Carson Palmer is apparently determined to leave Cincinnati.
Palmer, who has demanded the Bengals trade him, told a confidant he “will never set foot in Paul Brown Stadium again,” WCPO-TV in Cincinnati reported Tuesday.
Bengals owner Mike Brown said in January that he will not trade Palmer because the quarterback is crucial to the team’s plans.
Several sources told ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen in January that Palmer will contemplate retirement if the Bengals do not trade him.
According to Tuesday’s report, Palmer said “I have $80 million in the bank. I don’t have to play football for money. I’ll play it for the love of the game but that would have to be elsewhere. I’m prepared to live my life.”
Palmer hasn’t talked to the media since making his trade request. A text message seeking comment wasn’t returned. Agent David Dunn released a statement saying that “because of the lack of success that Carson and the Bengals have experienced together, Carson strongly feels that a separation between him and the Bengals would be in the best interest of both parties.”
Palmer was the franchise’s building block when it made him the first overall pick in 2003, Marvin Lewis’ first season as coach. He led the Bengals to the playoffs in 2005 and 2009 — their only winning records in the past 20 years — and rebounded from severe knee and elbow injuries along the way.
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