FanHouse KenWhisenhunt

When the Cardinals drafted Matt Leinart 10th overall in the 2006 draft, just about everybody thought it was a perfect marriage. Arizona, the perpetual dark-horse candidate, finally had a franchise quarterback; Leinart, who had excelled in a pro-style offense at USC, was experienced beyond his years and it would only be a matter of time before he assumed the full-time job.

It didn't quite work out like that -- Leinart started 11 games as a rookie and held his own, but he only had five starts in 2007, and spent all of last season watching Kurt Warner lead Arizona to the Super Bowl. Part of the problem was that Leinart struggled with the offense, but there were bigger concerns with his maturity.

Anquan Boldin and Darnell Dockett are both a little upset with their current contract situation. Dockett's situation is a little less exposed because of the constant mention of Boldin's deal, but they're both looking for something new.

And they both have injured hamstrings. Which may or may not be true, but it wouldn't appear that coach Ken Whisenhunt is buying into the injury excuse.

On Monday, the NFL announced its preseason schedule for 2009, and the most intriguing game -- as intriguing as preseason games can be -- might be between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals on Thursday, Aug. 13.

One of the unintended consequences of releasing Terrell Owens is that now there's no one around to take the focus off Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips. (On the upside, the offense is now "Romo-friendly," so there's that.) In previous seasons, Phillips' shortcomings were partly overshadowed by anything T.O. might do, no matter how seemingly benign.

Now, though, when we aren't talking about Tony Romo, the conversation falls squarely on the guy responsible for benching Doug Flutie for Rob Johnson. I have a vague notion of how this is going to end.

At the annual NFL meetings earlier this week, Phillips offered this thoughts on how long it takes to evaluate a head coach. (Presumably, his response is autobiographical, though he could've been speaking in generalities.)

Even though Kurt Warner just signed a two-year deal to stay in Arizona, Matt Leinart is still a play away, as they say. Except that if you believe the other Cardinals backup, Brian St. Pierre, who told his hometown paper that head coach Ken Whisenhunt promised him the opportunity to win the backup gig.

On its face, it sounds preposterous. Leinart was the team's 2006 first-round pick; St. Pierre was drafted by the Steelers as a late-round afterthought and spent the first few years of his NFL career toiling away on the practice squad.

Because the NFL season never ends, we present our 2009 Offseason Roadmaps for front offices to navigate through the summer.

After astonishing everyone and heading to the Super Bowl last season, the Arizona Cardinals now face truly raised expectations for the first time in memory. We all remember the magical postseason run, when Larry Fitzgerald established himself as the NFL's premier wideout (even if Andre Johnson wants to argue), Kurt Warner polished his legacy, and the defense showed its capability -- one we had not seen much in the regular season.

Just a week after giving former defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast his walking papers, the Cardinals have replaced him with a former underling. Bill Davis, who has served as the team's linebackers coach for the past two seasons, will now take the reins as the defending NFC Champs' defensive coordinator.

Davis is not a rookie coordinator, as he held this job with the 49ers in 2005-2006. His defenses were ranked 32nd and 26th, respectively, during those years. In fairness, though, it's not like they were loaded with all-world personnel.

Mike Martz, much like a rash, just won't go away. At least if the rumors that the Cardinals might be interested in him as their next offensive coordinator hold any truth.

San Francisco head coach Mike Singletary fired Martz two days after the season, and I figured he'd just take some time off after wholly unimpressive performances with the 49ers and the Lions. The word on the street suggests otherwise. Of course, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat's Matt Maiocco makes it clear that it's just a rumor, so we should, "take it for what it's worth." Consider it done, Matt.

On Thursday, the Cardinals lost offensive coordinator Todd Haley to the Chiefs. Today, they're also without a defensive coordinator, but not because Clancy Pendergast got a new gig. Instead, the two sides have decided to part ways. Which, I imagine, is a lot like a mutual break-up in that it never actually happens that way.

In any event, the move seemed inevitable after Arizona traveled to Foxboro and proceeded to lay down as the Patriots racked up 47 points back in Week 16. But the Cardinals then won four in a row, including three playoff games, and were 150 seconds away from the franchise's first championship thanks, in part, to a solid second-half defensive effort. (Up 'til that last Steelers drive, anyway.)

President Barack Obama made a few headlines in the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl when he openly admitted that he was going to be cheering for the Pittsburgh Steelers in Super Bowl XLIII.

Some people made a big deal about it, but, frankly, he should be allowed to cheer for whoever he wants, just as John McCain should have been able to cheer for the Cardinals had he been the man in the White House. Just because you're the President doesn't mean you're not allowed to be a fan.

But, don't worry, Cardinals fans, the President hasn't forgotten about your team, either.