Leinart shows his worth in Cardinals victory
Matt Leinart had one request for his head coach.
“Call anything,” he told Dennis Green.
The rookie clearly was confident.
Leinart showed why the Arizona Cardinals selected him with the 10th pick in the draft, and the Arizona Cardinals beat the host Chicago Bears 23-16 in Friday’s preseason game.
He took over for Kurt Warner in the second quarter and completed 15 of 21 passes for 144 yards and a touchdown.
“I feel comfortable with the offense for the most part right now,” Leinart said. “So they called a lot of stuff, and I just went out there and tried to execute.”
He entered the game with 5:13 left in the second quarter and completed 12 consecutive passes at one point, while leading the Cardinals (2-1) to a field goal at the end of the first half and a touchdown early in the third quarter.
Leinart completed all six passes on his second possession as the Cardinals drove 54 yards in the final minute of the half, Neil Rackers’ field goal extending their lead to 10-6.
Raiders 21, Lions 3: Randy Moss caught two touchdown passes from Aaron Brooks and Oakland opened the preseason with four straight wins for the first time since 1975, beating Detroit at Oakland, Calif.
Giants 13, Jets 7: Eli Manning had a shaky performance against the New York Jets. Thanks to the stout Giants defense, it hardly mattered. Manning went 10 of 20 for 107 yards with an interception, and the Giants held on for a victory at East Rutherford, N.J.
Eagles 16, Steelers 7: David Akers kicked field goals of 40, 49 and 52 yards and Jeff Garcia connected with Greg Lewis on a 61-yard touchdown pass to lead Philadelphia over visiting Pittsburgh.
Vikings 30, Ravens 7: Fred Smoot highlighted a big night by Minnesota’s defense with a 69-yard interception return for a touchdown as the Vikings blanked Baltimore’s first-team offense and beat Steve McNair and the Ravens in Minneapolis.
Around the league
New England gave star receiver Deion Branch a week to seek a trade as his holdout entered its 29th day. Branch in his final year of a five-year contract wants a new deal. … A man charged last year with impersonating Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to get dates was accused of stealing $3,200 from a different woman by telling her he was another player on the team, tight end Jerame Tuman. Brian Jackson was charged in Pittsburgh with theft by deception for borrowing the money and not repaying it. … Tennessee Titans cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones was arrested outside a bar early Friday in Murfreesboro, Tenn., and charged with disorderly conduct and public intoxication. As a result, coach Jeff Fisher said Jones will sit out today’s game against Atlanta.