Former Cardinal Carson Palmer headlines NFL All-Retirement team
Jul 24, 2018, 10:22 AM | Updated: 2:09 pm
Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer (3) waves to the fans as he jogs off the field after an NFL football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sunday, Oct. 15, 2017, in Glendale, Ariz. The Cardinals defeated the Buccaneers 38-33. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
(AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Even retired, former Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer is still finding his way onto a team.
The 2018 All-Retirement team, a 23-man lineup by ESPN, packs a punch with the three-time Pro Bowler taking over signal-calling duties.
Palmer follows all-retirement alumni Peyton Manning and Tony Romo as accomplished signal-callers who battled injuries in their mid-30s. His 294 touchdowns and 46,247 passing yards over 14 seasons might not be enough for the Hall of Fame, but his moments of brilliance shouldn’t be overlooked — most notably, his air-it-out work late in his career with Bruce Arians in Arizona.
After spending his first seven years with the Cincinnati Bengals, followed by two with the Oakland Raiders, Palmer landed in Arizona.
In 60 starts, Palmer bolstered a 38-21-1 record, throwing for 16,782 yards and 105 touchdowns. He completed 1,373 of his 2,197 passes for a 62.5 completion percentage with the Cardinals.
His passing yards with the team are the fourth-most in franchise history behind Jim Hart (1966-83), Neil Lomax (1981-88) and Jake Plummer (1997-02).
And how could Arizona fans forget about his only playoff win with the Cardinals?
This is the play before The Play after The Other Play:
Larry Fitzgerald starts OT with a 75-yard catch #BeRedSeeRed https://t.co/PQIxOy1FMX
— NFL (@NFL) January 17, 2016
Palmer, with some help from a guy named Larry Fitzgerald, took out Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers in overtime after the Arizona QB connected with Fitzgerald on a shovel pass to win the game.
After seeing just two seasons over .500 in his first nine seasons, the quarterback enjoyed three with Arizona.
He isn’t the only one to don a Cardinals jersey on the roster either.
Former Cardinals defensive end Dwight Freeney and cornerback Antonio Cromartie also cracked the list.
In 11 games with Arizona, Freeney forced three fumbles, made eight tackles and 8.0 sacks.
Cromartie played 16 games for the Cardinals in 2014. He made three interceptions and knocked down 12 balls, while making 46 tackles.
The rest of the roster, including a two-headed running game of Matt Forte and DeMarco Murray, on the All-Retirement team is pretty stacked.
Given the chance, they could even give some NFL teams a run for their money.
Below is the full list:
