Coaching Changes Expected

There has been one coaching change in the NFL this season, but there could be one or two more in the coming weeks. A league source said Monday night that the Cleveland Browns could be close to dismissing Butch Davis as their coach, and New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson perhaps tipped his hand regarding his plans for beleaguered coach Jim Haslett when he assailed his team publicly a loss Sunday to the Denver Broncos.

It appears increasingly likely that Davis and Haslett will be fired immediately after the season at the latest. And, increasingly, there is pressure on owners to act sooner rather than later so that they are not at a disadvantage in the ever-more-competitive job market. The Miami Dolphins, after Dave Wannstedt's resignation as coach, could get the jump in their on teams that know they're going to fire their coach but don't do so until after the season. Formal interviews with coaches from other NFL teams are not permitted, of course, but a club that makes an early decision can put out as many back-channel feelers to coaches as it wants, can have its list of candidates polished and ready to go and can open talks with any out-of-work coaches it pleases.

Browns owner Randy Lerner apparently is growing frustrated with Davis, who strengthened his hold over football-related decisions in an offseason that included the resignation of team president Carmen Policy and the departure of Ron Wolf as a front-office consultant. Lerner reportedly has had at least one verbal confrontation with Davis this season and apparently plans to split the decision-making duties on the football side of the operation between a general manager and coach next season.

There were about 20,000 empty seats by the second half of Sunday's 10-7 home loss to the New York Jets, which dropped the Browns to 3-7 with their fourth straight defeat. At 24-34, they're en route to their third non-playoff season in four years under Davis, and Lerner could have the team finish the season with defensive coordinator Dave Campo, former head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, or offensive coordinator Terry Robiskie, the former interim coach of the Washington Redskins.

Late Monday night, a source familiar with the Browns' situation, speaking on the condition of anonymity because Lerner was not discussing the matter publicly, confirmed an ESPN report that Davis perhaps could be fired next week if the club loses Sunday at Cincinnati. Losses to the Bengals and the New England Patriots the following week almost certainly would seal Davis's fate, said the source, adding that Lerner remains hopeful of a turnaround but has become increasingly resigned to it not happening.

Earlier Monday, Davis said at a news conference: "The only thing I know for certain is to continue to be positive, to continue to teach and encourage the players to improve. Whatever is going to happen is going to happen.''

The Saints are 38-36 under Haslett. They went 10-6 and reached the playoffs in 2000, his first season, but have gone only 28-30 and haven't reached the postseason since. They fell to 4-6 this season with Sunday's 34-13 home loss to Denver, in which they trailed by 20-0 in the first quarter.

After the game Sunday, Benson walked up to a group of reporters and said: "They looked just like high school kids. That's the worst performance I've seen from our club in my 20 years of owning them.''

Haslett said Sunday that Benson could react however he wants, and he repeated that during a news conference Monday that included some testy exchanges with reporters who asked him about his job security and his level of responsibility for Sunday's performance by his team. Haslett dismissed a question from a reporter who said he'd spoken to high school coaches who were offended by Benson's comment.

"You need to talk to Mr. Benson,'' Haslett said. "He is the owner of the football team. He can say and do whatever he wants. He's a great owner. He's a great person. He's an emotional guy. He wants to win like everyone else in this room -- every fan, every coach, every player in this organization. He has the right to say whatever he wants. It's his prerogative, okay, and I'm not going to answer any more questions about it.''

Haslett said his players continue to play hard for him. He pointed out that the Saints remain in playoff contention in the forgiving NFC and said he doesn't know if his job is on the line.

"The head coach usually takes the blame for everything that goes on in the NFL, so I'll leave it at that,'' he said. " . . . Again, I'll say, that's part of the business. It comes with the territory. Everybody who gets in this business knows it's going to happen to you sooner or later. It's like trying to find the fountain of youth. You always try to slow it down or stay away from it. The bottom line is winning football games. . . . We'll play these six and see what happens.''

Henson Likely to Start Thursday

Cowboys Coach Bill Parcells indicated today that rookie quarterback Drew Henson will start Thursday against the Chicago Bears at Texas Stadium unless Vinny Testaverde's ailing shoulder and back improve significantly.

Henson replaced Testaverde late in Sunday's lopsided loss at Baltimore, which dropped the Cowboys to 3-7. Henson is one of the most intriguing prospects in the league. He split time with Tom Brady as a precocious freshman at the University of Michigan, and probably would have been a top overall choice in the NFL draft if he hadn't abandoned football temporarily for an ill-fated pro baseball career. The Cowboys obtained him in an offseason trade with Houston after the Texans selected him in the sixth round of last year's draft.

Parcells, though, made it clear during his news conference Monday that he doesn't agree with observers who say the Cowboys must stop worrying about their dreary present and begin playing for next season and beyond.

"I've never believed in playing for the future,'' Parcells said. "Never one time have I ever believed in that. I believe you worry about this week this week, and you worry about next week next week and next year next year. I've said that 100 times. I don't know too many coaches who don't think that way. I don't know anybody who doesn't think that way. You don't know what's going to happen a year from now or six months from now or two years from now.''

Still, Parcells said it's possible that Henson could be his starter this week. Henson fumbled on his first NFL play Sunday -- he rebounded to complete all six of his passes -- but Parcells said: "I don't think that's any indication of what it's really like.''

