Brooks Bollinger and Kevin O'Connell Jumble Detroit Lions' QB Picture

Brooks Bollinger and Kevin O'Connell are Detroit Lions, and I’m not quite sure why.

When I first heard the news about Bollinger, I immediately went to my computer to talk about how it was only to get through the final pre-season game while Daunte Culpepper and Drew Stanton sit out with injuries.

Then the O’Connell signing came to light. Now I’m beginning to wonder about Culpepper and Stanton.

Stanton has been a distant third and little more than an afterthought on the minds of the Lions’ coaches. Rumors began to float after the New England Patriots released O’Connell, that Stanton might be trade bait in the “Tom Brady’s backup” sweepstakes.

However, Stanton’s knee injury will take weeks to heal, and this is his third season (of three) with an injury severe enough for him to miss considerable time. That drops his stock considerably.

Culpepper has been steady and consistent, and perhaps even a favorite to win the Lions’ starting job.

But he is due a roster bonus before the start of the season, and if the coaching staff has decided to go with Matthew Stafford, then Culpepper may also be trade bait.

Either way, the Lions now have five quarterbacks on the roster—again—and it’s unlikely to stay that way when the regular season rolls around.

That means either O’Connell or Bollinger is the odd man out…unless the Lions are going to blow everybody’s minds by dealing off/cutting Stanton and Culpepper.

Let’s just assume that won’t happen.

What has happened here, then, is that Bollinger and O’Connell have created their own quarterback battle. But instead of fighting for the starting job, they’re fighting for a roster spot.

O’Connell I can see hanging around for a while. Bollinger is still a question mark.

Think of Bollinger like an arm cast.

An arm cast is irritating, not terribly useful, limits your abilities, and shouldn’t be around for more than a few weeks. But unfortunately, due to injury, it is a necessary evil.

Chances are, Bollinger won’t see the start of the regular season, and he can go back to his budding UFL gig with the Florida Tuskers. On the other hand, he may find himself the Lions’ 2009 edition of Drew Henson.

Henson last year was a placeholder. His job was to take up space. To call him a stopgap is an insult to stopgaps, and the gaps they’re used for.

Henson actually got a couple of reps in the regular season, when the worst happened and every other quarterback was injured.

Bollinger needed those kinds of odds just to get a call from a team that hasn’t won a regular season football game in 21 months, and he probably won’t be around for week one, but like Henson, if more injuries occur during the season, the Lions just might get him on speed dial.

For the long term, though, Bollinger has had a few years on him in the league, so the idea that he is a “project” the Lions can develop is much less appealing when the guy is turning 30 this year.

O’Connell, however, can be a project. He was drafted in the third round by the New England Patriots last year, but was inexplicably released after being the favorite for the Patriots’ No. 2 spot.

It’s a little concerning picking up players the Patriots have given up on (they’re usually right…what’s Corey Dillon doing these days?), but it’s not like O’Connell is a 33-year-old journeyman looking for one last payoff or a title shot. He’s 24, and still learning the game.

Ultimately, neither of these signings is likely to affect the top battle between Culpepper and Stafford.

Culpepper’s injury is minor enough for him to still be questionable for Thursday’s preseason game at Buffalo, which means he could still win the starting job.

Stafford, of course, is perfectly healthy, and is the Lions’ future regardless of what other quarterbacks are on the roster.

Stanton, though I like the kid, is developing a reputation for china doll fragility, and is looking at a team that has no real loyalty to him.

So If O’Connell (or Bollinger) shows upside, and Stanton can’t stay healthy, his days may be numbered.

One thing is clear, though. With the Lions signing two quarterbacks as the regular season approaches, they are not just looking to fill injury gaps.

They’re auditioning for a roster spot.