Kevin Kolb Trade: 4 Reasons To Believe This Trade Will Backfire for Both Teams

The wait is over. Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb is now a member of the Arizona Cardinals following a trade for cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and a second-round draft pick.

The reasoning for the move was obvious. The Cardinals wanted some stability at the quarterback position. The Eagles wanted value for a quarterback who didn’t want to continue in a backup role.

With that said, there are some reasons for concern. Here are four reasons why the trade could backfire for both teams.

This Is the Guy?

In the deal, the Cardinals agreed to a new five-year, $63.5 million contract with Kolb. That’s a lot of money for a guy with only seven starts to his name. Even worse is Kolb’s inconsistent play in those games.

Only 3-4 in those seven career starts, he showed flashes of greatness in his debut, with back-to-back 300-yard passing games. Otherwise, Kolb’s career numbers are pretty pedestrian.

Eleven touchdown passes. Nineteen interceptions. A quarterback rating of 73.2. These numbers don’t jump out as the kind you would place the future of your franchise on.

Even worse, the team has still not fully addressed its glaring weaknesses on its offensive line. The line gave up a whopping 50 sacks in 2010 (second-worst in the league).

Not a great sign.

You Gave Up WHAT?

To pull in Kolb, the Cardinals gave up a lot. Rodgers-Cromartie is one of the team’s best young defenders.

Even more importantly, the Cardinals gave up the rights to their second-round pick in 2012. As history has shown, the second round is usually home to some of the best value picks in the draft.

The Cardinals may come to find that even if Kolb plays well, they may have given up too much to bring him to town.

Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie May Not Be the Guy

Even with Rodgers-Cromatie’s talent, he may not be the best fit for the Eagles. While he has shown value with his interceptions, he has a knack for missing tackles. Even for a Cardinals team that struggled in finishing their tackles, Rodgers-Cromartie stood out for his inability to bring his man down.

His numbers were bad enough to rank him worst in broken tackles among defensive backs.

With that in mind, the Eagles need to be ready to add additional support to protect their new acquisition from letting opposing receivers slip through.

Who’s the Backup?

I don’t think it’s a huge stretch to say Michael Vick will most likely be hurt in 2011.

With that in mind, who is left behind Vick?

Mike Kafka, the Northwestern graduate without a NFL pass to his name. While the 2010 fourth-round draft pick does have good size, his lack of experience is not very encouraging.

Unless the Eagles move quickly to snap up a decent backup, the team could be lacking in a major way when Vick has his inevitable injury.