Dispatches

Patriots coach Bill Belichick used wideout Troy Brown on five plays as a nickel defensive back during the preseason, and Brown could appear in dime packages this fall.... Plagued by injuries to their receivers, the Chiefs will use their All-Pro return man, Dante Hall, as a starting wideout as well during the first few weeks. That could wear down the 5'8", 187-pound Hall, who played on only 29% of Kansas City's snaps last year.... Dolphins coach Dave Wannstedt is planning to start quarterbacks A.J. Feeley and Jay Fiedler at different times this year, depending on the matchup--unless one of them catches fire early in the season. "I called Bill Parcells, and he told me, 'You gotta do whatever you need to do every week in this league to win,'" says Wannstedt. "This will give us the best chance." The last team to make the playoffs while splitting the quarterback duties was the Cowboys in 1971, with Craig Morton and Roger Staubach.