PRO FOOTBALL / DAILY REPORT : AROUND THE NFL : Vikings Go Back to Starting Gannon

The Minnesota Vikings are back to where they started. Monday, they benched Sean Salisbury in favor of Rich Gannon, who reclaimed the position he lost to Salisbury two weeks ago.

“It’s the quarterback’s job, after we get to a certain point, to get us to (a championship) level by making plays,” offensive coordinator Jack Burns said. “When the game’s on the line, it’s those four or five plays, on third down or in crucial situations, that he has to rise up and make.

“We can sit around here and be average for years, if that’s what we want. For us to get to the championship level, we have to make tough decisions and do what we think is best.” And what’s best, he said, is to start Gannon Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers.

“What’s the reason? We think he gives us the best probability of winning,” Burns said.

Coach Dennis Green said Salisbury played “OK” in Sunday’s 28-17 loss at Philadelphia. OK, he said, is not good enough for a team that is 9-4, has three tough opponents left and has yet to clinch a playoff spot. “Our expectations are very high,” Green said. “We do not hesitate to do what we think is necessary for us to win. And that means if you’ve got to go with a (different) quarterback every other game, we’ll do it. We want some guy to take charge.”

Salisbury did not take news of his benching well. “I’m irritated,” he said. “If you’re asking me if I still think I should be starting, the answer is: ‘Yes!’ But I’ll be supportive, like I always am.”

Sunday, Salisbury said he had faith that Green wouldn’t bench him because of an interception. Asked Monday if his faith was tested, Salisbury said: “Not at all. He’s the best coach I’ve ever played for. He’s the greatest. But I don’t like this decision.”

Gannon, meanwhile, doesn’t think he should have been benched in the first place. Monday, he spoke to the media for the first time since he had been replaced and said he learned nothing from not playing. “I don’t have all the answers. I don’t understand how it all works,” he said. “When you come this far in your career and the team does well and you have to watch from the bench, it’s not a good feeling.”

Neil O’Donnell, Pittsburgh Steeler quarterback, may miss two games because of a cracked fibula in his right leg.

The Steelers gave no medical update, saying only that O’Donnell is out indefinitely.

But Coach Bill Cowher said that since the break was in a non-weight bearing bone, O’Donnell might return for the Steelers’ Dec. 27 home game against Cleveland. Initial speculation among O’Donnell’s teammates Sunday was that he would be sidelined at least until the playoffs.

Bubby Brister will start for the Steelers on Sunday in Chicago and Dec. 20 at home against Minnesota. Rick Strom is his backup.

Jack Kent Cooke, owner of the Washington Redskins, reached agreement with the District of Columbia government to build a new stadium adjacent to RFK Stadium, team’s existing home.

The deal calls for the city to lease the stadium site to the team for a dollar a year for 30 years. After that, the facility will be donated to the district and the team will be given 12, five-year options to rent the stadium and parking facility according to a fixed payment schedule.

Cooke, for whom the stadium will be named, will pay for construction and own the 78,600-seat facility and receive all revenues derived from its operation.