Bordow: Angry Leinart running out of chances

Matt Leinart always thought he'd be here, standing under a tree at the Cardinals training facility, answering questions on the Monday before the regular season.

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It's a weekly ritual for the Cardinals starting quarterback. As players trudge into the locker room, their jerseys stained with sweat, the quarterback steps up on a podium and takes care of his media responsibilities.

It's usually a painless exercise, the questions - and answers - routine and practiced.

But on Monday, two quarterbacks took their turn.

Leinart was first. Kurt Warner was second.

Leinart, as you might imagine, didn't appreciate the irony. Oh, he said all the right things. He supports Warner. He's going to work hard. The Cardinals are in it together.

But make no mistake.

Leinart is angry. He thought he would be named the starter and have the chance to prove he's an elite NFL quarterback.

Instead, he has again been relegated to the shadows, only to emerge in case of an injury.

That's hard on a man's pride.

"Obviously I'm disappointed but you know you can't get down," Leinart said. "You've just got to keep working. That's my whole mindset."

But it's not that simple. Already there is talk, both locally and nationally, that Leinart is a bust. Someone affiliated with the Cardinals told ESPN's Chris Mortensen the organization questions Leinart's arm strength and consistency.

Leinart knows what's being said about him. And he knows he can't prove his critics wrong while he's standing on the sideline.

That too hurts.

"I know I'm criticized for a lot of stuff that I do, every single day, every snap," he said. "... A lot of people are saying all these things, but I'm still very young in this league, you know. I've got a long career ahead of me.

"I've said it all along. People can say what they want. It's all opinion. I think I kind of use it to my advantage, use it as motivation. But you've also got to let it go, too. I mean, those things are so ridiculous sometimes you don't pay much attention to them."

Leinart, however, can not ignore the fact coach Ken Whisenhunt chose Warner as his starting quarterback. That's a direct shot, his head coach telling him he's not good enough yet.

"I know my opportunity will come," Leinart said.

When that time comes, and it likely will come this season, Leinart better not fail.

He's no longer the next big thing, the quarterback who would rescue the Cardinals from their miserable existence. Now there are more questions than exclamation points, more cynics than believers. If he has another game like he did against the Oakland Raiders in the preseason - when he finished with a 2.8 quarterback rating - he will be written off for good here.

But there is also an opportunity for redemption.

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning threw 19 touchdowns and 19 interceptions through the first 15 games of the 2007 season, his fourth year in the league.

Few people thought he was a competent NFL quarterback, much less a second helping of the Manning family.

But in the final week of the regular season and the Giants' four postseason games, Manning threw 10 touchdowns and two interceptions, and he was named the most valuable player of the Super Bowl.

Leinart likes to point out that he's only started 16 games in two years. He's also played in two different offensive systems.

OK, we'll grant him that. But he has to understand something, too.

Whenever that 17th start comes, there won't be any more excuses.