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EARTH CITY, Mo. -- No matter how many times the question is asked or in how many different ways it's phrased, St. Louis Rams coach Jeff Fisher has never wavered in his response: Shaun Hill is his starting quarterback and Austin Davis is the backup. It goes something like this: “If Shaun is healthy and able to play and not going to subject himself to re-injuring this or making it worse, then Shaun’s our quarterback and Austin’s our backup," Fisher said. "That’s just the way it is.” Well, then what about the possibility for a change of heart after sleeping on it? "I won’t visit with you guys (Tuesday), but I will Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, so you can ask me again, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, if you want," Fisher said. "You’re going to get the same answer.” Once again, Fisher has reiterated that he's never had a quarterback controversy in his many years of coaching and he doesn't plan to start now. Of course, there are a few factors at play here that need to be taken into account. The key word in Fisher's response is "healthy." Hill will start when healthy. In other words, when his injured thigh is healed. That didn't happen last week and there's no guarantee that it will this week. Fisher said Hill probably wouldn't practice Wednesday and might be able to do limited work Thursday. Until he can get back on the field in practice, there's no need to rush Hill back, especially with Davis now having some experience and a good performance as a starter last week under his belt. Until Hill is healthy, there's really not even much reason to discuss a possible quarterback controversy. If Hill is close to healthy but not all the way there, there's no reason for the Rams to even ponder playing him. That's especially true with the bye week coming after this week's game. According to Fisher, the impending bye week could be a part of the decision should Hill be close but not all the way back. “Well it would be a factor," Fisher said. "Again, this is not coach speak, it’s day to day. We’re going to see how he is.” If indeed Hill isn't able to return this week, the Rams would have an additional week to get him healthy to play in Week 5 against Philadelphia. That would serve the purpose of not only allowing Hill to get to 100 percent but give the Rams another opportunity to evaluate Davis. If Davis starts again and struggles, it could remove any lingering outside doubts that Hill should be the guy moving forward. If Davis starts again, plays well and leads the Rams to another win, perhaps Fisher will have to reconsider over the bye. Perhaps he won't. But if that's the case, rest assured, the questions will only continue.
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