Palmer was listed as the emergency quarterback for the winless Bengals, who haven't been able to protect their quarterback very well. Palmer had a broken nose in the preseason, and had his nose bloodied again last Sunday in an overtime loss to the Giants. He also slightly sprained his left ankle.

He didn't show up on the Bengals' injury report until Friday, when he said he was confident he said his passing elbow was sore but he was confident he would play against the 0-3 Browns.

Palmer missed the last three games of the 2004 season - his first as the starter - with a sprained knee. He tore ligaments in his left knee in the Bengals' first-round playoff loss to Pittsburgh in 2005, but didn't miss a game the next season. He took every snap last season.

The Bengals got Fitzpatrick in a trade with the Rams before last season. He hasn't thrown a pass in a regular-season game since 2005, when he started three games for St. Louis.

Bengals cornerback Johnathan Joseph also was inactive for the second consecutive game with a sprained ankle.