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Cards Sign Ex-Colts Quarterback Chandler Harnish

By Luke Schultheis

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Perhaps lost in yesterday’s shuffle was that former Indianapolis Colts backup quarterback Chandler Harnish signed with the Arizona Cardinals Tuesday on a 1-year deal.

Of course, this means that Harnish joins other recent Colts castoffs in Cory Redding and A.Q. Shipley, not to mention Jerraud Powers, Kerwynn Williams, and Robert Hughes prior, as members of the Horseshoe that have reunited with their former interim head coach Bruce Arians in the desert.

Aug 16, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts back-up quarterback Chandler Harnish (5) in action against the New York Giants during a pre season game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY Sports

Harnish was originally the 253rd pick in the 7th round by the Colts in the 2012 NFL Draft, i.e. “Mr. Irrelevant”, as the last pick in Andrew Luck‘s same draft class. He played his collegiate football at Northern Illinois, and while he never appeared in a regular season game in his 2 seasons with the Colts (although he was active for 5 games), he was a mainstay for preseason and on the team’s practice squad.

However, Harnish was released as part of final 53-man roster cuts before the start of last season by the Colts. He spent this past season with the Minnesota Vikings, where he bounced around from their active roster and practice squad between late September and mid-December.

With incumbent Cardinals starting quarterback Carson Palmer still rehabilitating from an ACL tear, Harnish should compete against both Drew Stanton (his former teammate) and Logan Thomas for reps. It’s likely that he may be nothing more than a training camp body, but given his familiarity with Arians offensive system while with the Colts, he should be at least comfortable with his latest landing spot.

While Harnish’s signing may have gone largely unnoticed, it wasn’t lost on some of his former teammates who offered him congratulatory wishes:

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