THE OTHER GAMES : GAME OF THE DAY

Philadelphia (0-1) at Chicago (1-0), 10 a.m. The coaches keep saying it’s not Mike Ditka against Buddy Ryan, but what do they know? The fans have been fired up for this one since the schedule came out. About 70% of the country will see it on television. Unfortunately, Los Angeles and Orange counties are in the 30% that won’t. Ryan has said, “I’m sure the Bears are up there licking their chops.” But, Ditka aside, would they really want to embarrass their beloved old Buddy? The inexperienced Mike Tomczak replaces the injured Jim McMahon at quarterback for the Bears. Ryan already has tried a few twists, such as substituting Randall Cunningham for quarterback Ron Jaworski on third-and-long for a possible quick kick. No. 1 draft pick Keith Byars will start at running back for the Eagles, which may be rushing his foot rehabilitation a bit. Philadelphia is winless in 10 trips to Chicago and trails the series 4-19-1.

OTHER NFC GAMES

Dallas (1-0) at Detroit (1-0), 10 a.m. A year ago, the Cowboys arrived at the Silverdome after a big Monday night win, went flat and lost, 26-21. Tony Dorsett, who sprained his ankle in the Cowboys’ 31-28 victory over the New York Giants last Monday, discovered Wednesday night that he could walk without crutches. So he may play against the Lions today. The Lions have some injuries in their offensive line but are traditionally tough at home, where they were 7-1 in 1985. The Cowboys are winless in their three previous trips to Pontiac, Mich.

Green Bay (0-1) at New Orleans (0-1), 10 a.m. Nothing to recommend here. Last week, Packer Coach Forrest Gregg had something good to say only about the offense, and that was after it had scored three points against the Oilers. “The rest of our team stunk,” he said. Saint Coach Jim Mora had similar sentiments about his outfit after a 31-10 loss to Atlanta, which is no juggernaut. The best clue may be that the Packers have beaten the Saints seven straight and have won four straight in the Superdome.

Minnesota (0-1) at Tampa Bay (0-1), 1 p.m. What does Buccaneer Coach Leeman Bennett have against Steve DeBerg? Not only did he leave him in to humiliate himself with seven interceptions against the 49ers, but he’s starting him again at home today. Viking quarterback Tommy Kramer could get rolling against a Tampa secondary still bleeding from Joe Montana’s visit.

St. Louis (0-1) at Atlanta (1-0), 10 a.m. New Cardinal Coach Gene Stallings is still learning the fine points, such as not running out the clock when you’re behind. On the other side, who would have expected Falcon quarterback David Archer to be the league’s second-rated passer after the first week? Also, instead of no running backs, the Falcons are showing a 1-2 punch with the late arrival of holdout Gerald Riggs and the recuperated William Andrews. All-Pro receiver Roy Green is expected to play despite a chronic shoulder injury, but the Cardinals’ best plan may be just to start a fight.

AFC GAMES Kansas City (1-0) at Seattle (1-0), 1 p.m. These teams think they’re playing for first place in the AFC West, too. The home team has won the last seven games in the series, and the Kingdome crowd will be at its high-decibel best to rattle Chief quarterback Todd Blackledge. Seattle’s Steve Largent has caught a pass in 124 consecutive games, three short of Harold Carmichael’s NFL record of 127.

Indianapolis (0-1) at Miami (0-1), 1 p.m. Expect a remarkable improvement in the Miami defense after the blowout at San Diego, although the change in opponents may have something to do with it. The Colts picked a terrible time to lose both starting safeties. Think Dan Marino will notice? Miami has beaten the Colts in their last 11 meetings.

Buffalo (0-1) at Cincinnati (0-1), 10 a.m. As usual, the NFL forgot to leave a wake-up call for the Bengals, who have opened 0-3, 0-5, 0-3 the last three years. Coach Sam Wyche said: “We’ll let you know when to panic.” That would be after a loss today to the Bills, who have lost their last 17 games on the road.

Cleveland (0-1) at Houston (1-0), 10 a.m. The Oilers’ pregame meal will be the same recipe that gave quarterback Warren Moon food poisoning before last week’s smash opener at Green Bay. He never looked so good. If the Oilers win this one, people will have to take them seriously. The Browns may be physically tougher, but their intensity may be flat after last week’s hard effort at Chicago came up short. Brown running back Kevin Mack is doubtful with a shoulder injury.

INTERCONFERENCE GAME San Diego (1-0) at New York Giants (0-1), 10 a.m. The Chargers face a tougher defense than they did last week, when they routed Miami, 50-28, but it’s hard to see how anyone can turn off this scoring machine. If you’re into biorhythms, consider that the Giants may be on a downer between the Dallas and Raider games. Charger linebacker Billy Ray Smith had nine tackles and two sacks from his new outside spot on the left side last week.

MONDAY NIGHT Denver (1-0) at Pittsburgh (0-1), 6 p.m. TV: Channel 7

Guard John Rienstra, the Steelers’ top draft choice, missed the opener with a bleeding ulcer, and that was before the 30-0 loss at Seattle. Quarterback Mark Malone, already on the ropes with Coach Chuck Noll, criticized the coach’s refusal to let him throw deep. But it’s on national TV before the 111th straight sellout at Three Rivers Stadium--and the Broncos are 0-7 in Monday night road games. The Steelers are looking for their 100th win at Three Rivers. The Broncos have moved ’85 No. 1 draft choice Steve Sewell from running back to wide receiver to replace top receiver Vance Johnson, who is injured.