Kurt Warner would have considered Cardinals return

Had the Arizona Cardinals been open to finding another quarterback instead of Ryan Lindley for their playoff run, Kurt Warner was interested.

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The Cardinals had a short and ill-fated playoff appearance this year, in which they were defeated by the Carolina Panthers after putting up the fewest offensive yards in NFL playoff history. A big reason for this was starting third-string quarterback Ryan Lindley, as starter Carson Palmer and backup Drew Stanton were both injured and done for the season. However, suppose they could have brought back an elite quarterback? Kurt Warner said he was ready to make it happen had Arizona coach Bruce Arians reached out to him.

“There was a scenario where I would have considered it,” Warner said on the Dan Patrick Show. “I don’t know what I would have done.”

From Pro Football Talk:

"The 43-year-old Warner said he talked to Arians and G.M. Steve Keim “in passing” but that he doesn’t think they were ever seriously interested in bringing him back. But Warner himself was interested enough that he talked to his wife and kids about it, and they were supportive."

However, realistically even if Warner had reached a deal with the Cardinals, he would have still had to go through waivers per NFL rules. If that had happened, it’s almost a certainty that some other NFC team would have picked him up just to block the Cardinals from acquiring him. In fact, the Panthers were ahead of Arizona on the waiver list and could have easily done that to ensure that they would face Ryan Lindley in the playoffs and not Warner.

Instead both Warner and the Cardinals will head quietly into the offseason. The Cardinals will likely be looking at Larry Fitzgerald’s contract situation, which could hamper their plans quite a bit if it stays as is. Kurt Warner, on the other hand, will be working with 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick in the offseason to develop the latter’s consistency and efficiency.

“If we can teach him [consistency and efficiency], then I think he becomes one of the most dangerous quarterbacks in the NFL,” quarterbacks coach Dennis Gile told the Sacramento Bee. “Because you can’t teach the natural talents that he has.”

Kaepernick will be training with Warner in Phoenix and he plans to study film, work on drills and improve the mental side of his game. You got to think if a two-time MVP can’t help him figure it out, no one can.

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