Peter King this morning on Matt Leinart

[az jam]

Peter King Sports Illustrated:

I think the best note from a practice session I've seen this summer came from Kent Somers of the Arizona Republic (don't mean to put him in every MMQB, but the guy's good), monitoring the combined Cards-Titans practice on Wednesday in Nashville. Before a snap when the Cards' offense stepped to the line of scrimmage, Somers heard a Titans defender say to a teammate: "I got a buffalo nickel that says he checks down.'' In footballese, that translates to: Matt Leinart will always take the easy way out instead of trying to make a play.

I think the Leinart yanking shows Ken Whisenhunt didn't trust Leinart in 2007, and he doesn't trust him now. How that trust can be rebuilt is the tough question

 

[green machine]

Is it the easy way or the safe way? I have a feeling Leinart would rather gain large chunks of yards every play except the risk for turnovers goes up then.

 

[ASUCHRIS]

Is it the easy way or the safe way? I have a feeling Leinart would rather gain large chunks of yards every play except the risk for turnovers goes up then.

There is a fine line between being safe and smart, and being a certain female part...(hint, it's not ovaries)

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

Is it the easy way or the safe way? I have a feeling Leinart would rather gain large chunks of yards every play except the risk for turnovers goes up then.

It's easy and safe. Unfortunately it also generally results in punts and field goals. In order for our run game to work and score points against most teams we need some sort of threat downfield and Leinart has shown he's either unwilling or afraid to throw the ball for more than 15 yards. That's why Whiz has benched him. That and his overall crappy attitude.

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

The old expression "you have to bet big to win big" applies here.

Leinart might be the guy here if we had the 2000 Baltimore Ravens defense. Unfortunately we don't so Whiz understands that at some point we're going to need to score points.

 

[Spielman]

Somers heard a Titans defender say to a teammate: "I got a buffalo nickel that says he checks down.'' In footballese, that translates to: Matt Leinart will always take the easy way out instead of trying to make a play.

Heh. Could that possibly be a starker contrast to the last QB?

 

[green machine]

Funny thing is I always felt Whiz would want a caretaker type QB, one who would run the offense, minimize mistakes and not turn it over.

 

[green machine]

Furthermore, Leinart wasn't "captain checkdown" as a rookie, so what the hell happened since then?

 

[dogpoo32]

Furthermore, Leinart wasn't "captain checkdown" as a rookie, so what the hell happened since then?

A 3 INT preseason game that got him benched.

 

[Russ Smith]

Was this before or after he picked Plummer to win MVP again this year?

 

[MrYeahBut]

Did he mention if he won the nickel or not?

 

[Doc Cardinal]

Funny thing is I always felt Whiz would want a caretaker type QB, one who would run the offense, minimize mistakes and not turn it over.

AHHHHHHH!!!

Wrong answer.

 

[82CardsGrad]

Is it the easy way or the safe way? I have a feeling Leinart would rather gain large chunks of yards every play except the risk for turnovers goes up then.

When the defense knows what you're doing, it's certainly not a safe way...

 

[wa52lz]

So I'm supposed to believe that there are NFL players that know what a "buffalo nickle" is and use that term on a regular basis?

 

[green machine]

AHHHHHHH!!!

Wrong answer.

Apparently.

 

[SoCal Cardfan]

So I'm supposed to believe that there are NFL players that know what a "buffalo nickle" is and use that term on a regular basis?

This

 

[D-Dogg]

So I'm supposed to believe that there are NFL players that know what a "buffalo nickle" is and use that term on a regular basis?

LOL, no doubt.

 

[DeAnna]

Well, Whis has always liked a big, strong, tuff QB; apparently Matt does not fit that criteria.

I never thought he wanted a caretaker QB; if you look at the Steelers when he was there, they had a strong running game and took big shots down the field.

 

[CaptTurbo]

Well, Whis has always liked a big, strong, tuff QB; apparently Matt does not fit that criteria..

I thought Whiz wasnt big on Big ben during his time there.

 

[football karma]

Wolf had an interesting observation on why Anderson looks to be Whis' guy:

post Warner, the Cards will be facing lots of 8 man fronts -- both to stop the run and to pressure the passer. To make them pay for that, an offense has to complete stuff down the field. Throwing 7 yard passes doesn't make a defense pay -- and can be dangerous against 8 man fronts as you have 6 players defending the pass ( 2 cbs, 3 lbs, 1 safety) within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage.

Rationalization? maybe -- but I thought it was interesting.

 

[CaptTurbo]

If they have 8 up front to pressure the passer the BEST thing you can do is the quick short passes.

Warner was praised for always finding what the defense gave him. Now Matt does it and its a liability.

 

[DeAnna]

I thought Whiz wasnt big on Big ben during his time there.

Not on a personal level, but you can't argue that Big Ben could take a hit and keep on ticking.

 

[Shane]

Thats pretty bad if Titan Defenders are making comments like that.

 

[Mulli]

Thats pretty bad if Titan Defenders are making comments like that.

No way any NFL player says "buffalo nickel"

 

[Shane]

No way any NFL player says "buffalo nickel"