Former Cardinals QB Carson Palmer Talks Bruce Arians Ahead of Super Bowl

Former Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer recalls that his former head coach Bruce Arians was not a morning person, was not for the faint of heart and set Super Bowl aspirations from Day 1 in the Valley. 

Arians' new team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, take on the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LV on Sunday. This week, Palmer went on multiple shows to discuss his days playing under Arians in Arizona, the difficulties and successes of the experience. 

Both Palmer and Arians arrived in the Valley ahead of the 2013 season, and they each retired after 2017 (Arians un-retired in 2019). 

"He came into Arizona right when I had gotten there, and I think the team had won like three games the year before (it was five)," Palmer told Robert Mays on The Athletic Football Show. "He was talking Super Bowl in the very first meeting. I'm sure a lot of players were like 'Huh? Super Bowl?' "

With the attitude that the team he was inheriting would become a contender, Arians was very demanding. Palmer said his coach toughened players up, and was not afraid to rip into anyone on any given day.

"That is his old-school mentality; there are no excuses," Palmer said on The Ringer NFL Show. "You’re paid to execute the play and if you don’t execute it, you're going to hear about it."

Palmer called his first year in Arizona challenging, given Arians' demands and the complexity of the offense. 

Arians runs an aggressive scheme with a lot of deep shots and audibles. As Palmer said, his coach was willing to allow a sack or fumble here and there in exchange for chunk yardage. 

This required great timing and chemistry between Palmer and his targets, something that took time.

"That first year was so frustrating," Palmer said to Mays. "I was the new quarterback in a new system and a lot of the players were the same from years prior, but it was a new system.

"We didn’t have great rapport yet. I didn’t feel comfortable reading guys' body language to get ready to throw them the ball when they’re getting ready to break in or break out or go deep. Those take time and take trust."