Kurt Warner has a lot of swelling in his injured left elbow, but he practiced a little Wednesday and may have a chance to play. He has torn ligaments in his left elbow, so he tried out different braces and wraps to see what felt more comfortable in trying to make handoffs. It would be the running plays that would give him more problems than the passing plays, which is why it is more likely Tim Rattay would start. Warner has no problem throwing. The injury is to his non-throwing elbow. But the potential for fumbles and further injury would be present if he tried a lot of handoffs. Don't count him out completely, though. If he doesn't start, he could be active and maybe work some no-huddle -- which wouldn't require him to make many handoffs. The Cardinals have a bye week after Sunday's game against the Giants, which would give him enough time to work through the left elbow problems and regain the starting job.
New direction: Bobby Petrino needed a spark and some leadership in the Falcons offense, so it was a natural move to go to Byron Leftwich as the starter. Joey Harrington may have been completing a high percentage of his passes, but he was doing nothing with the offense. The Falcons had only six offensive touchdowns in 68 possessions and were averaging only 13.2 points a game. A high completion percentage and only 5.81 yards an attempt does little for an offense. Leftwich is a much better leader than Harrington and he could rally the offense. The only problem is how long he can last before he gets an injury. He's already hurt his ankle last week in practice, and he's playing behind an offensive line that lost both starting tackles to injuries. Leftwich isn't mobile and has a history of getting hurt. Taking the starting job with those tackles and that tender ankle could be a little risky, but Petrino had to do something to inspire his team.
On the comeback trail: Priest Holmes will be comfortable with his role if the Chiefs activate him off the physically unable to perform list this week. He only figures to get a handful of carries a game because Larry Johnson is the team's workhorse back. Holmes sounds as though he's going to make the most out of any chance he has on the field. There is a decent chance Holmes could be in uniform this weekend.
Last chance to shine? Marv Lewis is giving left tackle Levi Jones one more chance to keep his starting job. Jones was benched after he gave up 2½ sacks to Chiefs defensive end Jared Allen early in the loss to the Chiefs. Lewis is staying with Jones' talent even though he's had a horrible season. Maybe the Bengals underestimated the loss of guard Eric Steinbach to the Browns. Steinbach worked well with Jones for years. The Seahawks experienced similar problems last year after losing Steve Hutchinson to the Vikings.
The other interesting move out of Cincinnati was Lewis' decision to make Robert Geathers a linebacker. Geathers is the Bengals best pass rusher and is always a threat at defensive end. The injuries at the linebacker position forced Geathers to play strongside linebacker as an emergency move. Lewis needed more athleticism at linebacker, and he's hoping to get that with Geathers.
Easy schedule ahead for Hawks? Despite their horrible showing against the Saints Sunday night, the Seahawks still have a great chance to make a playoff run. The reason is the schedule. They have the easiest closing schedule in football, in their final 10 games facing teams with combined a 21-37 record, a .362 winning percentage. The next easiest is the Cardinals at .382. Both teams are tied for the NFC West lead although the Cardinals temporarily hold the tiebreaker because of their home win over the Seahawks. The Seahawks have the best chance to finish with the easiest schedule in the NFL, which usually results in a trip to the playoffs.
Touch and go: It looks like Thursday will be a big day in determining if Alex Smith will be ready to start Sunday against the Giants. Smith has a third degree right-shoulder separation. His forearm bothered him on Monday, so Smith was limited Wednesday to doing some individual drills. He wants to do more on Thursday. If he can't go, Trent Dilfer will start against the Giants.
Holding steady: Koren Robinson said during a conference call Wednesday night that he wasn't nervous Sunday when he met commissioner Roger Goodell Sunday at the Cardinals game. Robinson was in Phoenix training. Goodell was visiting the Phoenix area as it was preparing for the Super Bowl. They got together and had a good meeting. Robinson was then officially reinstated from a one-year suspension. "I felt like I put my best foot forward," Robinson said of his meeting with the commissioner. Robinson is tending to some family business over the next couple of days before reporting to the Packers, who have been given a roster exemption before putting him on the active roster.