Hackett Leaning Toward Starting Fox

An exhilarated John Fox took more than half the snaps with the first team Tuesday, sharing time at quarterback with Mike Van Raaphorst as Coach Paul Hackett leans toward starting Fox against Arizona State.

Hackett said he won’t announce a starter until later in the week, but he is clearly preparing with Fox in mind.

“I can’t sit and make a decision and have it explode. I’ve got to wait and see how the week unfolds,” Hackett said.

Fox, who started at quarterback in 1997 but began this season as a linebacker, was almost giddy afterward.

“I feel like a little kid,” he said, but called his practice “absolutely horrible.”

Hackett wasn’t as harsh in his assessment, saying Fox--who is more mobile than Van Raaphorst and has a stronger but less accurate arm--did some good things and some not so good.

“I think it’s a psychological reaction to getting more reps,” he said, “to think you’ve got to be perfect. It’s exactly the opposite, you’ve got to relax and go play.”

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Receiver R. Jay Soward’s hamstring is much-improved and he had a lively practice and is expected to play, though perhaps not at full speed.

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The current quarterback issue won’t have any bearing on the decision about whether Carson Palmer returns from a broken collarbone this season or redshirts, Hackett said, reiterating that it will be a medical decision.

“The biggest mistake you can make is putting him in the position of damaging his arm,” Hackett said. “What I don’t want to do is put him in a position without proper rehabilitation where he over-corrects and does something to his arm.

“His arm is exactly what we want, it’s why we recruited him. . . . I’m not going to jeopardize that.”

Don’t interpret that to mean Palmer won’t return, though.

“The other feeling is if he can get back quicker, which he’s done before, I’m all for it.”

Hackett seems more willing than before to allow Palmer to return for only two or three games--perhaps because of the way the season has gone but probably mostly because Palmer has made it clear he’s more interested in playing the final games this season than having a fifth year of eligibility.