New Era for Leinart

They happened within 10 minutes of each other, an impressive slice of synchronicity for two Heisman Trophy winners from USC.

The first took place Sunday in New Orleans, when rookie Reggie Bush lifted the Saints to victory over Tampa Bay with the first touchdown of his NFL career, a 65-yard, game-winning punt return.

Before Bush’s vapor trail could evaporate, his former Trojan teammate was scribbling his own bit of personal history. Quarterback Matt Leinart, making his debut as a starter for the Arizona Cardinals, threw a 49-yard touchdown pass on the opening drive against Kansas City. It sailed right down the middle of a Chiefs defense that hadn’t surrendered a scoringpass.

“We weren’t expecting a bomb right off the top,” end Tamba Hali said. “They caught us off guard.”

As is often the case in Arizona, however, that wasn’t enough. The Cardinals wound up building a two-touchdown lead in the first nine minutes, then frittering it away over the next 3 1/2 quarters on their way to a 23-20 loss.

Leinart lost for only the third time since high school -- he was 37-2 as a USC starter -- and combined with Tampa Bay’s Bruce Gradkowski and Tennessee’s Vince Young, rookie quarterbacks were 0 for 3 on Sunday.

“I’m not used to losing,” Leinart said. “And then actually contributing to a loss makes it that much more difficult.”

Even though Leinart made a couple of costly mistakes -- an interception deep in Cardinals territory, a sack that moved his team out of field-goal range -- he was widely praised by both teams for his poise and overall precision. He completed 22 of 35 passes for 253 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.

“I knew they had a lot of confidence in him with him being able to audible as much as he did,” Kansas City safety Sammy Knight said. “That’s very rare for a rookie, especially for it being his first week starting and having come into camp late.”

Leinart, who sat out the first three weeks of training camp before signing, replaced the ineffective Kurt Warner, who in the first four games had 10 fumbles, three of which he lost, and five interceptions.

As the last player to take the field in pregame introductions, Leinart emerged from the Cardinals Stadium tunnel to a roar of approval. As they did when the other offensive starters were introduced, machines on the field shot giant fireballs into the air. One fan held a sign reading, “The Future is Now,” and another had one that simply read, “Welcome, Matt.”

Better that than doormat, which the Cardinals have been for years. They finally have a talent-rich roster and a stadium of their own, a spaceship-looking, retractable-roof palace that cost $455 million and features a grass field that’s rolled in on a tray for games.

Leinart got a tad too familiar with that turf Sunday; the Chiefs sacked him four times. Before the game, Kansas City’s defense had held opposing quarterbacks to a league-low average of 9.3 yards per pass.

“It almost became a guessing game,” Leinart said. “They were showing a lot of things, just trying to make me think. And they did a good job of that.”

That the Cardinals waited five weeks to start Leinart actually represents patience. Most teams don’t have the luxury of letting a young quarterback watch and learn behind a veteran starter for a year or two. The rookies make too much money to stand around holding a clipboard. And the last thing a team wants to do is bring a player along slowly, then watch him sign a free-agent deal somewhere else once he’s up to speed.

There are exceptions, of course. San Diego’s Philip Rivers was the fourth overall pick in 2004 but wasn’t forced into action right away because starter Drew Brees played so well for the Chargers the last two seasons. Cincinnati’s Carson Palmer got a chance to learn at his own pace too, as did Philadelphia’s Donovan McNabb.

Others took over the starting job right away, among them Dallas’ Troy Aikman, Indianapolis’ Peyton Manning -- whose teams were 1-15 and 3-13, respectively -- and Pittsburgh’s Ben Roethlisberger, who replaced injured Tommy Maddox in Week 2 of the 2004 season and didn’t lose for the rest of the regular season.

Coach Dennis Green said Leinart was one of the day’s few bright spots for the Cardinals. More than once, he pointed out the game might have been different had receiver Bryant Johnson not dropped a long pass from Leinart in the end zone.

“There are certain things you can’t do,” Green said. “Those are the things you just have to recognize and ... not let it happen again.”

In the last 1 1/2 minutes, with his team trailing by three and with no timeouts, Leinart moved the Cardinals from their nine-yard line to the Kansas City 33, where Neil Rackers narrowly missed a 51-yard field-goal try.

Things won’t get any easier for Leinart and the Cardinals next week. They play host to undefeated Chicago on Monday night, and they almost certainly will be without Pro Bowl receiver Larry Fitzgerald, who was sidelined Sunday because of a hamstring injury.

“We can beat Chicago,” said Leinart, flashing a disappointed smirk and sounding none too convinced. “We just to have to see what happens.”

But Leinart knows that would be a stunning upset. A strong start doesn’t guarantee positive results. That’s something even a rookie can understand.

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sam.farmer@latimes.com