The Cowboys would revamp their offense a bit this week if Henson becomes the starter, Parcells said. They would emphasize Henson's mobility and would do their best to keep things simple.

"I don't think there's any question he has a good grasp'' of the Cowboys' offensive system, Parcells said. "Now, being able to execute and do everything well, I don't know that. But understanding, yeah, I think he has a good grasp.''

Parcells said that rookie Julius Jones will remain the team's starter at tailback after running for 81 yards on 30 carries against the Ravens.

"I told him I thought he did a good job of competing and fighting,'' Parcells said. "I never got the sense that he was looking to get out of the game or anything. I was really pleased with him about that. Now, it wasn't perfect. He missed a couple reads. He's got to work on his blocking, too. But he didn't get a whole lot of help [and] I thought he did pretty good. I was pretty pleased with what I saw from Julius.''

That will leave veteran Eddie George, who signed with the Cowboys after being released by the Tennessee Titans in the summer, in a limited role. George's days as a featured runner in the league probably are over, given that he's done little this season to dispel the league-wide notion that he's too old, too slow and too beat up to fill that role any more.

"I'll just probably use him on a part-time basis,'' Parcells said. " . . . I think it's pretty obvious we're going to play Julius some. I don't know whether you have to talk to [George] about it. I think he sees that we're going to play Julius some.'' . . .

Injured Jets quarterback Chad Pennington was cleared by doctors Monday to begin a throwing program Wednesday as he tries to work his way back from a rotator-cuff injury. Pennington plans to return to the lineup between Dec. 5 and Dec. 19, so backup Quincy Carter will make at least two more starts in his place. The Jets have scored three touchdowns in Carter's two starts. They had eight punts and 10 points last weekend in Cleveland. . . .

Quarterback Byron Leftwich is pledging to return to Jacksonville's lineup this week after missing two games because of his injured left knee. But Jaguars Coach Jack Del Rio said during his news briefing Monday that Leftwich's progress during the week will determine whether he plays Sunday at Minnesota. . . .

Dolphins quarterback A.J. Feeley says he will play this week despite a bruised hip. But with backup Jay Fiedler also hurt -- he aggravated a pinched nerve in his neck -- interim coach Jim Bates has told third-stringer Sage Rosenfels to be ready if needed. . . . Feeley has thrown four interceptions that have been returned for touchdowns this season, including the one that lost Sunday's game to Seattle. . . .

The Seahawks aren't certain if quarterback Matt Hasselbeck will return to their lineup this week. He missed Sunday's win over Miami because of a deep thigh bruise and was replaced by Trent Dilfer. . . .

Seattle wide receiver Koren Robinson was benched for the Dolphins game by Coach Mike Holmgren for violating an unspecified team rule, and now begins a four-game suspension by the NFL for violating the league's substance-abuse policy. But in his news conference Monday, Holmgren sounded as if he will welcome back Robinson when the wideout is eligible to play again.

"I love the guy,'' Holmgren said. "I guess I've got a weakness for him or something. . . . It's very disappointing to see potential -- I guess I see wonderful potential -- lost like that. Is he going to rebound off this? Yes. Are other players? Certainly. But this is missed time. Now, you just want the lights to go on for some of these young guys [and] have them understand how fortunate they are to be doing what they're doing. I'm hopeful that will be the case in this instance.'' . . .

Seahawks linebacker Chad Brown underwent arthroscopic knee surgery Monday and could be sidelined as long as six weeks, but the club plans to keep him on the active roster in anticipation of him playing again this season. Brown missed the first six games of the season because of a broken leg. . . .

The Browns are calling quarterback Jeff Garcia's status day-to-day this week because of a strained rotator cuff. Davis has left open the possibility that rookie Luke McCown, not Kelly Holcomb, could play if Garcia is sidelined.

Moss Tests Hamstring

Vikings wide receiver Randy Moss tested his partially torn hamstring with a workout Monday, and Coach Mike Tice said he hopes to have Moss back in the lineup Sunday. Moss has missed three games entirely after sitting out most of two others. The Vikings have gone 2-3 in those games.

"He looked extremely good'' during Monday's workout, Tice said during his news briefing. "One hundred percent? No. But he did really well. The key is to see how he comes in [this] morning because we pushed him pretty hard [Monday]. . . . We'll continue to list him as doubtful for now, and hopefully as the week progresses we'll be able to fix that and turn it into questionable, probable. We'll see. . . . The strength is excellent. I think the endurance is the key.'' . . .

Pittsburgh is readying Antwaan Randle El to make his first NFL start at wide receiver if Plaxico Burress is sidelined by a strained hamstring. Burress underwent an MRI exam Monday. . . .

Philadelphia left guard Artis Hicks probably will miss a game or two because of a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee. He would be replaced by Steve Sciullo. . . .

Indianapolis rookie safety Bob Sanders is to miss three to six weeks because of a sprained MCL in his right knee. He will be replaced beginning Thursday at Detroit by former starter Mike Doss. . . .

Tennessee lost two defensive backs for the remainder of the season -- cornerback Andre Woolfolk because of a dislocated wrist and safety Justin Sandy because of a fractured ankle. . . .

The Patriots have scored first in each of their last 15 games, including Monday night's 27-19 triumph at Kansas City. . . . AFC teams have won 27 of 44 intra-conference games against NFC foes this season.