Arizona Cardinals head coach Ken Whisenhunt announced on Thursday that it would be QB Derek Anderson -- and not QB Matt Leinart -- starting for the Cardinals on Saturday night against the Chicago Bears.
Cardinals Apparently Demote Matt Leinart; Derek Anderson Will Start Against Bears
Whisenhunt didn’t offer up much of an explanation for the apparent Leinart demotion except to say, “There is thought put into this. We are evaluating not only how Matt handles this but how other players handle it.”
It’s unclear if this is a permanent move but many are already saying it means Leinart is done in Arizona, while some say Whisenhunt is just trying to spark Leinart. Seth Pollack from SB Nation Arizona doesn’t seem to think this means the end of the Leinart era.
He didn’t say he was changing the depth chart. He didn’t say that Leinart was done in Arizona, which seems to be the general reaction from the hyperbolic NFL talking heads. All he did was say that Leinart and Anderson were going to switch roles from the previous two preseason games.
SB Nation’s Revenge of the Birds also seems to think that this doesn’t signal the end of Leinart in Arizona and that come week one, Leinart will be the Cardinals starter.
I do think that people are looking into this story too much, we don't even know if Anderson will be the starter in week one or not. Now, if that happens, then this will be a big story. But until then, it is just seeing how the other guy plays when he starts the game with the 1st team. If he struggles, if he plays well, if he is just okay, and thats it. Maybe Anderson is just starting as a way to help him learn the system better. But overall, I think that unless Leinart has a complete meltdown of a game, he will still be the starter in week one against the Rams.
The third game is generally the most important of the four-game preseason schedule. Coaches tend to leave the first team on the field into the third quarter to get as much work as possible. That doesn’t exactly scream confidence in Leinart.
There will be more to analyze after Saturday’s preseason game against the Bears.
Check out SB Nation Arizona and Revenge of the Birds for more.
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