PRO FOOTBALL / Week 8 : THE OTHER GAMES

GAME OF THE DAY Seattle (5-2) at Denver (6-1), 1 p.m. This one is for first place in the AFC West. The Seahawks may be catching the Broncos off balance. Monday night’s 22-10 thrashing by the New York Jets brought Denver back to earth. Denver quarterback John Elway has recovered from a concussion, and maybe his temporary amnesia helped him forget about his worst game since he was a rookie. With linebacker Karl Mecklenburg trying to play on a bad leg, the Broncos’ top-ranked rushing defense will have to regroup to contain Curt Warner. The Broncos also lead the league in sacks with 29. The Seahawks have lost five straight on real grass. It’s not quite a “must win” for them, though. They’ll get the Broncos again at the Kingdome on the last day of the season. Seattle All-Pro safety Ken Easley returns from a knee injury.

OTHER AFC GAMES Cincinnati (5-2) at Pittsburgh (1-6), 10 a.m. Steeler Coach Chuck Noll has labeled this season “an emotional scar.” The team has only three offensive players who have started every game, and even the plumbing was stopped up last week, flooding the dressing room. But quarterback Mark Malone, despite a sore thumb, will put rookie Bubby Brister back on the bench today. “He’s in a fog out there,” Malone said of Brister. Despite Sam Wyche’s sleight-of-hand offense, the Bengals’ soft, shaky defense makes them ripe for an upset anytime. They needed a fake punt to beat the Steelers two weeks ago. As a starter, Malone is 0-4 against the Bengals.

Miami (2-5) at Indianapolis (0-7), 10 a.m. The Colts now have a firm grip on first place in the Vinny Testaverde draft derby, and even the doghouse Dolphins aren’t likely to head them off. The Dolphins’ 30-10 win over the Colts six weeks ago is still the best Miami has looked all season. Neither team plays defense or runs the ball, but Miami quarterback Dan Marino makes the difference.

New England (4-3) at Buffalo (2-5), 10 a.m. The Patriots can’t afford to stumble and stay in the AFC East race. Runner Craig James will return, although his knee probably isn’t 100%, and Tony Eason, out 2 1/2 games, will start at quarterback after two strong efforts from Steve Grogan. Eason hasn’t thrown an interception and is the NFL’s top-rated passer. Quarterback Jim Kelly, with far less help, can carry the Bills only so far.

NFC GAMES Detroit (3-4) at Chicago (6-1), 10 a.m. Doug Flutie says it will take a couple of weeks for him to learn the Bear offense, so quarterback Jim McMahon’s job is safe for now. McMahon, having rested his various injuries, if not his mouth, will return after sitting out the 23-7 loss to Minnesota. The Bears have won the last 21 games he started. Chicago linebackers Mike Singletary and Al Harris are hurting, but the Lions probably won’t be able to run any better than they did against the Rams. Eric Hipple will try to short-pass the Bears to death.

St. Louis (1-6) at Dallas (5-2), 1 p.m. The Cowboys, with the New York Giants and the Raiders coming up the road, may not notice that the Cardinals are looking better than the team they crushed, 31-7, a month ago. Fullback Earl Ferrell has been effective alongside Stump Mitchell, and limping Neil Lomax will have Roy Green to throw to again. Quarterback Danny White should be able to start for the Cowboys.

San Francisco (4-2-1) vs. Green Bay (1-6).

at Milwaukee, 10 a.m. Trivia time: Who is the 49ers’ backup quarterback? Mike Moroski, and he’ll start today. The 49ers and Jeff Kemp took their lumps in the tie at Atlanta, Kemp coming away with hip and rib injuries. But even Moroski should be able to ignite the 49er fireworks against a Packer secondary that has allowed league highs of 68.6% and 7.82 yards a pass completion. Packer Coach Forrest Gregg’s new youth kick paid off when quarterback Randy Wright and rookie runner Kenneth Davis played well to beat Cleveland.

INTERCONFERENCE GAMES Cleveland (4-3) at Minnesota (5-2), 10 a.m. Earnest Byner, the Browns’ top runner and receiver, is out with a knee injury, meaning that Bernie Kosar may get to throw deep now. The Vikings could deflate after consecutive upsets of the 49ers and the Bears, and quarterback Tommy Kramer will have to be patient against the Browns’ disciplined defense.

New Orleans (3-4) at New York Jets (6-1), 10 a.m. The Jets have the same problem as the Vikings: taking a non-contender seriously after big wins over the Patriots and the Broncos. Ken O’Brien is well enough to start at quarterback again, but he’ll face a Saint defense with 22 takeaways, second in the league. Rookie Rueben Mayes has given the Saints a solid ground game.

San Diego (1-6) at Philadelphia (2-5), 10 a.m. Dan Fouts will get the day off after suffering two concussions in the last three games, putting his league-high 19 interceptions on hold. Mark Herrmann will start for San Diego. The Chargers will miss runner-receiver Lionel James more. He’s on injured reserve with a sprained foot, and receiver Wes Chandler is listed as doubtful, also with a foot injury. The Eagle offense fell apart last week when Ron Jaworski couldn’t play because of numb fingers. He’s back, with erratic Randall Cunningham, Buddy Ryan’s “quarterback of the future,” the first backup now.

Tampa Bay (1-6) at Kansas City (4-3), 10 a.m. Beware of bad teams going with youth, as Buccaneer Coach Leeman Bennett says he is now. Quarterback Steve Young and some loose and energetic youngsters could give a confused Chief defense plenty of trouble. Chief quarterback Todd Blackledge was benched in last week’s 42-41 win over San Diego, and he’ll stay there until Bill Kenney self-destructs.

MONDAY NIGHT Washington (6-1) at New York Giants (5-2), 6 p.m. Jay Schroeder is 10-2 since becoming the Redskin quarterback when Joe Theismann broke his leg in this Monday night match last season. It was Lawrence Taylor who ended Theismann’s career, unintentionally, but Seattle proved that Taylor can be neutralized. The Giants’ offense is still flat, but their defense has permitted only 2 touchdowns in the last 15 quarters.