Jags Say Brunell Shouldn’t Be Out For Entire Season

Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Mark Brunell likely will miss the first six weeks of the National Football League season with his knee injury, the team said, not the entire year as previously feared.

The 26-year-old Brunell injured his right knee during Saturday night’s game against the New York Giants after he was hit by Giants linebacker Jessie Armstead. Brunell injured the same knee in 1991 during his college career at the University of Washington, and required reconstructive surgery.

Brunell underwent surgery Thursday to determine the extent of the damage, after which doctors found that the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee was mostly intact, and that he could return to play in about eight weeks. If the ligament was damaged more, Brunell could have missed the entire season.

Detmer wins Philly QB job

Ray Rhodes made it official, selecting Ty Detmer as the Philadelphia Eagles starting quarterback for both Saturday’s exhibition game against Baltimore and the season opener against the New York Giants.

The move was not a surprise. Although Rhodes said Detmer and Rodney Peete, who lost the starting job to Detmer last year after sustaining a season-ending knee injury, would compete in training camp, it was believed it was Detmer’s job to lose.

But neither quarterback stood out over the past three weeks, leaving Rhodes to go with “my gut feeling.”

“Both guys were sharp,” he said after practice. “It was not a situation where one guy was so far ahead of the other guy.”

Packers hope Brooks is all the way back

Robert Brooks insists his return to the Green Bay Packers’ lineup only 10 months after shredding his right knee is no big deal.

The Super Bowl champions know better.

His return to pre-injury form - or even close to it - could do wonders for two-time MVP Brett Favre.

Favre no longer has targets Keith Jackson, who’s in the broadcast booth, or Andre Rison, who’s in Kansas City.

Brooks, who had blossomed into one of the NFL’s brightest young stars before his injury, will play flanker Saturday night when the Packers face the Buffalo Bills at SkyDome in Toronto.

The Packers are eager to see if Brooks can be the same player he was before he blew out his right knee against San Francisco Oct. 14.

He missed the Packers’ Super Bowl run and many thought he’d miss all of the 1997 season, too.

Packers trainer Pepper Burruss called Brooks’ comeback “the greatest recovery I’ve ever seen in my 20 years as a trainer.”

His teammates ascribe Brooks’ speedy return to his superior work ethic, which has been compared to Jerry Rice’s acclaimed work habits.

In 1995, Brooks replaced Sterling Sharpe as the Packers’ premier deep threat and caught 102 passes. In the 21 games before he got hurt, he had 17 touchdown receptions and perfected the “Lambeau Leap.”

Elway may play Sunday

The Denver Broncos broke training camp, faced with the question of when quarterback John Elway will return.

Whether Elway will play the remainder of the preseason and in the regular-season opener with the Kansas City Chiefs is the Broncos’ biggest concern.

Elway ruptured a right biceps tendon in Denver’s second exhibition game with Miami, but began throwing last Monday and has progressed enough to warrant speculation he’ll play Sunday at New England.

“John is feeling better, and I am just going to have to wait and see,” coach Mike Shanahan said. “We will find out right before game time..”

Chiefs 30, Panthers 10

Kansas City (1-2) parlayed three field goals and a host of Carolina mistakes into a victory, making the visiting Panthers the first 0-3 team in the exhibition season.

Both teams were without their No. 1 quarterbacks. The Chiefs’ Elvis Grbac missed a second straight start with strained abdominal muscles. The Panthers’ Kerry Collins is sidelined 4-6 weeks with a broken jaw.