Matt Leinart

Q1

PLAYBOY: You were cross-eyed and over­weight as a kid. How did you end up an NFL quarterback with the Arizona Cardinals? LEINART: I was the fat. cross-eyed kid with high socks-that whole story. I was born with strabismus, which is when the eye muscles don't work together. I had surgery when I was about a year and a half old and a second operation before my freshman year in high school to strengthen a muscle. But I could play sports, man That's kind of what kept me cool. I guess It got me in with the cool crowd.

Q2

PLAYBOY: Now the tabloids link you to famous women like Paris Hilton and Britney Spears. What's true1

LEINART: I've hung out with a few people here and there, but to be honest with you I haven't really dated anyone considered a celebrity. Those things get taken way out of context. It just bewilders me that you can go to a club when a celebrity is there and sit at the same table with them, drinking or partying and having a good time, and the next thing you know you're

linked to that person. And then people think. Oh. they're dating now. Why? Because they were at the same place at the same time? That's just a bunch of bullshit to me. And that happens all the time. I just go out and have a good time, meet somebody and enjoy their company, and the next thing you know it's a story.

Q3

PLAYBOY: Is it hard to enjoy being young and successful with the paparazzi watching? LEINART: It's a lot easier to relax out here in Arizona than it is in LA. Anything you do in LA. is magnified if you're a celebrity or a high-profile person. They're looking for you to slip up. Sometimes you can't help it. and sometimes you can. That's something I learned. You learn from your mistakes and move on. It's just a pain in the ass. I look at some of my buddies, close friends of mine who are celebrities, and they cant go any­where without being seen. It's bullshit to me. Let people have their private lives.

Q4

PLAYBOY: What were your early days like at the University of Southern California?

LEINART: I was a fairly high recruit going into U5C. but I didn't think I was that good. I just had the size. Carson Palmer was already there I sat behind him. and it was terrible. I was an awful quar­terback. I had no confidence and could barely throw the ball 10 yards. As a quar­terback you need to have confidence. I went through a lot of trial and error those first few years, trying to find out who I was as a person and a player.

Q5

PLAYBOY: You led U5C to an undefeated season and won the Heisman Trophy your junior year. Everyone thought you would enter the NFL draft, but you decided to return to college for your senior year. That decision potentially cost you millions of dollars. Why go back? LEINART: There were a lot of reasons First, there was school. I was very close to finishing. It meant a lot to my mom and dad. Even though I'd come off a great game and won the Heisman. I still didn't feel I could physically and mentally be successful at the NFL level. I knew if I came out (continued on page 146)

LEINART

(continued from page 75)

that year I had to be 100 percent ready and focused to do this and be thrown to the wolves, which is what this is. I don't think I was prepared for that. I loved being a kid and being in college, and I loved my team and my teammates.

Q6

puavboy: You took only one class your senior year, ballroom dancing. Should we count on seeing you on Dancing With the Stars}

i.ein.art: Man, 1 couldn't even remem­ber one move from that class if 1 tried. I loved the class, though. It was fun. It was pretty much like what you see on Danc­ing With the Stars but obviously not that intense. There's no chance I'd sign up

unless it were with eight other athletes and 1 wasn't the only guy making a fool of himself. Plus it's hard.

pi.\yboY: Will Ferrell is a USC alum. "I he NFL Network produced a funny video in which he played a USC auxiliary strength and conditioning coach. Did you hang out with him?

I.EINART: Will is hilarious. The first time I met him was when USC coach Pete Car­roll had him come out to practice and surprise us. He went in the huddle, 1 threw him a bomb, and he dove for it and missed. I went to lunch with him afterward and got a chance to talk. What a great guy. He's obviously a funny per­son, but outside of his characters he's just a normal dude who was in a frat and did the same things any college kid did.

08

playboy: What's the worst hangover you've ever had?

leinart: It was probably five or six years ago. I thought I was dead. 1 remember the whole throw-up thing was happen­ing, and 1 passed out in the shower with the water on. My roommate came in to see me and then just left me there all night. In the morning I woke up in the shower with puke all over me. I thought I was going to die that day. I was thinking, Oh my Clod, my head is going to fall off. I'm not a big drinker or anything. I have my fun times, but that was a bad, bad experience.

Q9

I'UVBOV: How is your goli game? leinart: Pretty shitty. Since I'm an athlete, some of it comes naturally. To be honest, I've got a natural swing, but I'm not any good. 1 feel I could get fairly decent and hold my own if I practiced enough, but I'm just too lazy to practice right now. And Arizona is home to some of the most beautiful golf courses in the world.

Q10

playboy: When you entered the 2006 NFL draft most analysts figured you would be drafted early, possibly to the Tennessee Titans or New York Jets. Were you surprised when you went 10th? leinart: It didn't surprise me after I was sitting there past the third pick, which was Tennessee. I knew then there was a good chance I would fall to Arizona unless some team was going to trade up to get me. You're just waiting for your name to be called. When Arizona called 1 was excited, but I was also bummed because I wanted and expected to go higher. But when I look at the things that Arizona has, like a new stadium and great players, plus being close to home, it is literally the per­fect place to be. Now that I've been here I can say I wouldn't want to be anywhere else in the NFL than with this team.

