The Oakland Raiders may be in the market for a Heisman Trophy-winning USC quarterback to back up their starter, another Heisman Trophy-winning USC quarterback.
Matt Leinart, who was cut by the Texans last week, is a likely target for the Raiders as they look for a backup to Carson Palmer, Bill Williamson of ESPN.com reports.
The Raiders aren’t expected to re-sign free agent Kyle Boller, and Jason Campbell has already signed with the Bears, so Oakland needs a backup to Palmer. Terrelle Pryor is on the roster, but he’s more suited to spot duty as a change of pace who can threaten teams with his arm and his feet than he is as a backup who could run the offense if Palmer went down.
Leinart is a pocket passer from the same mold as Palmer, so in that respect he makes sense as a backup to Palmer, although Leinart has been a disappointment in the NFL. It’s also noteworthy that in the days since the Texans released Leinart, there have been no reports linking Leinart to the Seahawks and his old college coach Pete Carroll. Carroll knows Leinart as well as any NFL coach, and the Seahawks are in the quarterback market, so if Carroll is not interested, that’s not a great sign.
Still, the Raiders will sign someone to back Palmer up. Leinart may be the best bet.