Kevin Kolb Trade Speculation

Recently, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb has voiced his displeasure on being a backup to Michael Vick, and wishes to be the starter, whether it be in Philly or elsewhere. Assuming Kolb doesn't stay in Philly (even though coach Andy Reid would like to have him back), what other options are there for Kolb? Let's go through a list of possible suitors:

MIAMI- It's simple to say that Chad Henne's actions determine the fate of the Miami Dolphins. When Henne's good, he's good, but when he's bad, it's ugly. Henne may not be the long-term solution in Miami after all, but it's hard to imagine Kolb being a direct upgrade to Henne. Both are pocket passers, with Kolb performing only slightly better than Henne in his short starting performance last year. The Dolphins may make more sense than most teams, but giving up a first round pick for Kolb may be a stretch.

CINCINNATI- Carson Palmer has voiced his displeasure (does that sound familiar?) with the Bengals organization, but don't expect him to leave just yet. The Bengals probably hope to get a long-term replacement for Palmer, who turns 32 in December. The likelihood of Kevin Kolb ending up in Cincinnati is not great, since the Bengals will probably draft their guy anyway. But is it possible? Who knows...stranger things have happened in Cincy.

JACKSONVILLE- The rumors were strong in Jacksonville about a year ago, but have since died out a little. Even though Jacksonville surprised many last year, they haven't had a franchise quarterback since Mark Brunell nearly 8 years ago. The Jaguars could use a new face, but they could also use a lot of other things they need to improve on. Plus, with the addition of Trent Edwards, a starting quarterback may not be as important this time around.

TENNESSEE- With the Titans already ousting long time coach Jeff Fisher and preparing to trade/release quarterback Vince Young, the new head coach (presumably Mike Munchak) will want a new face of the franchise as well. Unless that face be the 38 year old Kerry Collins (or, alternatively, unproven Rusty Smith or Brett Ratliff), a new guy will come into town. Will it be Kolb? Or someone from the draft? The Titans may want to take the safe route and develop someone, but with the Vince Young experiment being an obvious failure, you never know.

MINNESOTA- Could Minnesota hold the keys in the Kevin Kolb sweepstakes? Their only quarterbacks currently on the roster are Rhett Bomar and Joe Webb (with Tavaris Jackson and Patrick Ramsey as unrestricted free agents). Ramsey and Bomar are most likely backups if anything, which leaves Jackson and Webb. Jackson has performed okay in cleanup duty, but has never really looked like a starting quarterback. Webb performed admirably in his start against the Philadelphia Eagles, but may not be suited to be an NFL quarterback just yet. The Los Angele---er, Minnesota Vikings may want to take a chance on Kolb, but it's more likely they'll sign a veteran to play a few early game snaps or even draft a quarterback. However, if Leslie Frazier doesn't like what he sees, Kolb could be the perfect fit.

CAROLINA- The Panthers are looking desperately for a quarterback, and Kolb could be the answer they're looking for. However, it remains extremely unlikely. The Panthers possess the first pick in the draft and certainly aren't willing to trade it. Despite the decision by Andrew Luck to stay at Stanford, the Panthers still look likely to draft a quarterback somewhere instead of trading for someone like Kolb.

ARIZONA- Arizona is one of the reasons why a good quarterback is necessary to any team. After Kurt Warner retired, the Cardinals suffered from having no backup plan to succeed Warner (Matt Leinart was just plain awful). While rookie quarterback John Skelton performed somewhat reasonably at the end of the season (compared, at least, to the carousel of Derek Anderson and Max Hall), the Cardinals NEED a quarterback to fill in the hole that Warner left. Kolb may be the answer, but Arizona may also bring in a veteran instead, to show a little direction to the young guys in the group. Either way, the Cardinals will have a new quarterback next year, whether it be Kolb or not.

SAN FRANCISCO- New coach? Check. Explosive franchise players on offense and defense? Check. Big Expectations? Check. Quarterback who can lead them back to the promised land? Um.... The San Francisco 49ers hate to admit it, but Alex Smith has been average at most over his tenure there. Jim Harbaugh will need to bring in a new quarterback to develop. Last year it was a flip flop between Thing 1 and Thing 2 (Alex Smith and Troy Smith). Next year, with only David Carr guaranteed to be back (if anything) the quarterback situation will undoubtedly need to be addressed. Kolb might be a solution, if the Eagles are willing to bring down the asking price. The 49ers may be desperate enough to pull the trigger.

SEATTLE- With Matt Hasselbeck an uncertainty for the future, it seems that younger talent can be brought in. With Charlie Whitehurst and J.P. Losman historically underperforming for most of their careers, could Kolb come into town? It seems like a possibility, but if anyone comes to town it will probably be Matt Leinart, Pete Carroll's old student back at USC (or perhaps, in the future, Carson Palmer?). Seattle seems unlikely to bring in anyone anyway, with Carroll committed to resigning Hasselbeck.

So where might Kevin Kolb end up? It's an uncertainty if he'll even be traded this season, but if he is, some unexpected team could make a jump on him, even one with a vested signal-caller. After all, it was the Eagles who made the jump on Vick when Kolb was already the heir-apparent.