Q11

playboy: What was the first NFL game you ever attended?

1.EINART: It was a preseason game I actually played in. I'd never seen a game from the stands. My first game was against the New England Patriots, and it was a surreal feel­ing. I remember warming up before the game, and everyone was kind of hanging out with one another. I thought, I've made it. I've got Junior Sean warming up; I've got Tom Brady throwing the ball—along with all these guys I had watched win three Super Bowls. It was incredible. That was a fun experience. And I did pretty well against them, too.

playboy: What kinds ol insults were

thrown at you as a rookie?

LEINART: 1 got a lot of shit talked to me

but not as much as I expected. One of the Detroit Lions talked some smack to me. The Oakland Raiders talked a ton of shit to me. They were kicking my ass the whole game. I was hoping to get out of that game alive, to be honest with you. Warren Sapp is the king of talking. I think some of the guys in Green Bay talked to me. Other than that I had a lot of good things said to me. I remem­ber John Lynch and Champ Bailey and all these guys telling me I was going to be a great pro and to keep my head up. That goes a long way, especially from guys like that.

Q13

P1.AYBOV: You went from a 37-2 record as a starter in college to a 4-7 record starting in the NFL. Was it hard to adjust to losing?

leinart: It was difficult. It really hit me when I started to play. The first four games we were 1-3, and it was dif­ficult, but when you're on the bench you don't feel as much a part of the team. You're not contributing. I was like. Damn, it sucks. But it's different when you're playing. When I got the nod and started playing I went five or six games before 1 won even one. I was pissed, man. I'm a competitive guy. My confidence was low. That's how it goes in the NFL. It's a difficult thing, but we regrouped and played well the last half of the season. I think we went 4-3 in our last seven games.

Q14

PLAYBOY: Arizona Cardinals receiver Anquan Boldin talks a lot on the field. What's he saying?

i.kinarT: Anquan is outspoken. He's probably one of the most competitive guys I've ever been around. He wants to win at everything. If I throw a bad ball or make a bonehead play, he's the one person I do not look at. If I throw a bad ball to him, I'll walk right back to the huddle and not make eye contact, because I know as soon as I do he'll look at me with that glare. He does it even in practice. Afterward I joke with him, but he's just really competitive. You've got to be like that. That's why he's great.

playboy: Your friend Ashton Kutcher is a big Chicago Bears fan. Did you guys talk about your loss to the Bears last season? i.kinart: We talked about it after the game. He was like, "You were just awesome out there." I know he had a tough time because he was sitting in our owner's box. He had a tough time rooting for Chicago in our owner's suite. I went to his and Demi's home in L.A. for the Chicago and Seattle play­off game this year, and he came to my Monday-night game against Chicago. He's a good dude, a guy's guy, and Demi is a classv woman.

Qie

I'I.ayboV: Nick Lachey is another of your good friends. Tell us something we don't know about him. leinart: He's terrible at basketball. 1 played with him a little, just shooting, and he's awful. 1 guess some people may not know that he went to USC for a year or half a year before he left. He tried walking on for the football team as a run­ning back. That's a story. To say the least I don't think it was his thing.

Q17

playboy: We heard a rumor that the wheels were stolen off your car. True or false?

leinart: Twice. The summer before last I came home from practice, and my car was on cement blocks. It was a professional job. It was irritating. The other time was during the season. I live in a nicer neighborhood, so I leave the cars out in the driveway. I prob­ably should have parked in the garage, but I didn't think it was going to hap­pen. I woke up early because we had to be there at six in the morning. I was about three quarters of the way into the car before I even noticed, because I was half asleep. I was so pissed, man. I was like. You gotta be kidding me that people do this for a living.

Q18

playboy: Confess to having a crush on at least one famous woman. leinart: Right now I'd have to say Jen­nifer Aniston. She's beautiful and cool and has been through a lot in her life, especially in recent years. I like the way she carries herself. She's strong. For someone more my age, I'd have to say Gisele Biindchen. I've been a huge fan, but now that she's with Tom Brady it's a little different. I love Scarlett Johans­son. Every guy loves her. There are a lot of beautiful women in Hollywood.

Q19

im.ayhoy: So Scarlett Johansson calls and wants you to go to the beach with her for the day, but you have volun­tary practice. Voluntary practice. What do you do?

leinart: Oh, man, I'd be at practice. Vol­untary means mandatory in the NFL. Trust me on that one.

Q20

P1.AVBOV Okay. Let's say it's just a session of watching film. What would you do? leinart: I'd bring my portable TV, set up a little thing on the beach and watch film with her. To be honest with you, anything to do with football would come before anything else. That's just the way it is, especially for a quarterback.

Read the 21st question at playboy.com/21q.

THE CARDINALS QB HANGS WITH WILL FERRELL, WATCHES SPORTS WITH ASHTON KUTCHER,

TALKS TRASH WITH ANQUAN BOLDIN, SHOOTS HOOPS WITH NICK LACHEY, HAS A CRUSH

ON JENNIFER ANISTON AND STILL HAS TIME FOR FOOTBALL