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TEMPE, Ariz. -- A few minutes after Phil Dawson missed a potential game-winning field goal against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 4, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Josh Rosen found Dawson and did his best to console the second-oldest player in the league. "He had some very encouraging words," Dawson said. While the words were a nice gesture from Rosen, Dawson was more impressed that Rosen, a 21-year-old rookie, had the wherewithal to go out of his way to talk to the 43-year-old kicker. In 20 seasons, Dawson doesn't remember another quarterback doing anything like that in a similar situation. "That's pretty significant," Dawson said. "But especially when you consider that it's a rookie quarterback making his first start with obviously a lot of issues on his plate, and for him to take time while processing his first game and a tough loss and all that kind of stuff, to go out of his way to encourage a teammate, especially one in my shoes, I think that speaks a lot for his leadership and just the character of the guy." That's just who Rosen is. The Cardinals knew what they were getting from Rosen, the quarterback. Throughout the past five months, since he was drafted by Arizona 10th overall, Rosen has shown the Cardinals what kind of person they got. It hasn't been the brash, outspoken, opinionated player who made a name for himself because of all those traits in college. "He's a delightful person to be around," wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald said. "Anybody that spends any time with him, he's got a vast array of interests, and he's a very, very interesting person. I've enjoyed my time getting to know him."  Fitzgerald isn't the only one. Rosen has endeared himself to his teammates because of who he is.
"He's himself," tight end Jermaine Gresham said. "He's a good guy to be around," said right guard Justin Pugh, who added that Rosen likes to joke with his teammates. How does that play in the locker room? "Very well," Gresham said. "He's very confident in himself. And he doesn't have to be anything but himself. He's been himself the whole time he's been here. He's been himself the whole time in life, so it shouldn't be too hard. "I think the transition for him is going to be fairly easy." Wide receiver Chad Williams feels like he has known Rosen for much longer than the five months since they became teammates. "I feel like I've known him half my life, almost," Williams said. "He's like a brother. Just because of how easy he is and the bond we made when we got on the team. When I talk to him, it's not awkward. He's real good as a teammate." Establishing that quick -- and that strong -- of a relationship with a teammate hasn't happened often for the second-year Williams. Williams couldn't figure out exactly why the two have such a connection. "I don't know," he said. "Just probably how down to earth he is. He's a cool guy. He'll sit down and talk to you. He's not weird." It isn't just new teammates who are still getting to know him who already like Rosen. Wide receiver Christian Kirk, who has known Rosen since both were in high school, called Rosen "different." "He's one of a kind," Kirk said. Then Kirk added: "Josh is just unique in the way he carries himself, confidence-wise and just his approach." Kirk, who is used to Rosen after years of friendship, said his new teammates "love" Rosen's uniqueness. They also appreciate how Rosen has been figuring out his role slowly. "He's still learning his way," Pugh said. "He's young. He doesn't know how everything works just yet, but he's figuring it out." As he has done so, Rosen has developed into a natural leader. Fitzgerald said Rosen took a leadership role "a long time ago," before he was named a starter in Week 4. "This is his team," Fitzgerald said. "He'll be the guy here for the next 10-plus years, God willing. I love the way he's kind of taken the reins, is vocal, lets people know exactly what he wants. He wants the best out of everybody." Rosen doesn't just talk the talk of a leader. He walks it, too. Rosen has hosted a few of his rookie teammates to watch film at his apartment, and he has taken over as the leader of weekly film study on Fridays with the entire offense. It was something Sam Bradford started and Rosen continued, much to his teammates' appreciation. Those sessions have helped Rosen and his teammates quickly get on the same page. "He's learning," Pugh said. "He's getting better and better. It's a group effort. We all want to be successful, so we try to help him and show him what we see. He tells us what he's thinking. It's a collaborative thing, but he's obviously the quarterback. He's the one correcting. At the end of the day, what he says, we got to follow. We got to do a good job of getting us all on the same page." Pugh has watched Rosen lean on both Bradford and Mike Glennon to help him figure out how to be an NFL quarterback. Pugh is confident that Rosen will not just keep getting better and more mature with each passing day, but he'll also figure out how to handle, well, everything. It's important for a rookie to take the early days of his career step-by-step. "I think that's the way to do it," Pugh said. "If you want to be a leader, you have to lead by example first and work hard and show everyone you're going to do it the right way. And then people start to follow you. "And then the personality, you got to be who you are. You got to bring who you are to the table. That's part of the reason why we drafted him. So I'm excited for him. "He's getting a chance to showcase that a little bit more. Now you're in the starting role, you have a little bit more pressure, but that also means you can be a little more out there, a little more open about how you feel and what you're seeing or doing. So it'll be fun for him."
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