No, this isn't an April Fools Day joke....
Bengals' QB Carson Palmer is declaring his throwing elbow fully healed after passing on surgery and taking a full off-season of rest.
Palmer chose not to have reconstructive surgery for a partially torn ligament and tendon in his right elbow, which sidelined him for 12 games last season. Instead, he decided to see whether rest would heal the injury.
Before beginning voluntary workouts on Monday, Palmer said he is back to his usual throwing routine because the elbow is fine. The team plans to limit his throwing during preseason workouts as a precaution.
Normally I'd be skeptical of this, but I have to give Palmer the benefit of the doubt as he's demonstrated in the past that he has Wolverine-like powers of healing. He tore up his knee during a playoff game in Jan 2006 - and injury that doctors at the time called "potentially career-ending" - and Palmer somehow came back to start the first week of the 2006 season. If he says he's healthy, I'll believe him.
Now, if we only knew how his WR corps of Chad Ocho Cinco and Laveranues Coles was going to work out. One thing at a time I guess...