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A Cinderella Story
by Khaled Elsayed
10/7/2009
 Hes certainly not living your typical Cinderella story. He earns a shed load of cash, has lived a celebrity life style, and has won numerous awards during his college career.
But the fall from grace that Matt Leinart has experienced since the 2005 NFL Draft where he was widely expected to be the number 1 draft pick had he not opted to remain in college has put him in position to live out said Cinderella story, and maybe even go to the Bowl one day.
Its amazing how different things could be if back in 2005 Matt Leinart had declared for the draft. He was the most highly touted prospect, and would in all likelihood have been the obvious choice for the San Francisco 49ers in what was, looking back at it, a lacklustre top of the draft. A combination of excellent intangibles, accuracy and field vision to go with a strong enough arm meant this was the kind of solid and dependable guy that could easily adapt to being a franchise quarterback in the NFL.
But then he fell foul to what can often happen to guys who opt to stay in college for another year; he got over analysed and people became intent on finding flaws in his game. His maturity was questioned after he was caught partying and was bizarrely linked to Paris Hilton (before she had slept with roughly 84% of all men to have ever visited America), and there was a definite feeling that all the praise of being so well thought of that he could have been a the number 1 pick had gone to his head and created an arrogance and sense of entitlement. Then when people analysed the talent around him there was a feeling that perhaps he was more a product of the players around him, rather than the outstanding prospect they felt he was a year prior.
So while he was still involved in discussions at the top of the draft, his stock was falling much like Cinderella once her father her died. And while his stock fell, the stock began to rise of the Ugly Sisters Vince Young and Jay Cutler.
 Vince was the fancy one, gifted with incredibly athletic ability but with an apparent lack of work ethic and desire to make himself the best he can be, he was never going to be the media darling that his potential could suggest. While the angry, temperamental Jay was known to get in a huff any time he didnt get his way. He may have a lot of talent, but questions were asked over his maturity when it came to dealing with adversity.
But they both landed in great situations much like the Ugly Sisters who had their mother to push and support them, Jay had a Denver crowd determined to see the back of Jake Plummer, while Vince landed in Tennessee where the immobility of Kerry Collins was leading to calls to put in the young playmaker. And in fairness to both for a time they responded to the challenges. Jay displayed a natural ability in his first 3 seasons to make plays and become the leader of an explosive offence, while Vince developed a habit of winning a lot. But neither of these scenarios propelled their teams towards catching the eye of their Prince Charming: taking their team to the SuperBowl.
And it wasnt long before the flaws that had hidden under the surface of success, were now there for everyone to see. Amongst all of the great play of the Broncos offence, came the fact that Cutler has thrown more interceptions than anyone not named Brett Favre, and his team had spectacularly blown their shot at the playoffs by ending the season playing pretty poorly. While Vinces reality check was all the more disturbing, as after suffering in the season opener he disappeared prompting fears he no longer wanted to play football and was considering suicide. He certainly didnt seem set up to cope with the strains of such a high profile position.
 Certainly we were seeing an ugly side to these two, all the while, after losing his starting place to Kurt Warner we began to start hearing the kind of things you want to hear in a once highly touted prospect. He wasnt moaning about not starting, he wasnt getting angry at the coaches or blaming anyone. He was sitting back, watching a great QB lead his team to the SuperBowl and he was learning. And whats more this whole humbling process seems, if accounts from Arizona coaches are to go by, to have made him a more mature Quarterback with a better work ethic and got rid of the feeling of entitlement that seemed to have been created by years of hype at a big name college.
While Vince and Jay have both been invited to the ball and had their chance to dance with Prince Charming, neither has made the kind of impression that suggests theyre going to. Sure Cutler has shown himself as an above average Quarterback, but turnover problems and temper tantrums that have led him to a quarterbacks graveyard in Windy Chicago and indicate he may never quite have the mental acumen or maturity to be an elite quarterback. That perhaps he was thrown into things too soon, with the pressure of huge expectations put upon him and the belief that he had earned his status before his time could be his undoing.
In any case, whether it is next year or the year after you have to feel that a Quarterback like Matt Leinart is going to get his chance in Arizona. Hes busy at the moment getting himself dressed and making sure that when his carriage arrives hes ready to step out and wow everyone with the kind of quarterbacking that was expected of him not so long ago. He has more tools in place than either Young or Cutler, and the extra time to learn (as Aaron Rodgers has shown) should benefit him no end. In a game about decision making and avoiding mistakes, Leinart is primed to become a good quarterback in this league and now his attitude has been corrected what else is there other than the longevity of Kurt Warner stopping him?
Fairy tales are the stuff of fiction, but I wouldnt be so quick to give up on Matt Leinart living out his Cinderella story and one day dancing with his Prince Charming at the SuperBowl.
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