PRO FOOTBALL / WEEK 13 : THE OTHER GAMES

GAME OF THE DAY

Buffalo (11-1) at Cincinnati (9-3), 10 a.m.

TV: Channel 4.

The Bills clinched the AFC East title last week, but Boomer Esiason and the Bengals will challenge their dominance, not to mention the Buffalo defense--best in the AFC. Buffalo still has something to play for, the home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, which the Bills will clinch with a victory today. Despite two strong defenses, this game could break wide-open because the offenses rank 1-2 in the conference. Buffalo’s Jim Kelly can’t match Esiason’s numbers (23 touchdowns, 2,838 yards), but is still ranked No. 2 among AFC passers.

INTERCONFERENCE GAMES

Cleveland (7-5) at Washington (6-6), 10 a.m.

Kelvin Bryant is still hurting and Super Bowl hero Timmy Smith is struggling, so the Redskins are going with 5-7 rookie Jamie Morris in an attempt to revitalize their running game and revive their playoff chances. Washington has lost 3 of 4 while playing perhaps the toughest schedule in the NFL, and there’s no letup in sight until Dallas on Dec. 11. The Browns, in the hunt for a wild card berth, also are struggling with their once-powerful running game, putting pressure on Bernie Kosar.

San Francisco (7-5) at San Diego (4-8), 1 p.m.

Believe it or not, the Chargers are mathematically alive in the Western .500, otherwise known as the AFC West, trailing the leaders by 2 games. But it gets tougher for San Diego with linebacker Billy Ray Smith and quarterback Mark Vlasic, who led last week’s upset of the Rams, out for the season. Jerry Rice’s ailing achilles tendon seems to be healing, which means Joe Montana and the 49er offense may be getting well just in time for the stretch run.

AFC GAMES

New England (7-5) at Indianapolis (6-6), 1 p.m.

Coach Raymond Berry doesn’t care about any of Doug Flutie’s numbers except the ones on the scoreboard and in the standings, where the Patriots are 6-2 since he came in and rallied them to a 21-17 victory over the Colts. Coach Ron Meyer is expected to stick with rookie quarterback Chris Chandler after lifting him for Gary Hogeboom in last week’s defeat to Minnesota, which snapped the Colts’ 6-game winning streak. This could be a thriller for fans of the running game with Flutie handing off to rookie John Stephens and Chandler giving to Eric Dickerson.

Miami (5-7) at New York Jets (5-6-1), 10 a.m.

Don Shula has already made his concession speech and the Dolphins are playing out the string for the third straight season, so they’ll try to take the Jets with them and get even for a 44-30 defeat New York pinned on them 5 weeks ago. Dan Marino threw for 521 yards in that game, but typical of Miami’s season, it wasn’t enough because the Dolphins had 6 turnovers.

Kansas City (3-8-1)at Pittsburgh (2-10), 10 a.m.

The Chiefs are playing too well for their own good with consecutive victories over Cincinnati and Seattle, which may cost them a chance to draft Troy Aikman. A couple more wins and they may save Coach Frank Gansz’ job. Chuck Chuck Noll’s 4 Super Bowl victories are a distant memory in Pittsburgh and after criticism from the front office, there’s speculation he may quit or be fired after the season.

NFC GAMES

New York Giants (7-5) at New Orleans (9-3), 5 p.m.

TV: ESPN.

The Giants lost control of the NFC East by losing 2 straight games, and quarterback Phil Simms will face the Saints with a bruised shoulder. New York sacked Philadelphia’s Randall Cunningham 5 times, and will have to put pressure on the Saints’ Bobby Hebert, who completed 20 of 23 passes in 42-0 rout of Denver. The Giants haven’t lost 3 consecutive non-strike games since 1983.

Phoenix (7-5) at Philadelphia (7-5), 10 a.m.

TV: Channel 2.

Buddy Ryan’s Eagles suddenly seem to be the team to beat in the four-way NFC East race with 4 victories in 5 games, including last week’s bizarre overtime win against the Giants when Clyde Simmons picked up a blocked field goal and ran for the winning touchdown. Philadelphia is catching the Cardinals twice in the next 3 weeks with Cliff Stoudt at quarterback instead of Neil Lomax, and also has a game left with Dallas.

Green Bay (2-10) at Chicago (10-2), 10 a.m.

The Bears beat the Packers, 24-6, in week 4, but it could be worse this time because Green Bay has scored only 39 points during a 5-game losing streak. The Pack has scored just 2 touchdowns in 4 weeks, both in the final minute of games. The Bears, seemingly getting stronger as the season wears on, have won 8 of 9 and have proven they can win without either Mike Ditka or Jim McMahon. Chicago has a 1-game lead over New Orleans for the NFC’s best record and the home-field advantage through the playoffs.

Tampa Bay (3-9) at Atlanta (4-8), 10 a.m.

The Falcons have been able to sneak up on the Raiders, San Francisco and Philadelphia this season and have a 4-5 record with quarterback Chris Miller healthy, and that includes a pair of losses that could have gone either way. Vinny Testaverde leads the NFL with 28 pass interceptions, but could find the cracks in Atlanta’s defense that the Raiders’ Steve Beuerlein wasn’t able to spot.

NOTE: All times PST. .