It may be early, but it is always important to make a good first impression.
Carson Palmer did the exact opposite this past Sunday in his debut against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Oakland Raiders gave up a lot to receive Palmer. The Cincinnati Bengals received a first-round pick in the 2012 draft and a conditional second-round pick in the 2013 draft, which could become a first-round pick depending on how the Raiders do in the 2011-2012 postseason.
It must be taken into consideration that Palmer did not attend voluntary practices during the lockout, nor did he show up to training camp as a Bengal.
Following the trade between the Raiders and Bengals, Palmer only had five days to learn a brand new offense after being out of the game for a very long time.
Kyle Boller started the game for the Raiders, but it was ugly from the get-go. On the first offensive drive of the game for the Raiders, Boller threw an interception to Kendrick Lewis. Lewis successfully returned the interception all the way to the end zone for the first score of the game.
Boller threw two more interceptions as the Black Hole began to heavily boo the product that was put together on the field.
Coming out of the locker room at halftime, Boller remained on the field for the Raiders. Fans at the stadium began chanting Palmer’s name early in the second half. Fans stopped chanting and began to cheer when they saw Palmer warming up on the sideline during Kansas City’s first offensive drive of the second half.
Palmer received a big ovation from Raiders fans as he walked with his team to the field for his first drive. While the Raiders were down 21-0, there were a lot of faithful Raider fans thinking that things could not go worse.
However, Palmer was just as bad as Boller.
Palmer went on to throw three interceptions in the second half against the Chiefs. Palmer’s first interception was thrown to Brandon Flowers, who snagged his second interception by keeping a close eye on Palmer and the reads he was making.
After the snap, Palmer made a quick read to the right, where he easily gave away that he wanted to get the football to Denarius Moore.
Flowers jumped in front of Moore and took the interception. With every Raiders player behind Flowers when the pass was intercepted, the Chiefs were able to come away with their second defensive touchdown of the day.
Palmer threw another pass to Moore, which looked like it should have been caught at the seven-yard line. However, Brandon Carr was able to pop the football out of Moore’s hands, and Jon McGraw picked off the tipped pass, giving Kansas City their fifth interception.
Palmer’s third interception came on a bad pass intended for Louis Murphy. The ball was thrown to where only Travis Daniels could get it to give the Chiefs six interceptions on the day.
Palmer did not even play a complete game and turned the ball over three times. While most players struggle in their debuts, this was unforeseen.
It is very likely that Palmer improves during the bye week before the Raiders host another division rival in the Denver Broncos. However, even though Palmer was given only five days to prepare, it is hard to feel optimistic about a player you traded a first-round and second-round pick for when he has a debut like this.
The Raiders lost a golden opportunity to steal first place in the division as the San Diego Chargers lost to the New York Jets early Sunday afternoon.
Instead, the Raiders let that slip out of their hands and are giving the Chiefs a chance to take first place if they win next Monday night when they host the Chargers.
Hue Jackson and Al Saunders will be working with Palmer a lot during the bye week to get him ready for their next two games, which come against the Broncos at home and the Chargers on the road.
Colin Curtis Kevin Russo Curtis Granderson Nick Johnson Javier Lopez Alex Hinshaw
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