It wasn't long ago when Jay Fiedler was labeled as a serviceable NFL quarterback whose sole purpose on Sundays was "not to lose the game" for his team.

This was Fiedler's plight last season, his first as an NFL starter for the Miami Dolphins.

Phrases like "Don't do anything to lose the game" and "Let the running game and defense do their work" and "Stay out of the way" had to be insulting to Fiedler, who fancies himself as a quarterback who can be a difference-maker.

	Jay Fiedler emphatically spikes the ball after his game-winning QB sneak against the Raiders.

A funny thing has transpired along the way in Fiedler's career: He's gone from a complementary quarterback many didn't believe in to the player the Dolphins' season hinges on as they play the New England Patriots in Saturday's showdown for first place in the AFC East.

During an interview this week with ESPN.com, Fiedler spoke about how he's grown from the young, feisty backup to an unproven NFL starter to the focal point of his team's offense.

"That term is used a lot," Fiedler said when reminded of that "don't lose the game" mantra. "I didn't find it insulting. I don't know where that term comes from, because any quarterback is in control of the game."

Fiedler, who enters Saturday's game against the Patriots with a more-than-respectable 21-10 record as a starter (including playoff games), is in control of his team.

He's come a long way from the player who Dave Wannstedt took a chance on last year after deciding Damon Huard wasn't the answer.

"I definitely feel moreso in a leadership role here now," Fiedler said. "Last year, I came in and not everyone knew me in the offseason, because I was injured.

"I didn't get a chance to prove myself to my teammates. So (last season) was kind of a proving ground throughout the year. As we went through last year, the confidence my teammates had in me increased."

As Fiedler entered this season, he finally had a chance to spend an offseason working out with his teammates and huddling with coaches. He, too, was already the established starter, so there were no questions as there were last year.

"I was coming back as the starter and everyone knew about it," he said. "There wasn't a question coming into camp."

That helped Fiedler become a leader of the team.

"Leadership is something you can't go out there and grasp. You have to earn it," Fiedler said. "You don't just show up as the starting quarterback and say, 'I'm the leader of the team.' You have to earn it from other players."

By bringing the Dolphins into the AFC playoffs with an 11-5 regular-season record last year, Fiedler gained some believers. By having the Dolphins at 9-4 and in first place this season -- and having played better football along the way -- Fiedler has forged an even stronger belief amongst his teammates and coaches.

Fiedler credits "a better supporting cast around me" and Dolphins offensive coordinator Chan Gailey for helping him improve.

	“	I definitely learned a lot from the beginning of the year. With every mistake you make, the ability to learn from it -- and not making that mistake again -- is a sign of improvement. ”
		— Jay Fiedler, Dolphins quarterback

"I think one of Chan's best attributes is he makes the game simple for everyone," Fiedler said. "He doesn't ask guys to do what they can't do on the field. He puts them in situations to utilize their best talents. What he does is make it simple on everyone else, which sometimes makes it more difficult on the quarterback. But that way, one person has control of where the offense goes."

Fiedler talked about how he and Gailey sat down during the offseason and went over every play the Dolphins ran in 2000, analyzing which ones worked, which ones didn't and which ones had potential.

"We came in this year a lot more on the same page," Fiedler said. "When (Gailey) calls a play, I know what he wants out if it and he has confidence that I'm going to execute that play."

Gailey told ESPN.com this week, "We do put the onus on the quarterback to know what's going on. Jay and I sat down and looked at every (film) cut-up we had from last season. Three times a week we'd come in and watch tape together.

"We spent time hearing what he was doing and seeing and thinking, and by listening to him talk and hearing what he was seeing, we were better able to adjust to what he was comfortable with."

While Fiedler is quick to credit Gailey and the Dolphins' new receivers, rookie Chris Chambers and free-agent signees James McKnight and Dedric Ward, Gailey credits Fiedler.

"I don't think it's as much me as it is him and his knowledge and comfort level with the system," Gailey said. "His being able to work an entire offseasson with the same group of receivers has helped tremendously.

"This is the first time as a pro he's been in the same offensive system for two years in a row," Gailey went on. "He's an intelligent guy who has a good arm and understands the game. He's just made a lot of development."

