Game Day

Question: Is that Jim McMahon playing again for the Bears?

Answer: Don’t let the jersey number and the bad form fool you--that’s Tom Beck.

Beck, who has been working as a residential loan officer in a Greeley, Colo., bank, will wear No. 9 for the Bears as a backup, replacing Moses Moreno, who was put on injured reserve.

“I don’t want to disrespect Jim McMahon,” said Beck, but how could you do that? “I’ll just try to do the best I can with it.”

Beck, a Division II quarterback for Northern Colorado in 1997, was released by the Broncos in training camp after playing for the Scottish Claymores in Europe.

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Q: Now that Charlie Batch is banged up, might we see Scott Mitchell in Detroit?

A: Sure, sitting in the same place on the bench. Mitchell took some snaps with the first team, but Coach Bobby Ross made it clear Frank Reich backs up Batch, and he might start a tackle or cornerback at quarterback before playing Mitchell again.

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Q: Why was it important for Saint defensive end Joe Johnson to make the Pro Bowl team--even as a reserve?

A: His contract called for a $1-million bonus for making the Pro Bowl.

“I can use that extra $1 million,” Johnson said. “. . . I can do a little Christmas shopping.”

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Q: So how much did Minnesota rookie Randy Moss get for making the Pro Bowl?

A: $10,000. It will be a tougher Christmas in the Moss household.

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Q: Why are the Broncos doomed?

A: Super Bowl champions are a collective 27-0 against the Giants. But no team that has lost to the Giants has won the Super Bowl in the same season. Everyone knows that.