Sheedy said before Essendon training at Windy Hill on Monday that the inclusion of McPhee, who has missed the past two matches with a hamstring injury, was a 'tight one'.
"I don't think anyone's got the right answer for hamstrings. We still get them late in the year and most of the clubs have had hamstrings and teams are in the finals still, so I don't believe that I can just actually walk out and say I know the answer," Sheedy said.
But Sheedy has already ruled out the silky-skilled Dean Rioli, who has missed 10 of the past 11 matches with a hamstring injury.
"He won't play this week. It got sore, so we backed off," Sheedy said of Rioli.
Sheedy, however, said soon-to-be retired veteran Joe Misiti, who has missed the past four matches with a knee injury, was in the mix to return.
"He's a good chance, but no better than anyone else that's on or in around the team selection," Sheedy said.
As for Sean Wellman - another almost retired Bomber - Sheedy suggested it would be up to the defender if he decided to reverse his decision and play on next season - such is his recent good form.
"Well, it'd have to be from him, from that point of view. In the end, (he) said 'I don’t want to really go on with it'. It's a mental issue, whether he just wants to keep playing. He's probably seen a lot of guys might have just gone on that one year too much and players retire half-way through the season," Sheedy said.
"He probably doesn’t want to go down that track, but he's played very well for us, he's been terrific."
