Time to turn to the future, starting with Blaine Gabbert

The Valley isn’t a sporting wasteland. We’ve spawned reigning rookies of the year in both Major League Baseball (Cody Bellinger) and the NHL (Auston Matthews). Torey Lovullo was crowned National League Manager of the Year in his debut season with the Diamondbacks while Paul Goldschmidt was robbed of his first MVP award on Thursday, beaten out by two players who failed to reach the postseason.

While the latter is a farce, the collection of individual accolades currently represents the best of Arizona sports. And guess what?

We would gladly trade all of these trinkets and trophies for Blaine Gabbert to be the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year in 2018.

While skeptics scoff at the notion of a third-stringer vaulting to fame and fortune, this fantasy scenario will be in play soon. Gabbert might receive his first test this weekend in Houston, when the Cardinals face a must-win road game against the Texans. Or it could occur later in the season. But it will happen at some point, and Gabbert’s performance in games that matter will have enormous significance for everyone involved.

Gabbert’s viability as a starter could energize Bruce Arians, resuscitating the perception of a head coach known for his golden touch when grooming young quarterbacks. Arians said Gabbert’s failures in Jacksonville and San Francisco were the result of playing on really bad teams, that he’s a player who had bounced between “seven head coaches and eight offensive coordinators.”

If Arians somehow steers Gabbert to his full potential, it will be further affirmation that Arians is an impact coach and Arizona is an elite NFL franchise, where players should go to hit the reset button on fading careers. It could be the greatest gift he ever bestowed on his current employer.

There are rumblings that the Cardinals are trying to convince Larry Fitzgerald to return for one more season. There is a growing belief that Arians will return for one more shot at glory in 2018, along with a revamped coaching staff that will not include special teams coach Amos Jones, whose contract expires after this season.

Gabbert’s upcoming performances could influence Fitzgerald’s mindset and make him think twice about retirement. It could also spell the end of Carson Palmer, who has one year left on his contract.

Palmer will turn 38 in December and is not the team’s future. That much is obvious. He might decide to retire after breaking his arm in a London loss to the Rams. He’s a quarterback whose lack of mobility has made him an easy target and prone to injury. He could conceivably return with two weeks left in the current season, allowing him to depart on his terms. Or he might want to keep playing beyond 2017.

Palmer is scheduled to earn $12.5 million in salary next season, along with a $1.5 million roster bonus. The contract is guaranteed five days after the Super Bowl and seems like a bargain for a man that carried the Cardinals out of darkness.

But if Gabbert seizes his opportunity with the Cardinals, the situation will get sticky.  Palmer deserves immense credit for his toughness, his talent, and his commitment to the cause. He is a great man and a great teammate, always deferring credit to others, never once blaming a porous offensive line for the punishment he’s endured.

Palmer is the primary reason why Arians and his “no risk-it, no biscuit” philosophy became a league-wide phenomenon over the past four years, turning the Valley into a football town. He was embraced by all during his MVP-caliber season in 2015 but has too often been marginalized and criticized by ignorant fans. In sum, he hasn’t received the respect he deserves. He deserves a place in your heart and the Cardinals’ Ring of Honor.

But if Gabbert shines, the Cardinals must move forward. Or they can change the equation entirely and trade for Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith in the offseason. Either way, they must invest their first-round draft pick in a quarterback and let him develop in  a nurturing environment, just like Rams head coach Sean McVay did with Jared Goff, who went from bust to MVP candidate overnight.

There are inherent dangers ahead. The Cardinals are 4-5, a record that belies their haggard season and lackluster performances against good teams. The Eagles, Rams, Saints and Vikings represent the class of the NFC, but none are transcendent teams that can’t be beaten in a one-game playoff. The gravitational pull of a surprising postseason run still pulls at Arians, even if his Cardinals don’t appear worthy at the moment.

“You look at the league right now, and everybody is 4-5 or 5-4,” he said. “We have to scratch one out on the road and then we have four of the next six games at home, where we have to start taking care of business. But we have to get this one on the road, get back to .500 and (that will) put us right in the middle of things.”

Clearly, Arians does not do well with concession speeches. His conviction is both a blessing and a curse. While he never hesitates to blame players by name, he deserves a big portion of blame for a franchise that hasn’t posted a winning record since the 2015 season.

The time has come to turn one eye to the future. General Manager Steve Keim has to identify and draft the next Aaron Rodgers. Arians must hand the keys to Gabbert before it’s too late to accurately judge the value of the most talented third-string quarterback he’s ever possessed. 

Long-term concerns can’t be clouded by short-term results or delusions for much longer. And the time has come for the “Quarterback Whisperer” to validate his lofty moniker and save the future of this franchise.

PODCAST: Is it Blaine Gabbert’s time to start at quarterback?

NOTES: Patrick Peterson vs. DeAndre Hopkins: ‘Bring your popcorn’

Reach Bickley at [email protected] or 602-444-8253. Follow him on twitter.com/dan.bickley. Listen to “Bickley and Marotta” weekdays from 12-2 p.m. on 98.7 Arizona’s Sports Station.