

The move was expected. Owner Mike Brown indicated when camp opened that he wanted Dalton to be the starter.

The last time the Bengals drafted a quarterback was 2003, when they made Carson Palmer the first overall pick. He sat his rookie season behind veteran Jon Kitna, who was more familiar with the offense.

The Bengals went 8-8 behind Kitna that season, Lewis’ first with the Bengals. Palmer took over the next year. Lewis said Dalton will get a chance to start his rookie season because the circumstances are different.

“Had Carson been head-and-shoulders above Jon, he would have been the starting quarterback,” Lewis said. “But at that point, he wasn’t. Andy comes in here in a little different situation.

“The team is put together differently right now. There isn’t a veteran quarterback on this team that has been here and been part of these guys. They are all learning an offense that was different than the past. We are all starting from scratch.”

Palmer decided after a 4-12 season that he wouldn’t return, choosing to retire rather than play out his contract with one of the NFL’s most dysfunctional franchises. The Bengals changed offensive coordinators, bringing in Jay Gruden, and drafted Dalton to take over for Palmer.

Palmer’s younger brother, Jordan, was the No. 2 quarterback last season. He hoped for a chance to compete for the job, but hasn’t gotten many chances to run the offense during training camp. Dalton has gotten the overwhelming majority of the plays, while newcomer Bruce Gradkowski has been groomed as the backup.

Dalton embraced the role of No. 1.

“There’s still a lot of camp left, but it means a lot that they would go ahead and put that up there,” Dalton said. “I think it just shows that I’ve been working hard and hopefully I can keep improving and keep my name up there.

“I think it shows they have confidence in me.”

Local 12 has learned that the Cincinnati Bengals have released Antwan Odom.

The 29 year old defensive end has been with the Bengals since 2008, when he signed under free agency.

Odom’s release was just one of seven moves made by the team before 2 p.m. Friday. They include:
* Waived OT Andrew Mitchell in the Waived/Non-Football Injury category.
* Placed QB Carson Palmer on the Reserve/Did Not Report list.
* Waived CB Morgan Trent.
* Signed two draft choices, G Clint Boling of Georgia (fourth round) and HB Jay Finley of Baylor (seventh round).
* Signed one college free agent, C-G Ryan McKnight of South Dakota State.
* Placed CB Adam Jones and DT Pat Sims on the Active/Physically Unable to Perform list. Active/PUP designates players who are unable to practice as camp begins, due to injury, who may be activated as soon as they are medically cleared.
* Placed LB Keith Rivers on the Active/Non-Football Injury list. Active/NFI designates players who are unable to practice as camp begins, due to injury, who may be activated as soon as they are medically cleared.

Local 12 is in Georgetown and we’ll have more information on Local 12 Beginning at 4 p.m.  

It’s not often that you can draw a sympathetic character out of an NFL quarterback that refuses to play for his team despite an existing contract with tens of millions of dollars remaining. You’d have to be talking about a team with an unusual amount of dysfunction for that to be the case.

Fortunately for Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer(notes), who is in just such a situation, he’s been playing football for team owner Mike Brown(notes) for years, and that allows everyone to understand why Palmer would rather retire than play anymore for that particular organization. If you want to know what the Bengals are dealing with in Brown, look no further that his Tuesday press conference, in which Brown put his foot down in typically autocratic and ham-fisted fashion, saying that Palmer has retired:

“Carson signed a contract, he made a commitment,” Brown said. “He gave us his word. We relied on his word and his commitment. We expected him to perform here. If he is going to walk away from his commitment we aren’t going to reward him for doing it.”

Put simply, that’s a load of garbage. Never mind that NFL contracts are terminated all the time — on the same afternoon in which Brown was making that ridiculous statement, the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants were releasing huge chunks of their starting offensive lines to stay under the new $120 million salary cap. And while Palmer does have a contract that has him making over $10 million in each of the next four years (in base salary alone, $11.5 million in 2001 and 2012, $13 million in 2013, and $14 million in 2014), that very same contract puts him in the kill zone for either a restructure or release soon down the road. Brown’s talk of “commitments” is as typically ridiculous as you’d expect.

