Matt Leinart Dancing Toward Irrelevancy

It's not nice to revel in somebody's misfortune. So why have I spent the past couple of days scouring for news about Matt Leinart?

Word is he's officially becoming an NFL bust. Rumors abound that he'll be traded to the Bills, the Raiders, the Giants or the Fred Astaire Dance Studios.

Watching a quarterback self-destruct should not be a source of joy, unless it's Michael Vick. I was feeling guilty, then Leinart opened his mouth and granted absolution.

"The philosophy is you want the best 11 guys to play. I feel like I've proved that with my performance. I don't really know what else I could possibly do, so it probably goes beyond football."

So said Leinart after Derek Anderson was named Arizona's starter. That's sort of like getting beaten out by Loni Anderson, so it should be a little upsetting. But Leinart's reaction confirms that he's bought into his own hype.

If pride really goes before a fall, Leinart might now plummet to the Omaha Nighthawks' practice squad. The glamour guy was handed the starting job heading into the season and he lost out to the notably un-glam Anderson.

Now Leinart's playing the victim. It can't be his fault. Coach Ken Whisenhunt must have it in for him.

Sure, he completed 83 percent of his passes in the preseason. But there's a lot more to this story than safe, dinky completions. There's leadership, chemistry, mobility and being able to throw a deep pass that doesn't look like a punt.

These shortcomings are apparently lost on Leinart. You may write that off as competitiveness. I think it's just as much hubris. And who doesn't enjoy seeing a cocky guy served a heaping helping of humiliation?

Or maybe those of us in the Matt Leinart Non-Fan Club are simply jealous. I'll admit that I would love to be young, rich and free to spend my spare time in hot tubs with hotter women.

Leinart has been the quintessential Dude since his sophomore year at USC. The difference is he backed up the Hollywood lifestyle with legit football performances. He also showed rare perspective when he decided to pass up the 2005 draft and return for his senior year.

It wasn't just any senior year, of course. The Trojans were going for their third straight national championship, there were still a few nightclubs in L.A. he hadn't hit and his entire academic load consisted of a ballroom dance class.

Sure beat my senior year.

By all accounts, Leinart was a dedicated tango student. He got his USC degree, even if he didn't get that national title. As it turned out, the Reggie Bushwacked Trojans would have had to give it back anyway.

Returning to USC also cost Leinart a sure shot at being the No. 1 pick, though that's turned out to be a costly blessing. If he'd been the first player taken, Leinart would now be considered JaMarcus Russell's skinnier twin. By sliding to No. 10 in the 2006 draft, Leinart at least bought himself a little developmental leeway.

Thomas George reports on the changes confronting the Cardinals. Click above to watch.

He needed it worse than any scout imagined. The only time Leinart looked like the USC stud was in photos posted on thedirty.com. Quick NFL career primer: you never want your picture to lead a website known as thedirty.com. Especially if you are grinning and holding a device that is funneling a massive amount of beer into a young girl's mouth.

A few people are still drinking the Leinart Kool-Aid. They think he hasn't gotten a fair shot since Dennis Green was fired and Whisenhunt brought in a pass-heavy offense.

It was perfect for Kurt Warner, who never had his photo posted on thedirty.com. Getting beaten out by Warner was no disgrace, but Leinart doesn't appear to have learned much from watching the future Hall of Famer.

"I feel like I've outplayed the competition, training camp, preseason," he said. "I think my play speaks for itself."

What it told the Cardinals was Leinart is still better at celebrity than quarterback. After four years, 14 touchdown passes, 20 interceptions and seven worn-out beer bongs, it's time to move on. I'd also like to move on and stop finding petty pleasure in Mr. Hot Tub's career circling the drain. It would help if he would take responsibility for what has happened.

There might be a better team for him out there, but Leinart will need to use the Arizona experience as motivation instead of a reason to pout. If he doesn't, I think we all know where this is headed.

"Dancing with the Stars!"

If it's good enough for accomplished stars like Bristol Palin, it should be good enough for accomplished quarterbacks like Leinart. Though wouldn't you know it, guess who just signed on for the upcoming season?

Kurt Warner.

He will probably go in and dance like Astaire. The bar will be set so high that Leinart will look like the No. 1 pick in the dork draft.

Poor guy, maybe he should have taken advanced ballroom dance at USC.