Fair or not, NFL analysts are already calling Carson Palmer’s career

Maybe the Arizona Cardinals’ playoff hopes are barely flickering. No doubt the team hasn’t played up to expectations.

The Cardinals, a popular Super Bowl contender to start 2016, are 4-5-1 with the math of making a playoff run not in their favor. On a national level, the reaction has pinned much of the blame on quarterback Carson Palmer, who on Sunday completed 20-of-38 passes for 198 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Nevermind that he was pressured more than any quarterback has been to this point in the NFL season.

Fair or not, Palmer’s dwindling career has been the easy-to-run-with storyline on the Monday after Week 11’s 30-24 Arizona loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

Palmer has completed 62 percent of his passes this year, which is 1.1 percent below his career average, and 7.16 yards per attempt, 0.18 below his career average. He’s thrown 13 touchdowns to 10 interceptions.

Here’s a collection of opinions near and far that focus on Palmer as a talking point when discussing the Cardinals’ disappointing season.

— Carson Palmer is not a quarterback you can win a title with (NFL.com)

“Palmer has always been my one “yeah, but …” with Arizona. Heck, I argued for Drew Stanton a few years ago. While the Cards’ discouraging campaign isn’t all on Palmer, it’s clear that he’s not a championship quarterback. That’s been proven in playoff games. And this year, he looks done.” — Adam Schein

— NFL Winners and Losers: With Carson Palmer fading, Cardinals’ championship dreams are done (Yahoo Sports)

“Even though Arizona has talked up Drew Stanton as its next starter, it’s hard to buy that a 32-year-old with a 67.2 career rating is leading anyone to a championship. Palmer is still their best option right now (starting over at quarterback in the NFL is really tough to do), but it seems like he has passed the point in which he could lead Arizona to a Super Bowl, and his 2017 salary-cap number is $24.125 million according to Spotrac.” — Frank Schwab

— NFL Insider notes: Carson Palmer’s window slams shut, Dak plays his best game (CBS Sports)

“The offense is simply not good enough. Palmer is searching and hoping for big plays, but turning the ball over far too often. His pick-six on Sunday, which Xavier Rhodes returned for 100 yards, turned around the game for good and perhaps will go down as the crossroads of this season.” — Jason La Canfora

 — What do you think the future holds for Carson Palmer? (ESPN)

“I look at this when I watched Carson Palmer yesterday, and the way I looked at his eyes and the just way the game unfolded for him, I saw a guy that to me looked like he’s about ready to hang ’em up. That’s clearly my opinion. He just took a beating … You just can’t allow your quarterback to ever take a beating like that.” — Mark Dominik

— Pressure, misses, and miscues blight Palmer’s day (Pro Football Focus)

“Carson Palmer was strong between the numbers on his short and intermediate throws, but outside the numbers, struggled when he threw across the line of scrimmage; Palmer went 5-for-13 for 55 yards and Xavier Rhodes’ pick-six on throws outside the numbers across the line of scrimmage.” — Ben Stockwell

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