Cardinals coach Arians: Kevin Kolb is good, have to protect him

Could the solution to the Arizona Cardinals’ quarterback woes be as simple as fixing the offensive line?

While no one can be 100 percent certain, new Cardinals coach Bruce Arians told ESPN’s Mike Sando he believes Kevin Kolb, who would appear to be the favorite for the job if he remains on the roster, can be solid if kept upright.

Said Arians:

I’m looking forward to meeting with Kevin and we’ll cross that bridge as soon as we have to. I’ve seen enough film to know that he is good enough, but we have to protect him a lot better. When he is healthy, he has had some good moments. He has had some not-so-good moments. We have to protect him better, run the ball better.

Cardinals quarterbacks were sacked an NFL-high 58 times last season, with Kolb being taken down 27 times in just six games.

And that number doesn’t include the number of times he was pressured or hit after releasing the ball, so suffice to say he took quite a beating before being lost for the season to injury.

Prior to going down in Week 6 against the Bills, Kolb was putting together a productive season, completing 59.6 percent of his passes for 1,169 yards and eight touchdowns. He had only been picked off three times, and had a QB Rating of 86.1.

However, Kolb has played in just 15 of a possible 32 games over the last two seasons, making his durability a looming and very real question mark.

Which is why Arians knows, should he deem Kolb worthy of the starting job, protection up front is of the utmost importance.

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