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    Sights and sounds from Cardinals draft party

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Blaine Gabbert signed his one-year contract on Thursday, giving the Cardinals five quarterbacks on their roster. What will they do with all of them?

For now, keep all five: Carson Palmer, Drew Stanton, Zac Dysert, Gabbert and Trevor Knight.

It makes sense for several reasons. Here are a few.

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Palmer’s workload

Carson Palmer’s right arm and/or shoulder bothered him early last season, but it responded once coaches started to give the starting quarterback Wednesdays off during the season. This is Palmer’s fifth season in coach Bruce Arians’ offense, so Palmer isn’t likely to take as many snaps this offseason as he has previous years.

The Cardinals begin Phase 3 of their offseason work next week, meaning all 90 players on the roster will be practicing. Arians usually divides the team in half and practices on two fields. With two offenses operating at the same time, and Palmer’s reps limited, there will be plenty of work for four quarterbacks.

MORE CARDINALS: Team releases Daryl Washington

A long preseason

Training camp will be almost a week longer this summer because the Cardinals play five preseason games. Having an extra quarterback or two could mean Palmer and Stanton don’t have to play as much.

CLOSE

azcentral sports’ Jay Dieffenbach and Bob McManaman weigh in on the Cardinals’ signing of Blaine Gabbert.

No risk

Gabbert is only 27. He’s healthy, has a nice arm and can move. And he’s working cheap: His salary for the year is $855,000, if he makes the team.

Arians liked Gabbert when Gabbert came out of Missouri in 2011. Gabbert’s been a victim of playing on bad teams and for multiple offensive coordinators.

It’s also fair to note that he didn’t make those bad teams better, Gabbert is 9-31 as a starter. He was available in May for a reason.

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Planning for the future

Palmer is 37 and this could be his last season. Stanton is 33 and in the last year of his contract. Why not take a look at Gabbert? There’s no downside.

CLOSE

Where does Carson Palmer rank among NFL’s oldest starting QBs?
Wochit

How does Gabbert fit in 2017?

It’s doubtful he will replace Stanton as the backup. Arians loves Stanton, and there’s no cap savings to releasing Stanton. So, most likely, Gabbert’s best shot at making the team is to beat out Dysert. At $855,000, Gabbert is cheap enough to keep as a third quarterback for a season.

If the Cardinals think he has a future, it shouldn’t be hard to reach agreement on a new deal.

NFL POWER RANKINGS: Cardinals losing ground?

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