Journeyman QB knows he'll be fighting for a spot

Kelly Holcomb is happy in Philadelphia. His oldest daughter is happy in Buffalo.

Neither one figures to be staying in either place much longer.

It's guaranteed that Kellyn Holcomb, 8, is leaving Buffalo as soon as her school year ends.

"My daughter has a best friend in Buffalo, and my wife and kids only have about two weeks left in Buffalo forever," the quarterback said yesterday after the Eagles finished a morning practice at the NovaCare Complex. "When we leave that day, I'm not really looking forward to it."

That's the difficult part of being a journeyman professional athlete, a description that could be accompanied by a photograph of Holcomb. The Eagles are Holcomb's fifth team since he began his NFL career in 1995 as an undrafted free agent with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He was traded to the Eagles, along with linebacker Takeo Spikes, at the end of March for defensive tackle Darwin Walker.

The move to the Eagles was exciting for Holcomb. He had started just 21 games and played in just 34 during his previous 12 seasons.

"I'd like to stay here because we've got a good football team," said Holcomb, who has never played for a team that won a playoff game. "We've got a lot of experienced guys who've been in a lot of big games here, and it's kind of exciting to come to something like that."

That excitement could be short-lived. The quarterback with the least experience on the Eagles' roster will make it unlikely that Holcomb sticks around beyond the preseason. Holcomb, who will turn 34 next month, knew he was in trouble when the Eagles decided to use their first pick of the draft to take the University of Houston's Kevin Kolb.

The initial focus after that pick was on how starter Donovan McNabb viewed the Eagles' selection of his possible replacement. In truth, Holcomb was far more affected. (Backup A.J. Feeley is in the Eagles' mix at quarterback, too.)

"Yes, I've thought about it," Holcomb said when asked about having to join another team if he didn't make the Eagles' roster. "You have to think about it."

He also has thought about what it could mean to his family.

"If there's someplace else for me to go, I'll probably go," he said. "When you can play a kids' game and get paid the kind of wages we get paid, you have to do it. You can't make this kind of wages doing anything else, but I do have to think about my kids. I've moved them around a lot.

"People just see Sundays in this business. They don't see what goes into a move. You have to get kids into a new school; you have to get a new pediatrician. If you stay in this business long enough, you have to do it a bunch."

Despite the difficult situation he's in with the Eagles, Holcomb hasn't filed a single complaint. He has been supportive of Kolb and a complete professional on the field.

"So many things can happen, and they can happen quick," Eagles offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg said. "Kelly is a veteran, and his whole mentality is that he's going to get better every day, and we'll let the chips fall."

Holcomb said that was the only way to approach his situation.

"You can't get caught up in what they're going to do," he said. "I'm going to do everything in my power to be here. I'm going to compete. I've had to compete ever since I've been in the NFL, and this is no different.

"If you go out and play well in the preseason and have a good camp, the coaches are going to say good things about you. And if you're not here, you'll be somewhere else."