The Irish Doggy Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 link 1. Carson Palmer, Cincinnati Bengals: Palmer had a 96.8 passer rating over his last six starts of 2004 -- a stretch that included games against Baltimore, Pittsburgh and New England. It's a mistake to dismiss Palmer just because he faces the brutal defenses of the AFC North. He lit up the Ravens in Week 13 (29-of-36, 382 yards, 3 TDs and 1 INT), and had moderate success against against a Pittsburgh defense that might take a step back this year. The offseason was positive for Palmer, who is reportedly totally recovered from a knee sprain that ended his season two weeks early. The Bengals re-signed WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh and RB Rudi Johnson, maintaining Palmer's potent stable of targets. The No. 1 overall pick in 2003, Palmer has the pedigree, the supporting cast and the right coaching staff. Even if the Bengals struggle to make the playoffs in this ultra-competitive division, Palmer will stand out and earn a trip to Honolulu. 2. David Carr, Houston Texans: Carr has steadily improved throughout his three seasons. The sacks still remain a problem (140 over the last three years), however, so the coaching staff has been focused on getting the ball out of Carr's hands faster. Expect receivers to run more timing routes and for coach Dom Capers to hound Carr to get rid of it. Like Palmer, Carr has an impressive supporting cast, with RB Domanick Davis and WR Andre Johnson. The big question mark is the line, which has been a problem since the Texans' inception. Houston still needs help left tackle, its Achilles heel since picking an injured Tony Boselli in the 2002 expansion draft. Carr has had accuracy problems at times, but that might be because of the constant pressure. 3. J.P. Losman, Buffalo Bills: Losman is in the same situation Palmer faced in Cincinnati -- being promoted to starter despite not getting an opportunity to play his rookie season. You can't have a bigger question under center mark than the former Tulane star. Everyone knows about his athleticism but no one can guess how his decision-making skills will fare in a real-life situation. There are all sorts of glowing reports out of Buffalo training camp, but those amount to nothing for a quarterback with no NFL experience. One reason to have high hopes for Losman is the offense around him. The Bills exploded for more than 30 points in six of their last seven games and RB Willis McGahee and WR Lee Evans were unstoppable down the stretch. Any kind of prediction is simply a guess for Losman, but his development will likely be one of the most interesting stories of the early season. 4. Eli Manning, New York Giants: It's tempting to compare Eli to Peyton and predict the Giants QB will make the same kind of jump his brother did. Like Peyton, Eli ended his rookie year on a high note, with exceptional performances in two of his last three games. But some of Eli's earlier games -- when the Giants were theoretically still in the playoff hunt -- were as bad as a QB can have (he had a 0 rating against the Ravens and a 16.9 rating against Philly). Manning is probably the biggest question mark on the list. With no veteran hanging over his shoulder, he'll have every opportunity to succeed, which is good because he has another year of mistakes in him. Look for Manning to have much more success with the deep ball this year, but his overall game will need more time. 5. Byron Leftwich, Jacksonville Jaguars: Unlike the other QBs on this list, Leftwich doesn't need a breakthrough season for his team go far. Defense will carry the Jags and Leftwich has to concentrate on avoiding turnovers. That being said, Leftwich seems to have a lot of problems getting Jacksonville down the field and his supporting cast has several issues this year. There are rumors star RB Fred Taylor is having difficulty recovering from offseason knee surgery, and at the time the time this was written a deal for Shaun Alexander was still a big maybe. Despite picking wideouts with their last two first-round picks, they don't have a receiver that scares defenses. Reggie Williams -- the No. 9 overall pick in the '04 draft -- struggled last season, while this year's first-rounder, Matt Jones, has been hampered by hamstring injuries and still has to learn the position. Leftwich's numbers plummeted after he suffered a knee injury last season, and he ended up with less than 150 yards passing in each of his last three games. His numbers will go up, but never high enough to merit stardom. That doesn't mean the Jaguars won't win a lot of games with Leftwich at the helm. It's not like Jim McMahon ever had good stats with the Bears. 