Arizona Cardinals better act quickly to add a quarterback to the mix

The Arizona Cardinals must not waste time in acquiring a signal-caller who can keep the offense afloat while starter Kyler Murray is on the mend.

The first day of the NFL's free-agent "tampering" period is underway, and the Arizona Cardinals have been extremely quiet. First-year general manager Monti Ossenfort has many holes to fill, but there have been no acquisitions as of yet.

One area of the roster that needs to be addressed as soon as possible is the quarterback spot. Kyler Murray is currently rehabbing a torn ACL that could keep the Cards starter out of several regular-season matchups. Backup Colt McCoy is recovering from an undisclosed injury that will limit his participation this offseason.

To be competitive, Arizona will need to add a competent passer to the mix. Time is of the essence if Ossenfort intends to find an individual who has the skills to keep the team afloat while Murray is sidelined. McCoy has had his moments with the Redbirds, but it would serve the organization well to find a more viable stand-in than the 36-year-old veteran.

While a postseason appearance would seem to be a longshot at this point, the Cardinals front office should still be trying to win as many games as they can. There are a group of intriguing free agent QBs searching for employment who would work well with offensive weapons like James Conner, Zach Ertz and Marquise Brown. Included on the list are experienced signal-callers like Marcus Mariota, Carson Wentz, Baker Mayfield and Gardner Minshew.

Several enticing quarterback options could pique the interest of the Arizona Cardinals

In 13 starts for the Atlanta Falcons last season, Mariota threw for 2,219 yards and 15 touchdowns, while tossing just nine interceptions. The 29-year-old can also use his legs as a weapon, as evidenced by the additional 438 yards and four scores he contributed to Atlanta on the ground.

Wentz is more of a pure pocket-passer who would probably rank as one of the league's top backups. Mayfield was the first-overall pick of the 2018 draft who was a teammate of Murray's at the University of Oklahoma. New Cards head coach Jonathan Gannon is familiar with Minshew from the two campaigns (2021-22) they spent together with the Philadelphia Eagles.

There are certainly some talented quarterbacks who are currently looking for work. They may not remain available for very long, however. The Cardinals need to act fast if they hope to land a candidate who can hold down the fort until Murray returns.

(Statistics provided by Pro Football Reference)