Arizona rookie quarterback Matt Leinart stayed out of the sun Monday, as did veteran counterpart Tom Brady, who was mysteriously absent from workouts with the New England Patriots.

Leinart missed the first day of practice while contract negotiations went on between the Cardinals and representatives of the first-round pick.

Brady, a two-time Super Bowl MVP, missed his third straight practice, but Patriots coach Bill Belichick didn’t say why his quarterback wasn’t on the field.

“Guys that aren’t out here, it’s either because of their practice routine or they are day to day,” he said.

It was unclear which reason applied to Brady, who participated in all four practices on Friday and Saturday, the first two days of camp. He missed Sunday’s single session and both of Monday’s practices.

Arizona appeared close to a deal with Leinart when his agent, Tom Condon, came to Phoenix on Friday to meet with club officials. But Condon left after the sides didn’t meet Sunday.

“We want to get Matt in as quickly as possible,” Condon said. “We’re anxious to see him on the field.”

Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush, Leinart’s teammate at Southern California, showed up at the Saints’ training camp in Jackson, Miss. He is expected to practice today after undergoing a conditioning test.

Bush didn’t expect his contract to get done quite so soon.

Reggie Bush arrives at the Jackson-Evers International Airport in Jackson, Miss., on his way to the New Orleans Saints' training camp. Bush made it to camp Monday and is expected to practice today.

“You never know when it’s going to happen. It’s like waiting to be called into the army,” Bush said. “I’m just glad to finally be here. It’s a business, but I knew we’d get it done soon. I’m ready to go.”

As temperatures soared Monday during another sweltering heat wave around the country, some NFL teams were taking steps to make things easier on their players.

The Chicago Bears scheduled only one practice on Monday and today and moved the starting time to 7 p.m., thus avoiding mid-90s heat and sweltering humidity in Bourbonnais, Ill. The players might get a break on Wednesday, too, as that practice could be pushed back.

“I’m sure they probably were glad to get out of that heat a little bit,” Bears coach Lovie Smith said. “We would like to get a good practice no matter what, and the best way to do that is for the players not to have to deal with the heat.”

Some already have suffered. Defensive tackle Tommie Harris, rookie return man Devin Hester and rookie defensive tackle Dusty Dvoracek missed time because of heat exhaustion symptoms in the last couple of days.

As a precaution, the Bears have also given a handful of veteran players such as Brian Urlacher, Mike Brown and Brian Griese one morning practice off.

The heat also caused some problems at the Indianapolis Colts’ first practice.

Linebacker Keith O’Neil, a four-year veteran, spent about 25 minutes in a cooling tent, then left practice before the Colts finished their final drill. Colts coach Tony Dungy said O’Neil probably would have returned if the practice lasted longer.

The Titans pushed their afternoon practice back four hours so it could be held under the lights. A heat advisory issued for much of Tennessee was set to expire by then.

Falcons

Wide receiver Brian Finneran is out for the season after tearing up his left knee in practice.

Finneran, one of quarterback Michael Vick’s favorite targets, went down during a workout Sunday night as he practiced a one-on-one drill with rookie cornerback Jimmy Williams. An MRI confirmed that Finneran tore the anterior cruciate ligament, in addition to sustaining cartilage damage and a slight displacement of the knee cap. He will undergo surgery later this week.

The Falcons placed Finneran on injured reserve and signed long snapper Boone Stutz, who was cut by Tampa Bay a couple of weeks ago.

Browns

Cornerback Daylon McCutcheon and right offensive tackle Ryan Tucker, two of Cleveland’s steadiest players the past few seasons, will both undergo knee surgery in hopes of being ready for the season opener.

McCutcheon, the only player left from the club’s 1999 draft class, will have arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Wednesday. Tucker, too, will have a procedure to clean up torn cartilage in his left knee.

The operations come less than a week after center LeCharles Bentley suffered a season-ending knee injury in practice.

Giants

Three-time Pro Bowl tight end Jeremy Shockey was dazed after a collision with safety Will Demps late in the evening practice. Shockey was reaching for a pass by Eli Manning during a two-minute drill when Demps appeared to hit him in the helmet. A stunned Shockey fell to the grass and stayed down for about a minute. He returned to the huddle and ran the final two plays of the practice, but he slammed his helmet to the ground after the last play.

Rams

A four-day training camp holdout earned Tye Hill extra scrutiny on his first day of practice. Instead of easing their first-round pick into the mix Monday, Hill was given plenty of action with the second unit at cornerback. He also saw time as a gunner on special teams, and tried, unsuccessfully, to cover Torry Holt.

Bills

Rookie safety Donte Whitner believes he’s close to signing with the Buffalo Bills. The team is not so sure.

“I was a little more encouraged a couple of days ago than I am now,” Bills general manager Marv Levy said Monday.

Colts

Indianapolis put Pro Bowl safety Bob Sanders on the physically unable to perform list. Sanders had offseason surgery to repair his left shoulder and said Sunday he didn’t expect to practice for a couple of weeks.

The Colts also put their second-round pick, cornerback Tim Jennings, on the PUP list.

Titans

Tennessee released running back Damien Nash, finally losing patience with their fifth-round draft pick of 2005. Titans coaches said he was out of shape and about 10 pounds over the weight they required for camp.

Jaguars

Defensive end Paul Spicer signed a new three-year contract. Terms were not announced. Spicer had two years remaining on his original four-year contract, but opted for a deal that extended his contract through the 2008 season.