The quarterback picked one spot before the Broncos’ Jay Cutler in the 2006 NFL draft at least made a cameo on-field appearance Thursday night.
For those who arrived at Invesco Field at Mile High by opening kickoff, the Arizona Cardinals’ Matt Leinart was easy to spot. He was the guy taking snaps from center.
However, after directing a 14-play, 79-yard opening drive that resulted in a field goal, Leinart gave way to nine-year veteran Kurt Warner and backups Lang Campbell and Shane Boyd. Leinart’s preseason was complete, and the official start to his sophomore season is more than a week away.
Leinart, 24, was projected to play two series, but his time on the field was based on the number of plays, and 14 was it.
“Once he hit that, we had enough,” said first-year Arizona coach Ken Whisenhunt. “Matt actually wanted to come back, but at that point we had what we needed to see.”
Leinart’s appearance against the Broncos wasn’t exactly impressive; he completed 2-of-6 passes for 13 yards and missed on two throws from the 1-yard line. But based on what he did last year and having that experience behind him, Arizona’s signal-calling chores seem to be in great shape.
“I was off a little bit throwing, but we had a (79)-yard drive and ran the ball well,” Leinart said. “We moved the ball. We just got to capitalize when we’re in the red zone.”
Said Whisenhunt: “Matt has progressed very well. I’m very comfortable with where he is going into the season. In fact, I’m excited.”
Leinart, the 2004 Heisman Trophy winner, was 4-2 in his final six starts as a rookie.
His highlights were lofty. On Nov. 26 at Minnesota he threw for 405 yards, becoming the first rookie in NFL history to throw for 400 yards in a game. He was the first rookie to throw two touchdown passes in the first quarter of his first two games.
Leinart finished with a franchise rookie record of 2,547 passing yards, surpassing Jake Plummer’s 2,203 in 1997. Leinart could have shattered the record, but he missed the season finale because of a shoulder injury.
Not bad for a guy who was born with strabismus, otherwise known as cross-eyes. At age 3, the problem was corrected with surgery and glasses.
Staff writer Mike Chambers can be reached at 303-954-1357 or mchambers@denverpost.com.
