LOS ANGELES (AP) -Matt Leinart has perfected new skills that may turn out to be a lifesaver on the football field – or anywhere else.
The Arizona Cardinals’ quarterback, hoping to raise awareness of how American Red Cross training can save lives, demonstrated CPR and the use of a defibrillator on a training dummy.
Saying he felt it was important for him to be certified since he is “a father and a teammate,” Leinart added: “You never know when it can happen. In football, we’ve had people pass away from heatstroke or whatever, and maybe it was because there was no one to get there soon enough.
“God forbid something would happen on the football field or wherever it is. But if it does, I’m prepared.”
Leinart spoke at a news conference Monday about the obvious importance of being trained in CPR and AED (automated external defibrillator) and afterward talked about his injury-shortened 2007 campaign with the Cardinals and the upcoming season.
He pointed out that Indianapolis quarterback Peyton Manning, among other athletes, is involved in raising awareness of Red Cross training.
“If we can get our message across, help get people to learn how to do this, then we’re doing our part,” Leinart said. “I encourage football people to learn it. I encourage a mom at home to learn it.”
Emergency medical technician Jeff Broadston told how he and his EMT partner used a defibrillator to revive a man who had a heart attack at a recent Anaheim Ducks game in Anaheim.
“When we got to him, he was clinically dead,” Broadston said. “When he left us, he was talking. That’s the best feeling in the world.”
The left-handed Leinart, a former Heisman winner at USC who was in his second NFL season, fractured his left collarbone when he was sacked on Oct. 7 and missed the rest of the season.
“I’d never had to deal with a serious injury as far as football goes. It was difficult, it was tough,” he said. “But as I was kind of accepting what had happened, I took advantage of that time and really prepared myself for the future – which is now.
“I learned from Kurt Warner, I learned from the coaches and I just studied extremely hard to prepare myself. It’s amazing how much you can learn from watching film two or three hours a day.”
Leinart had replaced Warner as a rookie five games into the 2006 season, then Warner took over again when Leinart went down last season.
Leinart said playing at USC was great preparation for the pros, but “The NFL is a whole different game.”
“Guys are bigger and faster, defenses are more complicated,” he said. “You put in double, triple the time in the NFL game than in college. In the pros, you have to do that to be successful. And even after that, you still may not be successful.”
Leinart firmly believes he and the Cardinals can be successful.
“We’re not anywhere close to where we want to be, but we’re moving in the right direction and last year was a confidence-builder for us,” he said. “I’m really excited about being a part of the football team in Arizona.
“We’ve got a special thing going, and I just can’t wait to get started.”
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