Payton Says He Has One Edge Over Dickerson

Walter Payton was asked by George Usher of Newsday if he considered himself similar in ability to Eric Dickerson of the Rams.

“No, there’s a big difference between us,” Payton said. “Dickerson has to run against the Chicago Bears’ defense, and I don’t.”

Next question: “What kind of a running back is Dickerson?”

“What kind of a running back do I see?” Payton said. “Where are you from? Chicago, oh I see.

“Well, I see a very tall, good-looking physique, long stride with goggles on, making very fluent moves, breaking to the outside, stiff-arming one guy, going up the sideline, he gets hit, tumbles over, fumbles the ball (laughter), gains five yards, and then our offense is on the field.

“Yes, I’m serious. No, I’m just kidding. When you look at Eric, I guess you look at a coach’s dream. They wish they can get someone who can be physical, outrun people and be a very big impact on their offense.”

In last year’s Ram-Bear game at Anaheim, Dickerson gained 149 yards in 28 carries. Payton gained 60 yards in 13 carries. The Rams won, 29-13.

Add Bears: Said defensive coordinator Buddy Ryan: “There’s no doubt that the Rams are much bigger and better than the Giants’ line. I told a lot of people we would shut out the Giants, but I can’t say that about the Rams. But we’re going to beat ‘em. At least, if we hold them to 17 points, we’ll beat ‘em.”

From Don Riley of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, advising the Rams to start thinking about next year: “Dieter Brock couldn’t lead a bloodhound to a T-bone.”

Add Brock: More and more, observers seem to be questioning his height, which the Rams list at 6-1. For what it’s worth, when he played behind Heisman Trophy winner Pat Sullivan at Auburn in 1971, he was listed at 6-0.

Trivia Time: In Chuck Knox’s first four years as coach of the Rams, 1973-76, he used four different quarterbacks in the playoffs. Who were they? (Answer below.)

Would-you-believe-it dept.: Willie Gault of the Chicago Bears has only one touchdown reception this year. That puts him even with quarterback Jim McMahon and defensive tackle William (The Refrigerator) Perry.

They say that when New England Coach Raymond Berry played wide receiver for the Baltimore Colts, he ran the most precise routes in the history of the game.

After retirement, he joined the coaching staff of the Dallas Cowboys, and Frank Luksa of the Dallas Times Herald recalled a day when Berry was working with the receivers at Thousand Oaks.

“Ever the technician, he demonstrated by live performance,” Luksa said. “He ran the routes, although to growing frustration. Something was wrong.

“Berry’s innate sense of timing, of space and distance, finally calculated the problem. ‘This field is too narrow,’ he announced.

“Someone measured and, lo, Berry was right. The field had been improperly marked years ago.”

It-had-to-happen dept.: General Manager Patrick Sullivan of the New England Patriots, who got into that rumble with Howie Long and Matt Millen of the Raiders in the Coliseum tunnel, already has been given a nickname by the Boston press. They’re calling him John L.

Trivia Answer: John Hadl in 1973, James Harris in 1974, Ron Jaworski in 1975 and Pat Haden in 1976.

Quotebook

From the predictions for 1986 by Dan Barreiro of the Dallas Morning News: “William (The Refrigerator) Perry will tearfully announce he secretly entered an appliance rehab center for 10 days.”