NEW YORK -- Is durability, at least in part, a learnable skill?

I believe it is.

There is a ton of bad luck involved in getting hurt. But a lot of the NFL’s best players are very durable, and that durability is a result, in part, of their ability to anticipate and avoid situations that could get them hurt.

Thursday I had a chance to ask Colts backup quarterback Matt Hasselbeck about it as it pertains to his friend and former Tennessee Titans teammate, Jake Locker.

“I just remember leaving Green Bay, Brett Favre never missed a game and he played hurt all the time and I used to sit there as his backup and say, ‘I can do this, I can do this, I can do this,’” Hasselbeck said. “And then that first year in Seattle, I got hurt right away, came back, got hurt again, got hurt again. And that was the thing people said about me and it annoyed me to no end.

“It was just something I had to deal with. They didn’t shut up until I did something about it and started all 16 or at that point was healthy enough to start all 16 and they chose not to play me sometimes.

“I don’t know [about durability as a skill]. I don’t have a great answer for that. I know that something Jake faces. Everyone has to answer a question, whether it’s Tony Romo or Mike Vick. Each guy will get a question he has to answer. And right now it’s one he has to answer. I feel bad for him, but it’s part of the job.”