Of course, to look at the other side, Palmer could be making a mistake in refusing to play for the Bengals. Even if you take Chad Ochocinco(notes) out of the equation, the Bengals have somehow put together a nice, young receiver corps with A.J. Green(notes), Jordan Shipley(notes), Jerome Simpson(notes), and tight end Jermaine Gresham(notes). Even if he were able to engineer the release or trade he wants, Palmer may be hard-pressed to find a better young group elsewhere. And let’s be honest about it — Palmer’s skills have atrophied in the last few seasons; he’d most likely have to restructure if he did go to another team.

In the end, Mike Brown gets the booby prize in this equation. He could trade Carson Palmer and help his team, but just as he did three years ago when he refused an offer from the Washington Redskins for two first-round picks in exchange for Ochocinco, Brown once again proved that his focus is never on the team he inherited from his father, Paul Brown (ironically one of the greatest football minds ever) and always on his own misbegotten faith in his ability to run a franchise.

At least Brown understands one thing — a trade from his organization would indeed be a reward.

Related: Carson Palmer, Chad Ochocinco, Mike Brown, A.J. Green, Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Washington Redskins

Published 2:02am Wednesday, July 27, 2011

The Associated Press

CINCINNATI — Bengals owner Mike Brown insisted on Tuesday that he won’t trade quarterback Carson Palmer, who wants to leave one of the NFL’s least-successful franchises.

Palmer, who has four years left on his contract, told the team in January that he would retire if he’s not traded. The Bengals have only two winning seasons in the last 20 years, one of the worst stretches of futility in league history.

Brown said the club will move on without its franchise quarterback. The Bengals plan to hold their first training camp workout Saturday in Georgetown, Ky.

“I honestly like Carson Palmer,” Brown said. “He was a splendid player for us. He’s a good person. I wish him well. And he is retired. That is his choice. … I’m not expecting him to be back.”

Asked why he wouldn’t trade Palmer and get some draft picks in return, Brown said it was a matter of principle.

“Carson signed a contract. He made a commitment. He gave his word,” Brown said. “We relied on his word. We relied on his commitment. We expected him to perform here. He’s going to walk away from his commitment. We aren’t going to reward him for doing it.”

Brown has traditionally taken a hard line on players trying to leave. Receiver Chad Ochocinco unsuccessfully lobbied for a trade three years ago, but Brown refused. Ochocinco has one year left on his deal, but is hoping to be released in the next few weeks.

Brown and coach Marvin Lewis declined to say anything about Ochocinco on Tuesday other than that he’s under contract. The Bengals picked receiver A.J. Green in the first round of the draft, giving themselves his eventual replacement.

The Bengals drafted Andy Dalton in the second round last April. Brown indicated on Tuesday that he’ll be the starter heading into camp, even though he hasn’t been able to work with coaches because of the NFL’s lockout. Jordan Palmer — Carson’s younger brother — is the only experienced quarterback on the roster.

Brown said the team will look for another veteran, but will give Dalton a chance to win the job.

“We think he is promising for our future,” Brown said. “Yes, he’ll have teething problems. It won’t be altogether easy for him all the time. But we’re going to put him in there. If he can do it, we’re going to go with him. And I hope he can manage it.”

Dalton arrived at Paul Brown Stadium in the afternoon, accompanied by an assistant coach, and went inside for meetings.

The Bengals are coming off a 4-12 season that included 10 straight losses. Carson Palmer told the team he wouldn’t be back after Lewis decided to return even though Brown promised no significant changes in how the organization is run.

The Bengals originally planned to have players report at Georgetown College — a 90-mile drive south of Cincinnati — on Wednesday and have their first practice a day later. They pushed the schedule back by two days.

Players will have physicals at the stadium on Thursday and Friday morning, then report to Georgetown on Friday afternoon.

Players visited the stadium throughout the day, getting playbooks and meeting briefly with coaches who were busy trying to contact college free agents. Cincinnati has one of the NFL’s smallest front offices, making a hectic time even more challenging.

