The Associated Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Tennessee Titans quarterback Steve McNair's injured right calf is improving, but his status for Monday night's game against the New York Jets is very much in question.

On Friday, McNair worked with trainers inside, then did some tenuous five-step drops on the side while making just a few throws. It showed a little bit of progress, but not enough for coach Jeff Fisher to declare it a major advance.

"I think he's been able to do that for a couple of days now. That's not a major step in the rehab," Fisher said. "He bounced back a couple of steps today. He didn't do anything full speed. He didn't even do anything half speed. He didn't put a lot of pressure on the leg. What he did today shows that he is slowly improving, but it wasn't a giant step by any means."

The main question is whether playing will put him at risk for further injury.

"We're not just talking about Monday night here. We've got a couple of games after that that are very important. We don't want to put him in a situation where he couldn't play later on in the year by playing him too early here," Fisher said.

The Titans will test McNair a few hours before kickoff to see whether he will be able to play. If he can't, fourth-year man Billy Volek would make his first career start.

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