The Chicago Bears have a long history of near-misses when it comes to the quarterback position. One that a lot of people don’t talk about much took place in 2003. Most people remember that as the year they took Rex Grossman with the 22nd pick. They often forget how close they came to having a shot at the best QB in that class. Sadly, as is the running theme for them, Carson Palmer proved just out of reach.
What nobody knew until now is the quarterback himself actually wanted to play for Chicago. Something people sometimes forget is it’s not just the teams scouting draft prospects. The players scout the teams too. Palmer had done his homework on the Bears. So when he met with GM Jerry Angelo at the USC pro day, he urged the team to do whatever they could to move up from the 4th pick to draft him. He wanted to play in Chicago. He explained this on the Rich Eisen Podcast.
The biggest selling point for Palmer was the defense they were building.
They already had Brian Urlacher, Mike Brown, and Alex Brown in place by the start of that year. That was the same draft they would end up selecting Lance Briggs and Charles Tillman as well. Try to imagine what could’ve been had the team found to way to nab Palmer. That would’ve been a draft for the ages in Chicago. Unfortunately, it didn’t matter what the quarterback wanted. He realized later that the Cincinnati Bengals, who held the #1 pick, were fixated on drafting him.
It didn’t matter what the Bears or any other team offered. The Bengals weren’t going to move. When that became clear, Angelo likely began formulating his plans for what eventually happened. Chicago moved down from #4 until they ended up with the 14th and 22nd picks in the 1st round. With those, they selected Michael Haynes and Grossman respectively. While most view that QB move as a bust, the reality is Grossman was the second-most successful one to come out of that draft behind Palmer.
Carson Palmer likely grew bitter about the Bears over time
Not necessarily because Angelo lied to him or anything. He didn’t. It was more because he felt the Bears failed to save him from what turned out to be a rotten situation. Cincinnati had a good roster during the first few years he was there. However, over time it became clear the Bengals weren’t big spenders. They didn’t make bold trades or bring in big-name free agents. This put more pressure on Palmer to perform. Eventually, that led to a falling out with the team that led to him retiring in protest, wanting to be traded.
That request was finally granted in 2011, where he was sent to Oakland for multiple picks. He wasn’t lying about taking out his frustrations on the Bears either. In four career games, Carson Palmer was a perfect 4-0 against them. This was by scores of 24-7, 45-10, 25-20, and 48-23. He clearly loved beating Chicago. It would’ve been nice to see him channel that energy into winning games for them.
Just imagine how different those 2005 and 2006 teams might’ve been.
How different would Super Bowl XLI have gone if Palmer had been the quarterback? There is no way to know. One could say the two sides never achieved what they could’ve because they were kept apart. Chicago failed to win a title in their optimal window while Palmer failed to reach the big game in Cincinnati, Oakland, and Arizona.
It seems horribly fitting the man who replaced him in Cincinnati, Andy Dalton, is now the Bears’ starter.