Leinart not taking first game lightly

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — The first preseason game is a chance for the veterans to shake the rust off, the youngsters to show if they can handle game speed instead of training camp pace.

Matt Leinart is taking a different tact. This initial preseason game is his chance to build trust with his teammates, show them he's ready to handle all the responsibilities that come with being Arizona's starting quarterback.

Saturday's game against Houston begins Leinart's second go-round as the season-opening starter and he knows how important it will be.

"It's huge. I'm definitely not taking this preseason lightly," he said. "I don't think you ever do, but there's always that mindset that 'I'm only going to play a series.' I'm going in knowing I'm not going to play a whole lot, but I want to take advantage of those opportunities."

Leinart's initial stint as Arizona's starter didn't go so well.

It was 2007 and the heralded first-round draft pick out of Southern California was coming off a decent rookie season in which he threw for over 2,500 yards and 11 touchdowns after replacing Kurt Warner in Week 5.

That gave Leinart the edge over the veteran the next training camp and the left-hander opened as starter. He lasted five games, sharing time with Warner while throwing four interceptions and two touchdowns with a quarterback rating of 61.9 before a broken collarbone ended his season.

Leinart has started one game since — after Warner suffered a concussion — and spent the past two seasons as an understudy to Warner, who led the Cardinals to the Super Bowl in 2008 and another division title last season before retiring.

Leinart gets another shot this season, no longer as a star-in-the-making, but as a 27-year-old former Heisman Trophy winner still trying to prove himself in the NFL five years after being drafted with the 10th overall pick.

So far, it's been a ho-hum start.

Leinart was pushed by new arrival and former Pro Bowler Derek Anderson in offseason camps and, after a decent start to training camp, had an average-at-best initial scrimmage at the end of the first week.

This first preseason game will be a chance to see if he can sharpen his accuracy — he missed on several deep balls in the scrimmage — and prove to the coaches and his teammates that he can be a take-charge leader like Warner was in the huddle.