Cardinals announce signing of QB Blaine Gabbert to 1-year deal

TEMPE, Ariz. – The Arizona Cardinals officially announced the signing Thursday of quarterback Blaine Gabbert to a one-year contract.

Gabbert presumably will compete for the backup job behind 37-year-old starter Carson Palmer but for now is the No. 3 quarterback on the roster.

Drew Stanton has filled the backup role since coach Bruce Arians came to the Cardinals in 2013 and is 6-3 as a starter in relief of Palmer.

Jacksonville made Gabbert the 10th-overall pick in the draft out of Missouri in 2011. He played three seasons with the Jaguars and the last three with San Francisco.

He opened last season as the 49ers’ starter but his inconsistent play during their 1-4 start led to his benching in favor of Colin Kaepernick, who remains unsigned for the coming season.

Gabbert has played in 43 games in his NFL career, 40 as a starter. He has thrown for 38 touchdowns with 37 interceptions.

The statistics are not impressive but Arians told The Arizona Republic that he believes Gabbert will find much more success with the Cardinals.

“When I look at the group of receivers he’s played with, not knocking them in any way, they can’t touch ours,” Arians said. “So he would never have played with receivers that he would have here and I think he fits our system.”

Arians said he had a “very, very high grade” on Gabbert going into the 2011 draft.

Arians compared Gabbert to another quarterback he coached, Tim Couch, who was a No. 1 overall pick for Cleveland.

Arians noted Couch was the last quarterback to get the Browns to the playoffs.

The success of such quarterbacks, Arians said, depends on getting them in the right system.