One way or the other, Philadelphia Eagles coach Andy Reid will face a quarterback dilemma in the coming weeks.
Dilemma No. 1: If Donovan McNabb doesn't recover sufficiently from a fractured right fibula, the Eagles could go into the playoffs with former third-team quarterback A.J. Feeley running the offense. Even though Feeley has done surprisingly well - so well, Reid is keeping backup Koy Detmer in a reserve role - he might not be prepared for postseason pressure. It's a different animal.
Dilemma No. 2: If McNabb does return for a second-round playoff game - assuming the Eagles get home-field advantage - he might have a hard time scraping seven weeks of rust from his game. At that point, does Reid insert McNabb, rough edges and all, or turn to Feeley, his hot quarterback, or even Detmer, who played wonderfully in his only start before dislocating his left elbow?
Reid has insisted for weeks that a starter doesn't lose his job to injury with the Eagles. Still, Reid started Feeley last week against the Washington Redskins and last night against the Dallas Cowboys, even though Detmer was healthy enough to serve as the No. 2 quarterback in both games.
All of which illustrates the latest trend in quarterback injuries. Coaches increasingly are tempted to stay with the hot hand over the returning starter. New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick was rewarded with a Super Bowl victory a year ago when he opted for Tom Brady over Drew Bledsoe.
There is a lesson there, too. If St. Louis coach Mike Martz wasn't blindly loyal to Kurt Warner this season, the Rams might have remained in the NFC playoff race. Unheralded third-teamer Marc Bulger got the Rams back into it, but Warner took them out by losing his first two starts after breaking a finger.
And if Pittsburgh coach Bill Cowher had stayed with backup Kordell Stewart for a third week instead of rushing Tommy Maddox back from a serious concussion, the Steelers probably don't lose to the Houston Texans and would have the AFC North title wrapped up.
Changing quarterbacks is always risky business in the NFL. Coaches have to consider the dynamics involved and, borrowing their clichM-i, make the decision that gives them the best chance to win that week. Especially this time of season.
A Favre farewell?
Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre might be leaving the NFL sooner than anyone suspected, even though he has hinted at retirement in recent months. Favre's home on the southwest side of Green Bay has been on the market for the past few months. The asking price for the two-story brick house is $1.385 million.
Favre plans to buy a townhouse in the Green Bay area for next year, but a Super Bowl title might satisfy him enough to retire.
Hasselbeck on target
If Mike Holmgren returns for a fifth year as coach of the Seattle Seahawks, he would have a hard time turning his offense over to quarterback Trent Dilfer again. The Seahawks averaged 307 yards of offense in Dilfer's six starts (2-4), but 401 in its past seven games under Matt Hasselbeck, who is 3-4 during that stretch, 3-5 overall this season.
Why the startling difference? Dilfer's pass protection was terrible before he tore an Achilles' tendon. Hasselbeck (63.2 percent completions) is a much more accurate passer than Dilfer (56.0). And Holmgren opened up the offense since getting veteran right tackle Chris Terry in November.
Hasselbeck, who lost his job after last season, has thrown for at least 260 yards in five of his past seven games. He has also thrown nine touchdown passes in the past four.
Feely better on road
Atlanta kicker Jay Feely probably won't mind the road trip if the Falcons secure a wild-card berth in the NFC. That's because he's much more accurate on the road.
In nearly two seasons, Feely has hit just 29 of 41 field-goal tries at the Georgia Dome, but he is 24 for 27 on the road. All three road misses were blocks. If he had hit a 46-yard attempt at home against the Chicago Bears in Week 2 and a 36-yarder last week in overtime at home against Seattle, the Falcons would be 10-3-1.
Scattershooting
A private jet belonging to Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay was spotted at Van Nuys Airport last weekend, fueling speculation the Colts are Los Angeles-bound if they don't get an additional $10 million a year from the city of Indianapolis. Sound familiar? ... The Cincinnati Bengals and the NFL are denying it, but the Philadelphia Daily News reports that commissioner Paul Tagliabue has spoken to team president Mike Brown about adding a general manager to his family-filled front office. ... Think the Eagles aren't eager to get out of Veterans Stadium? They declined to hold a ceremony for the final regular-season game there last week, and afterward owner Jeff Lurie trashed the stadium, saying, "It's nice to be able to say that it's the last regular-season game at the dump." ... One day after the Rams beat the Arizona Cardinals on a 26-yard field goal by Jeff Wilkins, Martz apologized for his harsh criticism of the kicker the week before. "I had no business calling him out in the paper," Martz said.
It has been 15 years since either the NFC or AFC failed to qualify any team for the playoffs with two weeks to go, as happened this year in the AFC. It has happened only six times since 1978, and each time it was the AFC. The playoff scenarios are so crazy, the league sent out two revisions to the list last week. ... Denver Broncos coach Mike Shanahan says Oakland Raiders quarterback Rich Gannon deserves to be the league's Most Valuable Player this season. "The most growth I've ever seen in one player is him over the last few years, just an unbelievable feel for what's going on," Shanahan said. The Broncos were interested in signing Gannon in 1999 when John Elway was considering retirement. By the time Elway made it official, Gannon went to the Raiders. ... The Kansas City Chiefs are the only team in the league not to allow a kick or defensive return for a touchdown. That they're 7-7 says a lot about their wretched defense. ... Falcons quarterback Michael Vick's jersey was the No. 1 seller in the league through November. How much excitement has Vick created in Atlanta? After selling out just two games the previous two seasons, the Falcons sold out every game this year.
Compiled from interviews, wire services and reports from other newspapers.