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[Shane]

My concern about Brunell going into the season was that I wasn't sure he wanted to win enough to be the guy we could hang our hat on for at least this season. I do believe however that he is "fighting his guts out" and that he is potentially still an excellent quarterback. I really doubt that injuries have permanently disabled his capacity to play with real effectiveness.

There is also a lot of talk about his arm strength, and I really think that it's baloney. Troy Aikman and Rod Gardner agree and I am sure Joe Gibbs as well that Mark can throw the hose. I am not impressed with these unnamed sources of Wilbon.

The offense has been struggling for a host of reasons, yet people seem to want to boil it down to one variable, the chosen scapegoat of the moment, Mark Brunell. All the other factors - the line, the running game, the receivers and the strategy - all of that is generally ignored. Right now Brunell is in there at an unfortunate time and it taking the criticism.

With the Chicago game, the Gibbs and the staff demonstrated, as I knew they would, a new strategy that has dramatically opened up the running game. With Brunell having more time to get healthy with the bye week, and other teams now unable to put so many players in the box, our passing game will likely begin to open up.

We will see, however. If it does come down to it, Joe Gibbs will make a change at quarterback if it appears that Brunell is no longer our best option.

If Gibbs had gone with Ramsey from the beginning this year he would have been traumatized. He is not developmentally ready to be the starter in my opinion and his career would have been badly damaged.

I do agree with Wilbon on one thing however, and that is that Ramsey is not the person I would turn to if I were to change quarterbacks. Hasselbeck has a lot of life, leadership and spark, and one day he will get his chance. I don't know how he will do, but he does deserve a very serious opportunity at some point to show whether he can realize his potential.