There’s a long list of Arizona Cardinals’ signal-callers who left so quickly that the fans hardly had a chance to know them
Very few quarterbacks have stood the test of time with the Arizona Cardinals. Since the franchise made their move to the desert in 1988, the Cards have had quite a bit of mediocre (and worse) play at the position. After all, they can’t all be Kurt Warner or even Carson Palmer.
In 2010, Derek Anderson had the unenviable task of replacing Warner, an organizational legend. The results were not favorable. His completion percentage was ridiculously low for the season (51.7), and his final quarterback rating was putrid (65.9).
The strong-armed Anderson had been to the Pro Bowl in 2007 (with the Cleveland Browns), but didn’t come close to that level of performance with Arizona. It got so bad for the veteran, he was benched for someone named Max Hall in early October. Anderson was released the following summer, with a year left on his two-year deal.
Jeff Blake donned a Cardinals’ uniform in 2003, starting 13 games. He too struggled, ending the campaign with an ugly quarterback rating of 69.6. Above all, the former Cincinnati Bengal failed to win enough games, and was jettisoned with two years still left on his contract.
Boomer Esiason had one of the greatest three-game stretches ever put together by an NFL signal-caller in 1996. He threw for 1,149 yards and eight touchdowns in winning all three of the contests, all division games. The problem was the other seven games he played in that year for the Cards. He stamped his ticket out of town after temporarily walking out on the team following a late-season benching.
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Gary Hogeboom was signed in 1989 as insurance for Cardinals’ mainstay Neil Lomax. The underrated Lomax had degenerative arthritis in his hip, and never saw the field again after the 1988 season. Hogeboom was not the answer, posting a 69.5 quarterback rating in his one and only year in the Valley of the Sun.
Dave Krieg was brought to Arizona in 1995 to steer Buddy Ryan’s defensive-driven squad. He managed to throw for 3,554 yards, but his arm was basically shot and he tossed 21 interceptions. The team limped to a 4-12 record, and both he and Ryan were given their walking papers at the end of the campaign.
Jay Schroeder was a member of Ryan’s 1994 Cardinals team. He was just as bad as Krieg, but in only about half the games. He threw four touchdown passes against seven picks, had a 55.9 completion percentage and 68.4 quarterback rating in eight starts.
That’s a bunch of mediocrity at the most important position in professional sports. Fans that are in such a hurry to see Palmer gone should remember this group. Suddenly, Carson doesn’t look so bad.