Failing in AZ and a 3rd stringer in Texas who did not even play does not bode well for Matt. I doubt he will ever be a starting QB in the NFL and will be lucky to sign on as a 3rd string QB this year.
I don't see how that would help that significantly. Care to explain? How much time did that QB coach have to spend with a 3rd stringer during the season? How will time out of public scrutiny translate to better play on the field?
The problem with Leinart was the amount of local and national exposure he got from the media and simply being in a situation where he wasnt going to succeed. He had a HoF QB in front of him the entire time he was in AZ with the addition of a head coach who was not 100% on board with him.
Being 3rd string with Houston gave him time to decompress IMO and be in a much more positive situation. What harm was he going to do to himself? What better way to escape the negative publicity while the team with which he was jettisoned suffered immensely, especially at the QB position. He needed a season with a team and coach (Kubiak) who appreciated his talents and asked little from him.
I have to imagine he had some joy and validation in watching the Cards struggle with one horrendous starter and two rookies incapable of learning on the fly despite the wishes of the coaches. I think most believe that if Leinart was starting instead of DA that we would have been marginally better. Yes he did not have the respect of the locker room but winning heals all wounds. It appeared as if the team turned on DA midway through when they realized he was continuing to regress to being one of the worst starting QB in the league.
With that said, what's to say a team like the 49ers, who is in desperate need for quality QB play, wont take a flier on a guy like Leinart? He wont cost much and will surely give any other QB on the FA market a run for their money for the starting QB role.
And simply stating: a change in scenery is sometimes a good thing for a person. Leinart was not in a position to succeed in AZ. Was it self inflicted? Somewhat. But being the best QB in preseason, the slotted starter and still being cut shows he was not appreciated in AZ