Arizona Cardinals quarterback Joshua Dobbs tossed a pair of picks before the Baltimore Ravens backed off (perhaps a little too early), allowing the career journeyman to throw for two touchdowns and lead the Redbirds to one possession of tying the game. Despite yet another week of poor play when it (mainly) mattered, Dobbs will be the starter when the Cards visit the Lakefront on America’s north shore.
Despite the seventh-year pro’s shortcomings, however, that may not be such a half-bad idea. Dobbs spent a lot of time in Cleveland, and he was there for the entire preseason before the Browns sent him to the desert. This means one thing: No other quarterback on the team knows the Cardinals Week 9 opponents better.
It also gives soon-to-be starter Kyler Murray another week to master the offense with in-practice reps before he presumably takes back the gig the following Sunday vs. the Atlanta Falcons. Murray also won’t have to face the burden of facing such a strong defense that the Browns possess, especially since another quarterback knows them better.
Arizona Cardinals are right to announce Dobbs as the starter for Week 9
No, Dobbs hasn’t done a sound job with the Cardinals over the past month, and it could have opened up whispers for the Cards to eventually give rookie Clayton Tune a chance. But thanks to the “inside information” Dobbs has on the Browns, there probably isn’t a quarterback better equipped to handle that elite defense better than the 28-year-old.
Many fans probably groaned when news broke that Dobbs would be the Arizona Cardinals starter next week. But let’s not get too down on the situation. Joshua Dobbs knows the Cleveland Browns well, and when you think about it, it makes far more sense to start him than either Kyler Murray or Clayton Tune.
And now, we shall see if Dobbs can end his half-season stint as the starter on a positive note and improve the Cards to 2-7 before Murray likely takes the reins for the final eight games.
(Statistics provided by ESPN.com)