By Jay Greenberg

A door closes, another opens and who is standing in one of them but a 10-0 Kerry Collins, ready for a showdown with a first-place Brett Favre who announced eight months ago he didn’t want to play anymore.

The Iron Man, who felt forced out of Green Bay, would appreciate another Ironic Man, who is reviving Miami. After Chad Pennington led a last-minute drive Sunday to save what – ask Favre — would have been a horrendous loss to Oakland, the Dolphins, just like the Jets three days earlier in Foxboro. raved about the cool and guile a veteran quarterback brought to the huddle in a tight spot,

They were talking, of course, about a quarterback the Jets felt they could no longer win with, like the Packers, deep down, felt about Favre after ‘Ol Ice Water in His Veins had come up shiveringly ineffective last January in the NFC Championship Game at Lambeau.

Of course, the Packers believed in Aaron Rodgers more than the Jets had reason to believe in Kellen Clemens, and the Giants turned out Collins, a quarterback who put up 41 points in an NFC championship game, in their belief that Eli Manning would turn out as he has.

Far-sighted or short-sided, there are reasons organizations make the changes they do, some of the very same reasons why we can’t turn away when it looks like Favre may have a last January hurrah, or the Titans have a chance to run the table with their veteran backup, or Pennington might be bringing the Dolphins to the Meadowlands December 28 with playoff spots riding for both teams.

“If you talk with Kerry, or Kurt (Warner), [they] realize you are playing game to game,” said Favre yesterday. “You appreciate the moment a lot more because you know it won’t be there forever.

When you are 22 you’re looking for that new contract, commercials or whatever. As you get older all you want to do is win, get by, go onto the next game and win. It’s amazing how you change.

“You have to seize the moment, whatever that may be. Whether it’s taking in the crowd, the rivalry, whatever it may be, you really appreciate it. I’d like to say I have seen it all and done it all, but that’s not true. A big win like we had Thursday night, I think man, it doesn’t get any better than this, then you (next) play against a team that is undefeated. You never know, enjoy it while you can.”

Favre has known addiction to prescription pain killers, Collins alcoholism. Warner stocked shelves overnight while playing Arena League. Pennington endured repeated shoulder surgeries, then just four weeks before this season’s opener, rejection by the team he had three times in five seasons led to the playoffs.

We don’t know how any will do from here on in. The Cardinals are 7-3 thanks to NFC West softies and Warner has not won a playoff game since 2001. for the second consecutive season a team is 10-0 but because one quarterbacked by Tom Brady couldn’t do it, certainly nobody believes Kerry Collins can.

Pennington, on two good legs this year, has regained some velocity back but enough to take a team that was 1-15 a year ago into January? As in January at Lambeau, the icy winds of December at the Meadowlands may cut right to Favre’s 39-year-old bones.

But for these guys, any moments through February won’t prove too big for them. They will embrace them, having lived alternatives.