NFL.com: Carson Palmer’s performance Sunday one of 10 biggest playoff disappointments

Whatever negative adjective you would like to use to describe the way Carson Palmer played last Sunday would probably be accurate.

BY ADAM GREEN

Jan 28, 2016, 6:30 AM

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Arizona Cardinals' Carson Palmer throws during the first half the NFL football NFC Championship game against the Carolina Panthers, Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Bob Leverone)

(AP Photo/Bob Leverone)

Whatever negative adjective you would like to use to describe the way Carson Palmer played last Sunday would probably be accurate.

The Arizona Cardinals’ veteran quarterback who had put together an MVP-caliber regular season struggled, to say the least, throwing four interceptions while also losing two fumbles.

He wasn’t the reason why the Cardinals fell to the Carolina Panthers 49-15, but he was certainly one of them.

It was a tough way to go out for someone who had played so brilliantly for most of the season, and it’s why, according to NFL.com’s Elliot Harrison, Palmer’s game ranks among the top 10 biggest playoff disappointments for quarterbacks, excluding Super Bowls.

4) Carson Palmer, Arizona Cardinals, 2015 playoffs

NFC Championship Game: Panthers 49, Cardinals 15

We all saw it Sunday: an MVP candidate pressing in a game that mandated he perform like, well, an NFL MVP. Carson Palmer needed to lead six scoring drives to stay with Carolina in the NFC Championship — instead, he committed six turnovers. Palmer’s two fumbles hurt, while his pick-six to Luke Kuechly late sealed his team’s fate. Most disappointing was the fact that the second-seeded Cardinals were expected to give the Panthers all they could handle. Instead, Arizona got handled.

Since the game, which was easily Palmer’s worst of the season and probably the worst of his three-year Arizona tenure, the quarterback talked about how he was admittedly pressing while his team was struggling to keep up with the Panthers. He has also chosen not to participate in this weekend’s Pro Bowl, choosing instead to rest and let his injured right index finger heal.

Despite his struggles against the Panthers — against whom he completed 23-of-40 passes for 235 yards and one touchdown with the six turnovers — the Cardinals are in no way interested in so much as looking for someone to compete with Palmer next season, let alone replace him.

In fact, head coach Bruce Arians, when talking about what the loss to Carolina did to Palmer as the team moves forward, expressed nothing but confidence.

“I’m sure he’s as pissed as anybody, and disappointed,” the coach said, “and will probably come back as determined as he did from the surgery.”

While Palmer is understandably upset about his game and would rather not be on this list, he could take comfort in knowing NFL greats such as Joe Montana and Brett Favre are joining him, as they also have some sub-standard postseason performances on their resume.