“It’s been a crazy day,” offensive line coach Paul Alexander said. “In fact, all the linemen came through and I was able to spend about one minute with each guy and then, ‘Get out of here, I’ve got to go try to sign some college free agents.”’

Brown, who functions as the team’s de facto general manager, was pleased to have everything up and running again.

“We’re like Snow White and the Seven Dwarves — ‘Heigh-Ho, Heigh-Ho!’ — with the spirit over there today,” Brown said.

Brown said the club will move on without its franchise quarterback. The Bengals plan to hold their first training camp workout Saturday in Georgetown, Ky.

“I honestly like Carson Palmer,” Brown said. “He was a splendid player for us. He’s a good person. I wish him well. And he is retired. That is his choice. … I’m not expecting him to be back.”

Asked why he wouldn’t trade Palmer and get some draft picks in return, Brown said it was a matter of principle.

“Carson signed a contract. He made a commitment. He gave his word,” Brown said. “We relied on his word. We relied on his commitment. We expected him to perform here. He’s going to walk away from his commitment. We aren’t going to reward him for doing it.”

Brown has traditionally taken a hard line on players trying to leave. Receiver Chad Ochocinco unsuccessfully lobbied for a trade three years ago, but Brown refused. Ochocinco has one year left on his deal, but is hoping to be released in the next few weeks.

Brown and coach Marvin Lewis declined to say anything about Ochocinco on Tuesday other than that he’s under contract. The Bengals picked receiver A.J. Green in the first round of the draft, giving themselves his eventual replacement.

The Bengals drafted Andy Dalton in the second round last April. Brown indicated on Tuesday that he’ll be the starter heading into camp, even though he hasn’t been able to work with coaches because of the NFL’s lockout. Jordan Palmer — Carson’s younger brother — is the only experienced quarterback on the roster.

Brown said the team will look for another veteran, but will give Dalton a chance to win the job.

“We think he is promising for our future,” Brown said. “Yes, he’ll have teething problems. It won’t be altogether easy for him all the time. But we’re going to put him in there. If he can do it, we’re going to go with him. And I hope he can manage it.”

Dalton arrived at Paul Brown Stadium in the afternoon, accompanied by an assistant coach, and went inside for meetings.

The Bengals are coming off a 4-12 season that included 10 straight losses. Carson Palmer told the team he wouldn’t be back after Lewis decided to return even though Brown promised no significant changes in how the organization is run.

The Bengals originally planned to have players report at Georgetown College — a 90-mile drive south of Cincinnati — on Wednesday and have their first practice a day later. They pushed the schedule back by two days.

Players will have physicals at the stadium on Thursday and Friday morning, then report to Georgetown on Friday afternoon.

Players visited the stadium throughout the day, getting playbooks and meeting briefly with coaches who were busy trying to contact college free agents. Cincinnati has one of the NFL’s smallest front offices, making a hectic time even more challenging.

“It’s been a crazy day,” offensive line coach Paul Alexander said. “In fact, all the linemen came through and I was able to spend about one minute with each guy and then, ‘Get out of here, I’ve got to go try to sign some college free agents.’”

Brown, who functions as the team’s de facto general manager, was pleased to have everything up and running again.

“We’re like Snow White and the Seven Dwarves — ‘Heigh-Ho, Heigh-Ho!’ — with the spirit over there today,” Brown said.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

CINCINNATI – Cincinnati Bengals owner Mike Brown insisted Tuesday he won’t trade quarterback Carson Palmer, who wants to leave one of the NFL’s least-successful franchises.

Palmer, who has four years left on his contract, told the team in January that he would retire if he’s not traded. The Bengals have only two winning seasons in the last 20 years, one of the worst stretches of futility in league history.

Brown said the club will move on without its franchise quarterback. The Bengals plan to hold their first training camp workout Saturday in Georgetown, Ky.

“I honestly like Carson Palmer,” Brown said. “He was a splendid player for us. He’s a good person. I wish him well. And he is retired. That is his choice. … I’m not expecting him to be back.”

Asked why he wouldn’t trade Palmer and get some draft picks in return, Brown said it was a matter of principle.

“Carson signed a contract. He made a commitment. He gave his word,” Brown said. “We relied on his word. We relied on his commitment.

