<table> </table> RIVER FALLS, Wis. | Standing in the heat, his eyes hidden behind thick, dark sunglasses, one of the most embattled men in the Chiefs organization suddenly changed the subject.</p><p>Carl Peterson didn&#8217;t want to talk about his future with the Chiefs or the speculation he may not be with the team next year. He wanted to tell a story.</p><p>&#8220;How about that circus over there in Green Bay?&#8221; he started. &#8220;I was talking to the commissioner and we chatted for just a few minutes and he said, &#8216;Look, what do you think?&#8217; I said &#8230;&#8221;</p><p>This was Peterson&#8217;s response when asked about reports that another 4-12 season could end his 20-year run atop an NFL franchise: A story about Brett Favre and Roger Goodell that led, inevitably, back to 1993 and Joe Montana.</p><p>In their less flattering interpretations, many who know Peterson say the stories he tells often circle back to the man telling them: Stories about Carl&#8217;s relationship with late founder Lamar Hunt, Carl&#8217;s dual role as head of football and business operations, Carl turning around a franchise, Carl and his winning seasons, Carl and 1993, Carl, Carl, Carl.</p><p>So it went this time.</p><p>&#8220;I think it&#8217;s been difficult for (Favre) to make that decision (to retire),&#8221; Peterson was saying. &#8220;I went through this with Joe Montana and Marcus Allen &#8230;</p><p>&#8220;Joe said, &#8216;Well, I&#8217;ve had a lot of concussions and I really want to be able to play catch with my boys when they grow up.&#8217; I said, &#8216;Joe, I think you&#8217;ve already told me &#8230; you&#8217;ve retired &#8230;&#8217;</p><p>&#8220;And the same thing with Marcus (Allen). &#8230; it was difficult, but it comes for everyone we&#8217;ve got. Because you can&#8217;t play the game forever. You just physically can&#8217;t do it &#8230; (The end) comes for everyone.&#8221;</p><p>Everyone? Including general managers?</p><p>Peterson laughed.</p><p>&#8226; &#8226; &#8226;</p><p>For the first time in his career, Peterson enters a season in which the prevailing wisdom at Arrowhead Stadium is this: How the team performs will determine whether he keeps his job.</p><p>Peterson insists he&#8217;s never heard so much as a whisper that he&#8217;s a general manager whose legacy &#8212; and tenure &#8212; could come to a close after this season.</p><p>&#8220;You want to know the truth? No. I haven&#8217;t heard this talk,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Only from you guys. Only from you guys.</p><p>&#8220;I&#8217;ve never had anybody come up and say, &#8216;Boy, you&#8217;re on the hot seat and you&#8217;re going to get fired this year if you guys don&#8217;t win four games or five or six games.&#8217; Nobody&#8217;s said it to me. Including Clark Hunt.&#8221;</p><p>If that&#8217;s true, he&#8217;s one of the few who hasn&#8217;t.</p><p>Sources say Arrowhead is so rife with speculation that Peterson is on the hot seat that people discuss the end of his career over lunches, at the coffee pot and in hushed tones in hallways and meeting rooms. That talk has spilled into the NFL at large, from people in rival front offices to agents and even other players.</p><p>In response, many within the organization have chosen sides between the &#8220;Herm camp&#8221; and the &#8220;Carl camp.&#8221;</p><p>That division, sources say, stems from several factors: An initial reluctance on the part of the &#8220;old guard,&#8221; led by Peterson, to commit to building the team through the draft &#8212; the preference of coach Herm Edwards &#8212; rather than free agency; the survival instincts of those who believe that Peterson does not have owner Clark Hunt&#8217;s full support; and a feeling that Peterson, even if he does live out the contract that takes him through the 2009 season, is the past rather than the future.