Arizona Cardinals Quarterback Controversy Nonexistent

It appeared that there could be a quarterback controversy brewing, thanks to John Skelton’s fourth-quarter performance against the Eagles, which led the Cardinals to their second victory in a row.

However, it appears that the quarterback controversy hurricane will miss the Cardinals' coastline before it ever reaches shore.

Kevin Kolb is still injured, and will most likely be unable to play against the 49ers, which means John Skelton will get his third start in a row. 

The 49ers will give John Skelton his first test against a legitimate defense.  Wins against the Rams and Eagles are nice, but they do not prove anything, and the Cardinals’ defense and special teams had as much to do with those wins as Skelton did.

Skelton, outside of the fourth quarters in those games, has been very pedestrian and has done little to convince the coaching staff that he should be the Cardinals’ starting quarterback. 

But the fact is that Skelton did play well in the fourth quarter and the Cardinals walked away with two victories.  That leaves the door open for speculation that Skelton will be the quarterback even when Kolb is healthy. 

The injury to Kolb allows Ken Whisenhunt to evaluate the quarterback position without ever causing a stir.

If Skelton plays well against the 49ers, he’s the Cardinals’ quarterback until he proves otherwise.  If he struggles, then Kevin Kolb is the starter for the remainder of the season.

A win against one of the NFL’s better teams and three wins in a row is more than enough reason to stick with what’s working.

A loss against the 49ers essentially means that the Cardinals' distant hopes of a Wild Card spot are now over.  They would need to win all six of their final games and have a lot of outside help to have a chance of making the playoffs.

That means that Kevin Kolb gets the final six games to continue to learn Whisenhunt’s system and develop a rapport with the Cardinals’ receivers.

If there is no improvement shown by the end of the season, then there will probably be a quarterback controversy in Flagstaff next August, not even just between Skelton and Kolb, but the Cardinals may even be inclined to draft a quarterback in the 2012 Draft.