It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.

The former was 2009, with Kurt Warner, or 2013 when Carson Palmer took every snap at quarterback for the Cardinals. The Cards had quarterback stability because they stayed (pretty) healthy and because Warner and Palmer were good. It's what you need in the NFL to win. The worst of times, well, the Cardinals have done that too. When you are on a merry-go-round of quarterbacks in a season, it turns painful. The Cards did that in 2010, when Derek Anderson was backed up by rookies Max Hall and John Skelton (with a sprinkling of Rich Bartel at the end of the season). They did it in 2012, when Skelton and Kevin Kolb traded starts and injuries and then ineffectiveness leading to then-rookie Ryan Lindley (and a sprinkling of Brian Hoyer at the end of the season.)

Those years were totally different than this one, of course. The Cardinals struggled in those years. They weren't battling for a division title going into the final regular-season game and they certainly weren't playoff bound regardless. The Cards have only played four quarterbacks this season because of injury, not because of choice. That's good, but it's bad too. As offensive coordinator Harold Goodwin said Christmas afternoon, "Week-to-week different quarterback, do you like it? No." It certainly isn't a present you want to find under your tree.

Monday Bruce Arians said he was leaning toward starting Logan Thomas unless he saw something in practice that made him change his mind, and then Thursday came the Kent Somers report that the Cards would instead start Lindley again. Either way, the Cardinals are trying to find the best option -- especially if Drew Stanton can't come back from his knee injury for the first playoff game.

UPDATE: Ian Rapoport is reporting Stanton had to have arthroscopic surgery because of an infection and could be done for the season.

"All our quarterbacks looked good, even the kid (Jeff Mathews) we have on practice squad now," Goodwin said after practice (which is closed to the media) Thursday. "We'll be OK no matter what."

The Cardinals don't really have a choice at looking at it any other way. Lindley or Thomas, Nos. 3 and 4, are the options -- perhaps even as the Cards play in the playoffs.

"If they both go out this week and throw for 300 (yards), that'd be great," wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald said.