“We expected him to perform here. He’s going to walk away from his commitment. We aren’t going to reward him for doing it.”

Brown has traditionally taken a hard line on players trying to leave. Receiver Chad Ochocinco unsuccessfully lobbied for a trade three years ago, but Brown refused. Ochocinco has one year left on his deal, but is hoping to be released in the next few weeks.

Brown and coach Marvin Lewis declined to say anything about Ochocinco on Tuesday other than that he’s under contract. The Bengals picked receiver A.J. Green in the first round of the draft, giving themselves his eventual replacement.

The Bengals drafted Andy Dalton in the second round last April. Brown indicated Tuesday he’ll be the starter heading into camp, even though he hasn’t been able to work with coaches because of the NFL’s lockout. Jordan Palmer — Carson’s younger brother — is the only experienced quarterback on the roster.

Brown said the team will look for another veteran, but will give Dalton a chance to win the job.

“We think he is promising for our future,” Brown said. “Yes, he’ll have teething problems. It won’t be altogether easy for him all the time. But we’re going to put him in there. If he can do it, we’re going to go with him. And I hope he can manage it.”

Dalton arrived at Paul Brown Stadium in the afternoon, accompanied by an assistant coach, and went inside for meetings.

The Bengals are coming off a 4-12 season that included 10 straight losses. Carson Palmer told the team he wouldn’t be back after Lewis decided to return even though Brown promised no significant changes in how the organization is run.

The Bengals originally planned to have players report at Georgetown College — a 145-kilometre drive south of Cincinnati — on Wednesday and have their first practice a day later. They pushed the schedule back by two days.

Players visited the stadium throughout the day, getting playbooks and meeting briefly with coaches who were busy trying to contact college free agents. Cincinnati has one of the NFL’s smallest front offices, making a hectic time even more challenging.

“It’s been a crazy day,” offensive line coach Paul Alexander said. “In fact, all the linemen came through and I was able to spend about one minute with each guy and then, ‘Get out of here, I’ve got to go try to sign some college free agents.’ “

Brown, who functions as the team’s de facto general manager, was pleased to have everything up and running again.

“We’re like Snow White and the Seven Dwarves — high ho, high ho! — with the spirit over there today,” Brown said.

CINCINNATI — The Bengals say they won’t trade quarterback Carson Palmer, who wants to leave one of the NFL’s least-successful franchises.

Owner Mike Brown said on Tuesday that he won’t satisfy the quarterback’s request for a trade. Brown says that a trade would reward Palmer for failing to play out the rest of his contract. Instead, they’ll let him go ahead with his plan to retire rather than play for the Bengals.

Brown indicated that the team will look for another veteran quarterback in free agency, but plans to move ahead with second-round draft pick Andy Dalton as the possible starter.

The Bengals will hold their first practice in Georgetown, Ky., on Saturday, two days later than originally planned.

The Cincinnati Bengals will likely start a rookie quarterback, do not know their starting running back and have to install a West Coast offense in limited time. This has all the makings of a slow start offensively.

Therefore, expect Cincinnati to rely heavily on its veteran defense to carry this team early in the season. The Bengals’ defense took a major step back in 2010, but is looking to get back to its 2009 form, when it was ranked No. 4 in the NFL.

Injuries and inconsistency led to Cincinnati’s No. 15 defensive ranking last season. The Bengals’ defense fell to the middle of the pack, which wasn’t too bad considering they were 4-12.

But with a new offense filled with young players, there will be no margin for error for Mike Zimmer’s defense this season. Second-round pick Andy Dalton is projected to lead the team after Carson Palmer’s sudden retirement, and 1000-yard rusher Cedric Benson’s pending legal situation puts his status in doubt with the team. Benson is an unrestricted free agent.

The West Coast offense is built on timing and precision, and the lockout has hurt the Bengals significantly in those areas. Don’t expect Cincinnati to light up the scoreboard, particularly early. But if the defense plays well, the Bengals still have a chance to get off on the right foot.

Cincinnati opens its 2011 season on the road against the Cleveland Browns in Week 1. The Browns are an early three-point favorite.