"The bars around the Cardinals' downtown hotel here are full of musicians playing country songs about lives altered by the decisions of others.

Quarterbacks Matt Leinart and Derek Anderson know something about the issue, too, especially after Thursday, when coach Ken Whisenhunt announced that Anderson was replacing Leinart as the starter in Saturday's preseason game against the Bears in Chicago.

"I don't think we've performed the way we've needed to perform on offense in the preseason," Whisenhunt said after practice at Vanderbilt University. "And we're just looking at different players at different spots, trying to find a little groove. It's a great opportunity to look at combinations of different personnel."

Whisenhunt insisted that Saturday's game is not a "dress rehearsal" for the regular season, even though his players will be dressed and rehearsing.

But the competition at quarterback has obviously tightened, and Whisenhunt is curious about how both players will react in different roles."