Warner: Kolb will be Cardinals' starting QB

Published Jul. 13, 2012 6:20 p.m. ET

foxsports

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.