Last season, in a much more cautious mode with featured back Lamar Smith having a more productive year, Fiedler threw 14 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. This season, Fiedler already has two more touchdowns (16), but he has 18 interceptions -- a sign that he's taking more chances down the field.

Turnovers have been an area where Fiedler has had problems at times. However, he has been taking better care of the ball.

Before last week's loss to the 49ers in San Francisco, where Fiedler threw three interceptions and lost a fumble, he hadn't committed a turnover in the previous three games.

"We talked about (the turnovers)," Gailey said. "We made an issue of it. You have to do that. He had three straight games without a turnover and that's what we need to do."

Said Fiedler: "I don't go into games thinking I'm going to make turnovers. Every pass I throw I think I'm going to complete otherwise it wouldn't leave my hand. I have made a more conscious effort to figure out the risk-reward ratio.

"I definitely learned a lot from the beginning of the year. With every mistake you make, the ability to learn from it -- and not making that mistake again -- is a sign of improvement.

"The bottom line is we've been able to make big plays when we've needed to on both sides of ball. The defense has kept us in games when we've had turnovers, and the offense has been able to overcome turnovers."

The next thing for Fiedler, after he leads the Dolphins as far as he can on the field, will be about his future.

Fiedler has one year remaining on his contract and is scheduled to make $1.35 million in 2002, which is like backup money these days. He has the option to become a free agent after this season by voiding that final year.

His agent, Brian Levy, has already had preliminary discussions with the Dolphins.

"My desire is to stay here," Fiedler said. "I'm at a point where I am becoming a free agent, I'm aware of that. But I pay my agent a good amount of money to worry about that for me and keep that distraction away."

How far Fiedler is able to lead this Dolphins team into the postseason will go a long way toward deciding Fiedler's future in Miami.

Pats in position for East title
A win over Miami on Saturday will all but assure the Patriots of an AFC East title with a regular-season finale against the lowly Panthers all that remains on their schedule.

A win will make the Patriots 10-5 en route to 11-5. If the Jets were to win out and finish 11-5 (with games against the Colts, Bills and Raiders), that would give the Jets the division based on tie-breakers. But that's about all that could go wrong for the Patriots.

	Belichick

What the Patriots have overcome to get to this position is remarkable. It's a feat that has to have the much-maligned Bill Belichick a leading candidate for Coach of the Year.

The Patriots first lost their quarterbacks coach, Dick Rehbein, to heart failure in August. Then their offensive star, receiver Terry Glenn, was suspended for four games for violating the NFL's substance abuse policy. The team then tried unsuccessfully to suspend him for the season.

Then came the 1-3 start, which included the loss of starting quarterback Drew Bledsoe, who suffered sheared blood vessels in his chest cavity during a Week 2 loss to the Jets. When Bledsoe was healthy enough and ready to compete for his old job with backup Tom Brady, Belichick told Bledsoe he made the bold move to stay with Brady.

Brady has since led the Patriots to a 9-3 record as a starter and has the Patriots poised for one of the more remarkable in-season turnarounds in NFL history.

Edwards out to change history
You can't say New York Jets coach Herman Edwards isn't passionate.

And so this week, in an effort to help his players forget about the so-called December jinx that has engulfed the organization for years (the Jets are 19-43 in post-November regular-season games), Edwards launched into an animated diatribe about how much of a losing franchise the Jets have been and how much he wants to change that.

	Edwards

"Someone's got to tell these players, 'We can to this, and you don't have to listen to that crap. You don't have to buy into it,' " Edwards said. "I'm telling them that. That's what I'm about. I want to make a difference. I've always wanted to make a difference in people's lives. We're trying to create our own history here.

"It's important for the team, the fans and this organization to alleviate the ghosts, alleviate the stories," Edwards went on. "The only way to do that is to win. I hope we can continue to improve these last few weeks just for the players -- just to get this off their necks."

Edwards' goal is to rid the organization of its losing aura.

"We want to change the whole mindset of this place," he said. "It's bigger than (the media portrayal). It's history. You hear it from former players. It's amazing.

"It's the history of the whole deal. The history of this franchise is not only (about failing in) December. It's September, October, November, a lot of months, a lot of years."

Mark Cannizzaro of the New York Post writes an AFC notebook every week for ESPN.com.