Dan vs. Dave.

Tonya vs. Nancy.

Brooklyn Dodgers vs. New York Yankees.

Joey vs. David.

OK, maybe the last one isn't quite a heated rivalry like the first three, but NFL sentiment seems to rip straight down the middle. Everyone inside the league seems to have an opinion on which quarterback the Houston Texans should take with the first pick in April's draft.

Joey Harrington has all the qualities teams are looking for in a QB.(AP)

The mature family man from Fresno State, David Carr? Or, gritty, tough, swaggering Joey Harrington of Oregon and midtown Manhattan fame?

Tough question, although it seems the Texans don't seem to believe so. In fact, Texans coaches have told some free agents who have recently visited the team that Carr will be their pick when Commissioner Tagliabue approaches the podium to announce the expansion franchise's inaugural selection.

While the team's general manager, Charley Casserly, insists he is not yet showing his hand, he's not putting forth much of a poker face, either ... or is he?

"Carr, in his system, was asked to throw the ball more and relied more upon his pure arm strength," said Casserly when asked to compare the draft's top two quarterback prospects. "It was more of a big-play type of system. With Harrington, you have more movement involved with their offense and (Oregon) threw the ball shorter more often.

"I think the off-the-field stuff is very similar -- they both possess very good intangibles, they both study hard and love the game of football. I think any team who gets any one them would love to have them."

While Casserly's Texans appear to be set (they even recently met with a member of Carr's agent team to discuss parameters of a deal), the rest of the league is not. In fact, it's completely split. Half for one, half for the other -- a resounding rebound for the Oregon product.

"I like them both but if we had to chose one, we'd take Harrington because he played a little bigger in bigger games," said one NFC personnel director. "He doesn't have the arm Carr has, but we think what Harrington did on the field, what he's shown under a stronger microscope, outweighs that. Harrington is probably closer to playing on this level.

"I'm surprised that Houston seems to have their mind made up already. That's what some teams do, they get married to one guy early, and then it's too late to pull out. That's what happened with (Ryan) Leaf and San Diego, they just had to go get him at one point. I'm not saying Houston should pull off of him but if it was my pick, right now, I like Harrington. That may change a bunch of times between now and April 20, though."

Many teams have the two rated a little too close to call. Of the eight general managers, head coaches and personnel men polled for the story, four went with Carr and four went with his Oregon counterpart.

Carr was the clear choice during much of the season and then following a stellar Senior Bowl week. But Harrington went into the massive job interview at last month's NFL Scouting Combine and blew the competition out of the Dome.

"I love Harrington's moxie, especially considering how much attention the school put on him before the season," said another NFC scouting director, referring to the giant billboard placed across the street from New York's Madison Square Garden. "They touted him for the Heisman on that billboard in the busiest city in the country, and yet he stepped up and delivered. Do you have any idea how hard that is? Most kids probably would have folded under such pressure and scrutiny, but it never affected him. That has really impressed us."

Some teams can't even agree on which player's college system provided better preparation for the next level. While Casserly asserts that Fresno State asked Carr to do much more than Oregon required of Harrington, others say Carr's numbers were padded by short screens and more four- and five-receiver sets. Oddly, others believe Harrington's numbers were padded by receivers' yards gained after the catch.

One of the major issues that has allowed for a closing of the gap between the pair involves the difference in the two quarterbacks' deliveries. While some point to Carr's three-quarter delivery as much less favorable than Harrington's over-the-top release, others don't buy into it.

"I think people are concerned with Carr's low release, but I don't think it affects his ability to throw the ball accurately," said Giants coach Jim Fassel, a former quarterback who has been revered for his work with the position during his career. "In fact, a guy with a lower release has a little quicker release. I really, really like this kid. I think he can carry the ball better in his drops and has a little more fluidity. I think he'll be a big-time player.

Not everyone agrees with Fassel's assessment of the awkward delivery.

