Why It's a Bad Sign for Cardinals That Kevin Kolb Hasn't Locked Down QB Job

While most quarterback battles around the league are heating up, the battle between Arizona Cardinals quarterbacks Kevin Kolb and John Skelton has remained lukewarm—at best.

At this time last year, Kolb was being praised as one of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL. When the Cardinals traded a king's ransom for him (cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and a second-round pick in 2012), they expected him to be their franchise quarterback.

The team was so convinced that Kolb was their guy that they signed him to a six-year, $65 million contract before he even took a snap in a Cardinals uniform.

That move is not looking very good now.

Kolb struggled in his first year in the desert. As the season progressed, Kolb's play deteriorated. The Cardinals never seemed able to score with the game on the line and lost a lot of close contests.

On top of his shaky play, Kolb was plagued by various injuries through the year. He missed several games with a turf toe injury, and then he sustained a concussion against the 49ers in Week 13 that kept him sidelined for the remainder of the season.

In nine games, Kolb threw for 1,955 yards, nine touchdowns and eight interceptions.

The Cardinals have given Kolb every chance to be the No.1 QB in Arizona, but he hasn't been able to gain any significant ground on Skelton.

Kolb was knocked out of the team's first preseason game against the Saints with a rib injury, and he only completed one pass for 21 yards Friday night against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Skelton has been better than Kolb, but that's not saying a whole lot. The fact that Skelton is still hanging around, and may actually have a slight lead in the battle, is because of Kolb's bad play.

Skelton is a QB with a large frame, and cannon arm, but he is not the long-term answer for the Cardinals at quarterback.

Whisenhunt alternating between Kolb and Skelton as the starting QB was planned from the beginning of the preseason. This was due to neither quarterback gaining an edge in the battle in camp, and wanting to see how they both perform with the full first-team offense.

This may be a sign of things to come.

Whoever is named the starter will most likely not be the starter for the entire year.

If Skelton plays bad as the starter, the Cardinals will be forced to see what Kolb can do because he will be an expensive benchwarmer.

The Cardinals have already paid Kolb $19 million. That's just over $2 million per touchdown.

If Kolb is named the starter and plays bad, the Cardinals will be forced to try out Skelton, really due to curiosity.

The fact that the battle has gone on this long with no quarterback making a statement with their play is a bad sign for the Cardinals.

The quarterback is the most important person on the field at all times. They have to vocally lead the offense, have chemistry with their wide receivers and carry enough confidence to execute in the clutch to pull out close wins.

When asked about choosing a starting quarterback, head coach Ken Whisenhunt said, “I don’t think we have a timetable on that. It’s something we have to evaluate over the course of time in this preseason, we have to give them enough reps in similar situations so that we can evaluate it and let it go over the next couple of games and see where we are.”

Consistency under center is what the Cardinals need if they hope to have a successful 2012-13 campaign. Kolb hasn't proven he can do that.

Kolb will have one more chance to prove himself in the Cardinals' third preseason game against the Raiders Friday, when he will be the starting QB.

If Kolb's play is sub-par and unimpressive, expect Skelton to be given the starting job.

And don't expect to see Kolb in a Cardinals uniform come 2013 if does not start a majority of the games this season. His contract won't allow that to happen.

If the Cardinals want to compete this year, and in the future, they will need a franchise quarterback to maximize the potential of their best player, Larry Fitzgerald. 

Do I hear Matt Barkely in 2013?

Who do you think the Cardinals should start at QB? Leave a comment below with your opinion.

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