Cardinals QB Leinart does not worry about his starting job

With the retirement of quarterback Kurt Warner, the Arizona Cardinals’ next choice of starting quarterback could only be Matt Leinart unless they sign a veteran like Jake Delhomme or Derek Anderson to compete with Leinart for the starting job. That means there is still possibility for Leinart to lose his starting job; however, he seems not to worry about that much.

"It’s my time and I know that," Leinart told KTAR-AM. "I’m working my butt off to get ready. … Competition makes you better, I’m aware of that. To be honest with you, I’m not really worried about anything. I don’t know if that’s cockiness or not. I’m confident that I can do it. I’ve been in the system for three years. To me it doesn’t really matter because I’m focused on my job.”

Leinart also said that he would take the doubts from doubters as his motivation to do a better job at his position. With such confidence, Leinart is taking his time to prove his ability to be a starter in the fifth year of wearing Cardinals jersey.

Dolphins lost CB Allen to knee injury for the season

The Miami Dolphins cornerback Will Allen (not the Will Allen in Buccaneers jersey) will not play the remaining games for the season in his Dolphins jersey as he hurt the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in the third quarter of the Dolphins’ loss to the New Orleans Saints. The injury is just serious enough to end his season.

According to Coach Tony Sparano, Allen’s knee needs surgery and a lot of time to recover. The 2009 first-round draft pick Vontae Davis will take over Allen’s job to start in the lineup against the New York Jets this Sunday. Another rookie, second-round pick Sean Smith will start opposite Davis as he has been starting opposite Allen.

Sparano conceded he was unsure whether the rookies were ready to assume such a load.

“They need to mature really fast,” Sparano said. “I don’t know if they’re equipped for 10 games in a row of doing full-time duty without having Will Allen out there. But these guys are playing at pretty good levels.”

But he has to trust them. Their performance has not been bad. Davis has seen significant playing time as a reserve and on special teams, playing 28 snaps Sunday against the Saints. And for Smith, since he was able to win a starting job in training camp, he should be given to confidence that he would do the job well.