Bruce Arians Says Cardinals Acquiring Carson Palmer Was ‘The Trade Of The Century’
USA Today
Four years after acquiring veteran quarterback Carson Palmer from the Oakland Raiders, Carson Palmer has helped turn the Arizona Cardinals into a perennial title contender in the NFC. It wasn’t an immediate success for Palmer in the desert, but it has turned out to be the right move for a franchise that has desperately needed a quarterback since the retirement of Kurt Warner.
According to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN, Cardinals head coach believes the acquisition of Palmer is historic.
“Oh God, that was the trade of the century by Steve Keim.” – Cardinals coach Bruce Arians to the Buffalo media on Wednesday on the trade that brought QB Carson Palmer to Arizona in 2013 in exchange for a sixth- and seventh-round pick.
The Cardinals got off to a rough start this season falling to the Tom Brady-less New England Patriots at the University of Phoenix Stadium. Arizona came into the 2016 NFL season with high hopes of rebounding from their devastating loss in the NFC Championship Game and making another run at the Super Bowl in February.
Fortunately for Arizona, Palmer and company bounced back with a vengeance in Week 2. The Cardinals destroyed the visiting Tampa Bay Buccaneers picking off quarterback Jameis Winston four times while Palmer threw for three touchdowns in route to a 40-7 victory in Glendale.
Heading into Week 3, the Cardinals will prepare for their first road game. Palmer and company will hit the road to face the Buffalo Bills at New Era Field. The Bills will be looking for their first win of the season while the Cardinals hope to keep their high-powered offense firing on all cylinders to record their second victory of the 2016 campaign.
As of Wednesday, the Cardinals are favored to come out on top in this matchup with the Bills. The spread is actually lower than anticipated with Arizona the favorites with only a -4.5 point spread (via Sportsbook.ag). The Cardinals should make easy work of Rex Ryan’s squad to improve to 2-1.
