Leading Off

 

ThreeQuarters
Free-agent signee Anthony Wright (2) sharpened his aim during Bengals trainingcamp last Thursday in Georgetown, Ky., while his fellow quarterbacks waitedtheir turns. Wright and Doug Johnson (11) will hold down the position untilCarson Palmer (9), Cincinnati's franchise QB, recovers fully from off-seasonknee surgery.

BirdWatching
Cardinals fans scoped out practice on Aug. 2 from their shady perches inFlagstaff, Ariz. One player they couldn't find with their binoculars:quarterback Matt Leinart (inset, in April), the team's first-round pick fromUSC, who at week's end had yet to reach a contract agreement with the club.

MistOpportunity
The Ravens got welcome relief during a break at camp last Friday, whentemperatures reached 89° in Westminster, Md. Limbering up for his new role asthe starting quarterback was 33-year-old Steve McNair (inset), who was acquiredby Baltimore in a June trade with the Titans to spark an underachievingoffense.

• For more Leading Off pictures, go to SI.com/photos.

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Photographs by Thomas E. Witte

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Photograph by Robert Beck

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JOHN PYLE/CAL SPORTS MEDIA

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Photographs by Simon Bruty