Name Carson Palmer

College USC

College Position QB

NFL Position QB

Height 6-5

Weight 225

Positives-The positives with Carson are size, arm strength, pocket presence and leadership. The first thing you notice with Carson is his excellent size. He has ideal NFL size, which gives him a definite edge over other quarterbacks. Palmer can throw any pass, which enables him to run a full NFL offense. One more thing I like about him is his pocket presence; he stays calm under pressure and is very smart football wise. The last positive with this player is his leadership ability. I guarantee if you ask any member of the USC team, they will tell you he was the team leader. He has also been described as a hard worker, which is always a positive.

Negatives- There are not many negatives with a top 3 NFL draft pick. The only two I can see is average mobility, and only one great year. Most defensive coordinators will not worry about his mobility, but he can take off if he needs to. Carson had a very average freshman, sophomore, and junior year; he did have a fantastic senior year. The main reason I think he did not set the world on fire his first 3 years was poor supporting cast. If you go back and watch film you will see he did not have a lot of time to throw the ball, and had a very average running game.

What others are saying- D.J. Boyer collected by draftbook.com

12-20-02 Strength: Football knowledge Size
Weakness: Consistency
Assessment: There is no quarterback in the draft that has improved himself more than Carson Palmer did this past season. Palmer is a four-year starter that battled injuries early in his career at USC and has seen a number of coaching changes around him. Of the all the top ranking quarterbacks in this draft, Palmer plays in the offense that is the most pro-oriented. Palmer matured tremendously this past season and his performance against highly ranked teams is what sets him apart from many other quarterbacks in this draft. Palmer has shown he cannot be rattled easily and made some of his best throws while playing from behind. Palmer isn't a threat to run on a consistent basis but he can buy enough time in the pocket to make a play when things breakdown. Palmer has very good instincts and has the size that a team will be looking for in a franchise quarterback. Consistency has always been a problem with Palmer, he improved a great deal in this category as a senior but he is still prone to being very streaky at times. Palmer looks like a prospect that will get draft in the early portion on the first round.

Overall- Carson is my number one rated player, and has franchise QB written all over him. Look for him to have a Hall of Fame type career.