Arizona Cardinals Usher in the Carson Palmer Era

Apr. 2, 2013; Tempe, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer during a press conference to announce his signing with the team at the Cardinals practice facility. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Last week, initially I was against anything Carson Palmer going to the Arizona Cardinals.  When news broke on Monday that Palmer to Arizona was a real possibility, I thought about it some more.  What harm does it do the Cards to bring him in, even if just for this season and maybe next?  At this point, they have nothing to lose.

While I still agree with my assessment that Palmer is not the long term answer in Arizona, I also believe he can do the Cards some good as a stop-gap guy.  Is he Kurt Warner?  Probably not.  Sure, Palmer puts up good numbers for the most part but those numbers have to be put into context.  He spent a lot of time trailing in games and was forced to throw, which also may explain many of his interceptions.

The Cards will at some point need to draft a quarterback for the future.  If it isn’t done this year, then definitely next, no matter how Palmer performs in 2013.  Right now, they could go into the season with Palmer as the starter, Drew Stanton and Brian Hoyer as backups.

Drafting a guy like Geno Smith just to draft him because he is there and available and young, is not a reason to draft him, even if it means they can take the time to develop him.  It would behoove the Cards to wait till next year when the crop of quarterbacks available is expected to be much better.  Then, if Palmer hasn’t been reduced to a complete bust at that point yet, let him stay another year and allow the Cards to then develop someone who will be ready to step in the starter role in 2015, maybe even 2014 at some point.  It has been done in the NFL many times successfully before.