Wow, that went downhill fast ... ESPN reported today that the Arizona Cardinals made a surprising trade when they sent Joshua Dobbs, acquired for a fifth-round pick just over two months ago, plus a conditional seventh-round (or a sixth-round) pick to the Minnesota Vikings for a sixth.
Sure, the downer is that the Cards lost a fifth-round pick in the initial trade with Cleveland, but still, they got a sixth out of it, which is about the same in my book. So whatever, but wow, what a quick turn of events over the past eight weeks.
For a while there, it looked like the Cardinals would toil with Colt McCoy under center, but they cut him and traded for Dobbs, who had a miserable first game against the Washington Commanders. Then Dobbs looked like a competent quarterback for a three-week stretch, exceeding expectations between Weeks 2 and 4.
He nearly beat the New York Giants, beat the Dallas Cowboys, and at least kept you glued to the TV set against the San Francisco 49ers. Then, trouble eventually struck.
The Joshua Dobbs era is nothing but an asterisk in Arizona Cardinals history
Dobbs had a bad game vs. the Cincinnati Bengals, but okay, one bad game in a month isn’t going to change anyone’s mind about you. Then he came back out in Weeks 6 and 7, and guided the Cardinals offense to just 19 total points. This past Sunday, Dobbs and the Cardinals offense put up 24 of them, but most only after the Ravens softened things up late.
While head coach Jonathan Gannon initially pegged Dobbs to start this week, he backtracked on it yesterday, and we found out either Clayton Tune or Kyler Murray would start. Then today, the Dobbs era ended unceremoniously with a trade to the Vikings, who lost Kirk Cousins for the season thanks to an Achilles injury.
Things change rapidly in the NFL, and with a rookie regime in place, you will see such rapid change occurring quickly, giving it the look of chaos. But, as the regime gets the players it wants, expect these unexpected trades to simmer at some point, and sooner than later, an Arizona Cardinals team that is here to stay will take the field.
Source: Sources: Vikings acquire Joshua Dobbs with Kirk Cousins out, ESPN
(Additional information provided by Pro-Football-Reference)