"I know some people don't have a problem with it, but we do and that's one of the reasons we have Harrington ahead of him," said one head coach who wished to remain anonymous. "It doesn't matter so much to us because we're not in the market for one of those guys, but if we had to chose, Harrington is the guy we have ranked ahead. But both kids are great kids. This is not the case where you have a problem with either one of their heads."

That seems to be the only consensus in this QB race.

"They are both like coaches on the field, and their learning curve will be better than most QBs coming-out," said one of the scouts. "You can't help but like either one of these kids. Carr has the Peyton Manning mindset although not as rigid. Harrington has many of those same qualities. I think with the two of these guys, they're so close that it really depends upon how your coach responds with each kid during their interviews. It's that close."

How close?

"I really all depends whether you like vanilla or strawberry," said Fassel.

It looks like Carr will be Houston's flavor of choice.

Teaching the 3-4

The Falcons are planning to add a veteran of the 3-4 defense to help with their transition from a 4-3 scheme. The man they have targeted is a familiar face for Atlanta defensive coordinator Wade Phillips.

Falcons sources have told SportsLine.com that they have agreed on a deal with former standout Bills linebacker John Holecek. The veteran played under Phillips in Buffalo and spent an uneventful 2001 in San Diego.

Holecek is a lunch pail/hardhat type of player who, even if he doesn't contribute on the field, should help the Falcons linebackers adjust to their new scheme.

The hotel manager would like to see you

Even head coaches are vulnerable to rookie hazing.

Panthers coach John Fox, an NFL first-timer at the position, learned that the hard way at the league's owners meetings last week. Fox, Cardinals coach Dave McGinnis and a few friends were eating lunch at the pool during the second day of the meetings when time came to pay the tab.

The Cards coach and a friend asked for Fox's room number. He unwittingly responded "1633, why?" Suddenly, Fox's room became the charge of choice for the group as well as a few other lucky bystanders who benefited from McGinnis' generosity.

Fox took it all in good stride but wasn't prepared for the joke it would lead to. That night, McGinnis dined at one of the resort's restaurants with Giants coach Jim Fassel and the Ravens' Brian Billick. The Cardinals coach reiterated the lunch story to his coaching cohorts, and the trio decided to take the hazing to another level.

The three coaches roped a waitress into their joke when they got her to create a phony dinner bill charged to Fox's room 1633 for a total that exceeded $1,000, including a very generous $400 tip. The coaches signed Fox's name to the bill and then had it slipped under his hotel room door.

While the lunch bill was doable, the dinner tab didn't go over too well. After slightly flipping out, Fox and his wife, Robin, checked his hotel room video screen account to see if such a large number had been fraudulently charged to his room.

The couple got a good laugh and a big sigh of relief to see that they didn't have to try to explain such a hefty expense to the team's money men. Welcome to the big leagues, rook!

Bears bothered by Brockermeyer

The Chicago Bears are concerned with the health of starting left tackle Blake Brockermeyer. While his knee was the worry during the season, the Bears are more concerned now with his right shoulder, which was cleaned up this offseason. But such an injury might affect his punch in pass protection, and some team officials are worried that he might not be at full strength and health in time for training camp.

The Bears owe the big tackle a $500,000 roster bonus, but both sides have already agreed to push if off twice, to April 1 and then again to April 8. Chicago has offered a massive pay cut, which has so far been denied.

Moving on up

One of the most impressive workouts thus far has been of Michigan State running back T.J. Duckett, who weighed in at what one scout present said was a "rock-solid 250 pounds" and ran in the 4.4s.

"He's the only guy so far that I saw work out and went back to my hotel that night and said, 'Man, I was blown out of the water today,'" said one AFC scout. "He's that impressive. We liked the Green kid out of BC, but Duckett is moving up quickly. He really blew me away."

The University of Tennessee held a workout late this past week and once again, wide receiver Donte Stallworth was extremely impressive. He did not run another 40 (he didn't need to after lighting it up the last time out) but performed other drills for some of the scouts and coaches present.

Said one NFC scout: "He's been the most impressive guy I've seen this offseason. Yesterday, he did nothing but boost himself again. Everything he did, he did smoothly."