Warner: Kolb will start for Cardinals

July 13, 2012

When Kurt Warner talks, Cardinals fans listen.

Warner appeared as a guest analyst on the NFL Network on Thursday as part of the "32 in 32" episode previewing the Cardinals. The topic: the quarterback situation (of course). And Warner -- who knows a little bit about quarterbacking -- was straightforward about what he expects to see under/behind center this season:

“I think this is going to play out with Kevin Kolb becoming the starter for the Arizona Cardinals," Warner said. "When I talk to people in the organization and what I’ve seen, everybody believes that Kevin has everything you need to be a starter in the NFL. He’s smart, he works hard, he’s got accuracy, he’s got mobility to run around and make plays, which we saw him do a number of times last year."

As for Kolb's inconsistency last year, Warner said it's all about familiarity (or the lack thereof).

"The biggest problem was the offense in Arizona was completely different than what he ran in Philly, and it was tough for him to pick up that offense and the nuances of that offense, and he really struggled with that last year, never got fully comfortable.”

And what about John Skelton? Fellow analyst Warren Sapp pointed out -- citing a conversation with Darnell Dockett -- that Skelton had won the team's confidence via a 6-2 record, adding "it's not just the numbers." Warner wasn't budging.

“Although John Skelton played well, especially down the stretch in games, I don’t think he offers them the consistency that Kevin Kolb can -- if he learns that offense."

That's a relatively big "if," of course. But it'd be interesting to know if the fans who were booing Kolb at the Cards' Fan Fest event last month would change their tune knowing that their relatively unpopular quarterback has the backing of one with a little more cachet.

-- Matt Swartz