Kevin Kolb Is Not the Answer for Arizona Cardinals

The Arizona Cardinals spent the whole 2010 NFL season trying to find the quarterback that would replace Kurt Warner. Derek Anderson, John Skelton and Max Hall—all of them had a chance but none of them was able to inspire confidence. So Arizona opted to trade Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and  a second-round 2012 NFL draft pick to the Philadelphia Eagles and bring Kevin Kolb to Tempe.

This was probably the most intriguing trade of the 2011 NFL offseason and provided the spark for numerous debates. The main interest was the value of the deal. Could Kolb balance out the loss of Pro Bowl cornerback and a second-round pick? Opinions were varied: Some saw the new face of the franchise on Kolb, the majority seemed to have mixed feelings and others were worried about the outcome.

Sending one of your most talented players to Philly, wrapped up with a second-round pick, means you are either convinced about the player you trade for or are in a desperate situation. I can’t tell what head coach Ken Whisenhunt saw in Kolb but I’m pretty sure he wanted a quarterback desperately.

After finishing the 2010 NFL season with only five wins, the fans were unhappy and the media were pointing out the quality the Cardinals lacked at quarterback. We kept reading about an upcoming trade on a daily basis and the former Eagles’ backup was the top candidate weeks before the end of the lockout.

Arizona took a major risk when it chose Kolb. The worst part is it'll probably regret it. Not only for losing Rodgers-Cromartie, who has not been much of a help in Philadelphia, but mostly because Kolb won’t develop into the type of leader it's looking for.

Kevin Kolb was an unproven player when the trade materialized and this status still remains.  He has never played more than seven games per season and never started more than five during his Eagles days. Although his completion percentage was pretty good for a young backup, he had thrown 11 touchdowns and 14 interceptions as an Eagle.

Kolb is also injury prone. Among others, he suffered a concussion in the first game of the 2010 NFL season and another one 40 days ago, which kept him from playing the next five games, and he will also miss the season finale. You can’t say how many concussions are too many, but Kolb is still struggling to recover from the last one.

Kolb is soft—maybe too soft for the NFL stage. It’s not about gaining 10 to 12 pounds, although this could help. Every time I see him taking snaps, my pulse is rushing. His movement isn’t smooth and he always tries to avoid a hit, no matter the cost. When the offensive line doesn’t give him the time to scan the field and the pocket collapses (and that’s a common thing for the Cards), he loses patience. How many times have you seen him throw on his back foot? That usually results in bad throws, interceptions or small-yardage passes at best. Last but not least, he fumbles frequently.

On the other hand, Kolb has been able to win games and post a decent QB rating. All that behind one of the NFL’s worst offensive lines, when it comes to pass protection. He is 27 years old; he can still learn and improve his game. He also lost a couple of close games, but I can’t tell if that’s a positive thing—he could have won them. Maybe the most disappointing part is that John Skelton has been performing on the same level and the team won more games with him—plus, Whisenhunt didn’t had to trade for him.

You can never tell what’s going to happen, but personally, I don’t see Kolb becoming a great quarterback. Time may prove me wrong and for Kolb’s own good, I hope it does. There is a long way to go until we can label him a bust or anything like that and the Cardinals said they will keep No. 4 for another season.

Beware, though: This might be the last chance for him to prove he can lead the franchise to greener pastures.