NFL notebook: Cardinals QB Palmer retires

Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer announced his retirement Tuesday after 15 NFL seasons.

"Over the years, I've had teammates who decided to hang it up and I would ask them how they knew when it was time to walk away," Palmer, 38, wrote in a letter making the announcement. "The answer was almost always the same: You just know. For me that time is now. Why? Quite simply, I just know."

Palmer's 2017 season -- and ultimately his career -- ended when he broke his left arm on Oct. 22 in London in a game against the Los Angeles Rams.

Palmer passed for 46,247 yards and 294 touchdowns against 187 interceptions during a career that included stints with the Cincinnati Bengals and Oakland Raiders in addition to playing his final five seasons with Arizona. The yardage and touchdowns both rank 12th in NFL history, and Palmer stands 11th with 3,941 career completions.

--The Cincinnati Bengals re-signed longtime head coach Marvin Lewis to a two-year contract through the 2019 season, the team announced.

However, defensive coordinator Paul Guenther will leave the team to pursue other opportunities, according to multiple media reports.

Lewis, 59, has won a franchise-high 125 victories during 15 seasons with the Bengals, but there was recent speculation that he might not return. That was put to rest with the extension.

Lewis and the Bengals have experienced back-to-back losing campaigns -- Cincinnati was 7-9 this season -- after winning 10 or more games in each of the previous four seasons and making the playoffs in five consecutive years. The Bengals have been to the playoffs seven times during Lewis' tenure and haven't won a single playoff game.

--Houston Texans coach Bill O'Brien is not going anywhere after a disappointing 4-12 season.

O'Brien told reporters that he plans to sign an extension once the team hires a new general manager. Rick Smith announced a one-year personal leave in that role to help his wife with her recovery from breast cancer.

O'Brien, who is 31-33 in four seasons with the Texans, met with owner Bob McNair and vice chairman Cal McNair and expressed that he wanted to remain as coach.

--Running back LeSean McCoy might not practice this week due to an ankle injury, but remains a game-time decision for the Buffalo Bills' wild-card game at Jacksonville.

Bills head coach Sean McDermott said McCoy was going to "have a chance" to play Sunday against the Jaguars. McCoy had 287 carries for 1,138 yards and six touchdowns and led the Bills with 59 receptions this season.

--Nick Foles will start the divisional playoff game for the Philadelphia Eagles, coach Doug Pederson said in batting back questions about the quarterback position.

Foles replaced Carson Wentz as the starter when Wentz suffered a season-ending knee injury at the Los Angeles Rams on Dec. 10 and helped steer the Eagles to the No. 1 seed in the NFC. Foles has five touchdowns and two interceptions but the last two games were not impressive. Pederson said he stands behind Foles, but didn't rule out going to untested Nate Sudfeld in the playoffs if Foles continues to struggle.

--The Kansas City Chiefs placed tailback Akeem Hunt and receiver De'Anthony Thomas on injured reserve, five days before their AFC playoff game against the Tennessee Titans.

Kansas City re-signed running back C.J. Spiller to his fifth stint with the team this season. The Chiefs also signed receiver Marcus Kemp. Hunt (ankle) and Thomas (leg) suffered injuries during Sunday's victory over the Denver Broncos, the Chiefs' regular-season finale. Hunt, with only eight carries on the season, was unlikely to play much of a role in the playoffs..

--Sam Bradford is back on the practice field with the Minnesota Vikings. Bradford began the 2017 season in a starting role before knee injuries knocked him out of the lineup.

With Bradford out, journeyman Case Keenum took the reins and guided the Vikings to the NFC North title. During Bradford's absence, Teddy Bridgewater was activated for the first time in 15 months and has served as Keenum's backup.

--Ted Thompson was named senior advisor for the Green Bay Packers after 13 seasons as general manager and the team will use a search firm to find his replacement, president and CEO Mark Murphy said.

Also, coach Mike McCarthy received a one-year contract extension during the 2017 season and will be retained despite the change in management.

--Jon Gruden is expected to become the next coach of the Oakland Raiders, but he was playing coy in an interview.

Gruden is the hot name for the job after Jack Del Rio was fired but he was playing his cards tight to the vest during an interview with the Bay Area News Group.

"My understanding is they're interviewing candidates this week," Gruden told the media outlet, "and they're going to let everybody know sometime early next week or whenever they make their decision."

--Ben Garland will start at left guard for the Atlanta Falcons after starter Andy Levitre was placed on injured reserve with a torn left triceps.

Levitre started 13 games this season and Garland filled in during his absence. Levitre attempted to play in Week 17 on Sunday, but after five snaps had to leave the game because of pain.

--The San Francisco 49ers like what they saw from Jimmy Garoppolo and have no plans to allow the quarterback to reach the free-agent market.

San Francisco general manager John Lynch made it clear that he wants Garoppolo to be part of the organization for the long term. Lynch plans to make sure Garoppolo never hits the market. The club can prevent that by placing the franchise tag on Garoppolo to lock him up for 2018 at approximately $25 million, or by signing him to a long-term contract.

--John Elway is known as the best quarterback in Denver Broncos history, and what he saw during the 2017 season didn't please him.

Elway, the president of football operations and general manager for the Broncos, said he will pursue all avenues this offseason to shore up the club's quarterback situation. Denver went 5-11 this season, and none of the trio who started games -- Trevor Siemian, Brock Osweiler and Paxton Lynch -- asserted himself as someone who could be relied on as the starting quarterback for 2018.

"We expect to have an answer there, however that goes," Elway said. "I think that thought process makes me think we're going to have a better year. Because the fact is we've got to figure out how to get that position playing better."

--Seattle Seahawks defensive end Cliff Avril and safety Kam Chancellor face uphill battles to resume their football careers as the former Pro Bowl defenders recover from season-ending neck injuries, coach Pete Carroll said.

Avril, 31, was injured while attempting to make a diving tackle against the Indianapolis Colts in October. Chancellor, 29, suffered his neck injury while making a tackle in a victory over the Arizona Cardinals in November.

--Offensive coordinator Todd Haley suffered a hip injury in a fall on New Year's Eve and was not at the team facility as the Pittsburgh Steelers begin playoff preparations.

Haley reportedly fell Sunday after the Steelers beat the Cleveland Browns to end the regular season, according to the team. But NFL Network provided additional details, reporting that Haley was injured when he was involved in an altercation at a bar near Heinz Field.

--Field Level Media