6. Joey Harrington, Detroit Lions: In theory, Harrington's in the kind of position Culpepper was in his first year as a starter in Minnesota: An offense with receivers so physically gifted, all a QB has to do is throw the ball downfield and high and he has a touchdown. With Roy Williams, Charles Rogers and rookie Mike Williams, the Lions have three of the most physically gifted young wideouts in the game. Then again, Rogers can't stay healthy and Mike Williams is a rookie who hasn't played in two years. Like many Detroit fans and the many media members who ask Steve Mariucci if he is really dedicated to Harrington as his starter, I fall into the doubter camp for the former Oregon star. There are moments when Harrington looks good, but he has so far to go in such a short time. Because even if Mariucci won't admit it, the Lions are thinking playoffs this year and will have no patience to develop their fourth-year QB. 7. Kyle Boller, Baltimore Ravens: Boller has as little leeway as a third-year QB can have. All the pieces around him are close to Super Bowl-level -- at least on paper -- and Boller will get the blame if Baltimore doesn't win big. In Boller's favor, his numbers went up from his rookie year to his second season -- mainly because they had no other direction to go. And he was without RB Jamal Lewis, TE Todd Heap and offensive tackle Jonathan Ogden for big chunks last season. The Ravens drafted Oklahoma receiver Mark Clayton and signed Derrick Mason this offseason. Although new receivers could help Boller immensely, the additions also remove one of his biggest excuses. Boller has a huge target on the back of his jersey from both the fans and the media, and he just might not have decision-making skills and accuracy to succeed. Always nice to see my boy in orange and black at the top of a list like this. Homerism aside, I've been wondering why Carr hasn't risen to star status yet. He's obviously super tough after the poundings he's taken and he must have skill to be a #1, but I thought of the guys on the list, he would have "made it" by now. I don't get to see the Texans much and only hear about the horrible line. What's the scoop there? Is he just an OK QB, or is the rest of the team limiting his progress? Is he another Couch? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtomicCEO Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 Why is Harrington on this list if the author doesn't have anything good to say about him? And... with Garcia, and a new rookie Orlovsky behind him on the depth chart... he'd better look sharp. Mariucci is bragging about his "QB Depth"... uh oh... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1stimer Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 Is Roethlisberger off the list or already considered a superstar? He did a great job last year and won ROY so maybe that is why he is left off. I don't think he will give the production of Peyton, but he seems to be a winner ... as long as he can get his post-season together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Swerski Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 Is Roethlisberger off the list or already considered a superstar? He did a great job last year and won ROY so maybe that is why he is left off. I don't think he will give the production of Peyton, but he seems to be a winner ... as long as he can get his post-season together. 837312[/snapback] He had great poise for a rookie last year. I could see him being the next Brady/Aikman/Simms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebdog Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 Carr......show me something, anything to give me reason to expect anything from you this year. Palmer.....future looks bright. Harrington......Garcia will have your job by week #5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skilly Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 I think Palmer showed last year that he has the goods. That game against the Ravens was incredible, and he made some unbelievable throws. He is the best of the bunch. Carr needs to get the Texans to the playoffs---period. I see a Favre-ish quality about him, as a leader, and I think he'll settle down and become more consistant. Harrington----Will make a solid backup quarterback. Rothleswhatever-----Everything looks good for him to succeed. Eli--------He'll probably be a decent qb if Coughlin doesn't screw him up too bad. And what about Phillip Rivers? If this guy doesn't hold out of training camp his rookie year, he is probably the Chargers' starting qb. I guess nobody really knows what this guy can do yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoJoTheWebToedBoy Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 Mark it down on your calendars folks, Boller and Harrington are going to have a breakout year this season Start scheduling them into your fantasy teams now..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skilly Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 Mark it down on your calendars folks, Boller and Harrington are going to have a breakout year this season Start scheduling them into your fantasy teams now..... 837565[/snapback] ................................................... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
major-tom Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 Palmer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1stimer Posted June 10, 2005 Share Posted June 10, 2005 ................................................... 837601[/snapback] I second that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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