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Whisenhunt to go with Warner over Leinart this season
Posted by tomvanwyhePoor Matt Leinart; the guy can’t catch a break with new head coach Ken Whisenhunt. In a new development in Arizona, the Cardinals are rumored to have reached a new decision at quarterback: Kurt Warner is going to start this season.
Ouch.
Well, at least the decision came before the season. Last year I cringed whenever I saw that Leinart had been pulled from a game. To pull your young starter from one game when he’s struggling? Not the worst idea, but it’s sometimes a better idea to let him finish the game. Still, it’s a judgment call for the coach and I can respect the decision. But to pull your inexperienced quarterback from consecutive starts? What the heck? Honestly, I had never heard of a coach doing that prior to last season.
I’m not a psychology major, so I’m not certain how it affects a young player when his new head coach pulls him from half the games he starts because he’s struggling, but I’m going to go ahead and venture a guess that it takes a toll on his level of confidence. In fact, who knows how long this would have gone on last season if Leinart’s season hadn’t ended in week five when he suffered a season-ending injury?
Alright, with that off my chest, I’m going to reiterate that I’m happy the decision was reached now. And I can understand it; Leinart struggled mightily week three of this preseason, going 4-for-12 and throwing three interceptions. To be fair, he was statastically pretty good during the first two weeks of preseason, completing 14-of-19 for 153 yards and touchdown. Warner, meanwhile, has completed 62 percent of his passes for 94 yards (no touchdowns-interceptions) in two preseason games and has looked pretty solid in his limited time.
Obviously, this decision goes deeper than preseason, and I must admit that it’s a little surprising to me. I understand it, but I didn’t expect it. Whisenhunt has taken every opportunity to back up Leinart, his work ethic, and his offseason progress this year, only to make this move after three exhibition games, of which only one Leinart played poorly.
Is this the right decision? I believe that Warner gives Arizona the best opportunity to win. How it affects the future of this franchise, I don’t know. After all, Warner - who turned 37 earlier this summer - proved he can play last season, but for how long?
Also, I think quarterback should be on the back burner until this team can find a way to appease its wide receivers. Both Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin have asked to be traded at different points this offseason, and it seems likely that Boldin will be moved very soon. His thoughts on Whisenhunt: he has no relationship with the coach. The absence of Boldin, the team’s possession receiver and one of the toughest wide receivers to bring down, will adversely affect whoever is throwing the football.
From a fantasy football perspective, I think this does improve the stock of Fitzgerald. Warner is a more experienced quarterback than Leinart and someone who can put up bigger numbers. At the same time, I don’t think Warner is capable of putting up last season’s numbers without Boldin and Bryant Johnson.
It’s unknown how the team as a whole views its head coach and how its players will react to him in year two. I wonder how many players feel as disconnected to him as Boldin? In any case, this looks like a team poised to struggle in 2008.
Tags: Arizona Cardinals, Coach, Fantasy Football, Ken Whisenhunt, Kurt Warner, Matt Leinart, Quarterbacks
