Michael Ventre

All hail the prototype quarterback.

He’s big, around 6-foot-5 or thereabouts. He’s muscular, not lanky, to withstand punishment in the pocket. He’s mobile; he doesn’t have to be Michael Vick, he just has to be able to move well enough to avoid impending doom. He has an arm that flings footballs down the field like one of those Juggs machines with the dial set to “11.” And he has a fully functioning brain, which can process information quickly and allow him to make split-second decisions.

Ryan Leaf was a prototype quarterback, or so we thought. He had it all, except perhaps for the brain part. Leaf would look downfield, read the defense, then scream at a reporter. That is not the ideal sequence in the modern NFL.

Joe Montana was not a prototype quarterback. He was shorter than desired, about 6-2. He had a good arm, not a great one. But the fingers on that arm have four Super Bowl rings, and he is considered by many to be the greatest ever to play the position.

So where does Carson Palmer fit in?

At the moment, nowhere, because he’s still trying to return from a terrible knee injury. Reports from the Cincinnati Bengals’ training camp have varied; the latest, from the team’s Web site, quotes coach Marvin Lewis as saying that Palmer could conceivably start the season opener Sept. 10 against the Kansas City Chiefs, but not if the Heisman Trophy winner fails to appear in any exhibition contests.

But it’s safe to assume that Palmer will be ready to play at some point early in the regular season, if not at the very start.

If he comes back to near full effectiveness, will he then be the game’s best quarterback?

NFL 2007 Team-by-team reports, predictions

That’s a barroom debate that could last a few rounds. The “best” is a difficult term to define. Many consider Peyton Manning to be the best, except when he gets into a playoff game against a formidable foe. Then there’s Tom Brady, who has performed brilliantly en route to three Super Bowl titles. But there’s some who feel that Brady is the beneficiary of a great franchise with a supportive owner and the top coach in football. Would Brady be nearly as effective with, say, the Oakland Raiders or the Houston Texans?

That’s why Palmer just might turn out to be better than both. He’s a prototype who is also a winner.

Special feature Our top players at each position

When Palmer was at USC, he was heralded, but not always revered. In his early years, thanks to a conga line of offensive coordinators, he often seemed confused and did not perform up to expectations. Some of the coaches quietly questioned his capacity to master a complicated offense and read defenses.