The most unnecessary member of the Arizona Cardinals
By Jim Koch
Free agent acquisition Mike Glennon’s role with the Arizona Cardinals is no longer clear since the club drafted Josh Rosen
The Arizona Cardinals found themselves in a unique predicament entering the 2018 offseason. The retirement of Carson Palmer, combined with the expired contracts of both Drew Stanton and Blaine Gabbert, left no quarterbacks on the roster. Not an ideal situation for a team hoping to have success on offense.
Faced with the major dilemma, general manager Steve Keim sprung into action. Veteran Sam Bradford was acquired as soon as the free agency period commenced. Not long after, Arizona went out and signed Mike Glennon, a player who they had coveted previously.
Considering the limited options placed in front of him, Keim had actually done fairly well with the passers he obtained back in March. Bradford, the first-overall pick of the 2010 draft, has excelled at times when healthy. Bringing Glennon in as an insurance policy for the fragile new starter also made some sense.
The Cardinals’ quarterback landscape has changed since then, however. The drafting of the highly-touted Josh Rosen during this past April’s draft has dramatically affected the team’s depth chart. Unfortunately for Glennon, the former Tampa Bay Buccaneer and Chicago Bear is in danger of being left out in the cold.
Rosen’s performance and presence during the OTA’s has led some to believe that he can overtake Bradford for the starting job. That would leave the loser of the competition as the obvious number-two in the signal-caller pecking order. A slot that Glennon rightfully thought was his when he was handed a two-year contract three months ago.
Where does the reshuffling of the Cards’ quarterbacks leave Glennon going forward? The 6’6″, 225 pounder will collect $8 million over the next two years if he remains in the desert. That’s an ample amount of cash for a third-stringer who quite possibly won’t be taking any snaps for the organization.
The front office did sign a fourth option for the position following the draft. Princeton’s Chad Kanoff came to the nest as an undrafted free agent. The Bushnell Cup winner (given to the Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year) is a far-less expensive possibility for the number-three quarterback spot than Glennon is.
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Keim has done a fine job with his rebuilding of the quarterback room this offseason. But as it stands now, the franchise has one too many. A decision will be made this summer on which one to let go, and it may very well be Glennon who’s shown the door.