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Arizona Cardinals general manager Steve Keim made it clear when he was hired that he believed in bringing in a quarterback every year. In fact, he even used the phrase "drafting one" every year. He didn't draft one last year, but he did bring in both Carson Palmer and Drew Stanton.
What about this year in the NFL Draft? Palmer is not any younger and there is some quarterback talent in the draft.
Head coach Bruce Arians was asked about drafting a QB by NFL Media's Jeff Darlington (via the official team site).
"I think you always, if there's a future QB for you, that's number one on your list," responded Arians. "We feel very fortunate that we have three in our building already. If there's a quarterback we're loving and he's there, we'll talk about it. But we do have Ryan (Lindley) and Carson (Palmer) and Drew (Stanton), and we're happy with all of them."
You have to love how he constantly praises his players. Stanton hasn't thrown a pass since 2010. Lindley was dreadful his rookie season when he was trust into action.
However, it does reveal the fact that he really does like the player he has. Contrast that with the running backs -- he tends to leave Ryan Williams out of the conversation when he talks about his backs.
So, like last year, because of the guys in the QB room already, Arizona does not feel pressed to draft a quarterback early.
But if a guy like Teddy Bridgewater, Derek Carr or even Johnny Manziel were to fall to number 20, would they pull the trigger? Should they, when they want a guy to make an immediate contribution? With Palmer around, that guy would sit the bench at least one year.
Conventional wisdom says you have to. You don't pass on guy you think will be your future QB.
Most signs point to the Cardinals going elsewhere than quarterback for their first round pick, but can we really take Arians serious in saying that he believes that Stanton or Lindley could be the team's future QB?
It sounds a little too much like the "elite" Levi Brown.
