FORT WORTH, Texas — When he was told Tuesday that Wade Phillips was currently trapped in a media-fandom hell storm, the head coach of the San Diego Chargers replied with a chuckle.

No, not that kind of chuckle.

"Tell me about it," replied Norv Turner, who has been down that same rocky road not one year, not two, but all three seasons in San Diego since Cowboys owner Jerry Jones made the you-were-wrong-Jerry 2007 decision that Phillips, not Norv, was the best choice for the Valley Ranch job.

Let's just say, however, that Turner relates well to the Wade-bashing, although in a different way.

You can check it all out on the San Diego-based FireNorv.com, although I notice the Web site has been rather inactive since November.

Something, I guess, about the Chargers coming to the Big Yard in Arlington on Sunday with a seven-game win streak.

Something, I guess, about Turner's record in December over three seasons being 10-0. Something, I guess, about getting the Chargers into January, and the playoffs, and then making an impact.

Make it three wins in five postseason games the last two seasons, and the two losses were a tough one on the road in New England (in the Patriots' unbeaten season to that point) and last year in Pittsburgh to the eventual Super Bowl-winning Steelers.

You know the difference here. The Cowboys, under Wade, start fast, then collapse in December. The Chargers, under Norv, have horrendous starts, and Turner was again on the chopping block in October, but down the stretch, here they come.

It's a constant pattern that infuriates some of the Chargers' fandom. But yes, here they come again.

Plus, since the game is always about the quarterback, and since Norv has a good one in Philip Rivers, his progress under Turner has been very revealing. At the moment, it's a debate if even the Brees guy or the Peyton guy is playing better than Rivers.

But for whatever reason, the comparison of these two head coaches is more involved than even the glaring difference in the peaking of the two teams.

Phillips wants to verbally fight the critics, and that media scene on Monday at Valley Ranch was an unfortunate embarrassment for him. Frankly, I kind of feel sorry for Wade, even though I've been as hard on him as anybody.

But this is a battle he can't and won't win. He just doesn't seem to know how to handle it.

Turner, of course, cannot speak for the Phillips situation. Plus, after a long run in Washington, he was fired as head coach. After the mistake of taking the Raiders head-coaching job, he was fired after a short tenure there. Through it all, Turner has remained constant.

"You try to build something, and you try to sell it to the players, and you have to believe in what you're doing, even when the rough spots hit," he said. "The main thing is that the players also believe.

"It's the kind of job where you will have critics, be it the media or the fans, and whatever. There is only one way to change those opinions, and that's to have your team go out and play well on a consistent basis."

Norv had one more point:

"It also helps when your quarterback is playing well, and Philip has been great for us. He's got a complete understanding of what we're doing, and he manages the game so well."

When Big Bill left the Cowboys, my whole point on Norv being the next head coach was based on the development of Tony Romo, who at the time had played half a season.

When Turner interviewed with old pal Jerry, Romo was certainly a prime topic. We knew at the time the job would probably come down to Norv or Wade.

"Look, it wasn't all about Romo," said Norv of the interview. "Jerry had strong opinions on the guys he had there on both sides of the ball. Jerry wanted someone who could take his plan and advance it."

Jones chose Wade, he said, because his No. 1 priority was to build on the 3-4 defense Parcells had installed.

"By the way," added Norv, "I think that was fair. Jerry's priority there was legitimate."

Except the development of Romo remains a constant question. And that's a Turner strength. See Rivers.

Turner had already watched film of the Cowboys' loss to the Giants on Sunday.

"Romo in New York, he played his butt off," said Turner. "That was very impressive. We've been in those kind of games. You are on the road, weather is involved, your quarterback plays well enough to win, and then you don't. You feel awful after that. But you know you can bounce back the next week. You've got to do it."

Turner does not boast about his role in the Chargers' strong finishes. And he's obviously not happy with his team's slow starts.

"But the credit goes to the players for hanging in there," he said. "And then there's the schedule, which is always a factor, and certainly the health of your club. We've had to patch a lot of things on defense this season, due to injuries, but if the timing is right, you can get on a roll."

I repeat: Turner should have been the head coach here, not Wade. For Romo alone, he should have been.

Troy, Michael, Emmitt, Moose, Nate, etc., all knew that. The players from the long-ago glory days wanted the old offensive coordinator back in town. So did a media member, or two.

But — my opinion — Jerry didn't want that kind of outside connection. Jerry wanted a coach who would be talking and answering to only him.

On Sunday, Norv comes back to town with his hot team, and with a win can totally wreck the Cowboys' season.

Irony? No, not really. It's more like cruel justice for a mistake in the first place.