SPOTLIGHT / A GLANCE AT THIS WEEK IN THE NFL : TOP PERFORMANCES

Passing

Quarterback, Team Att. Cmp. Yds. TD DON MAJKOWSKI, Packers 45 29 367 2 MARK RYPIEN, Redskins 53 27 364 1 STEVE GROGAN, Patriots 46 28 355 1 STEVE DeBERG, Chiefs 36 24 338 1 VINNY TESTAVERDE, Bucs 39 23 336 3 DAVE KRIEG, Seahawks 49 27 311 1 JOHN ELWAY, Broncos 39 19 278 2 BOBBY HEBERT, Saints 30 18 272 1 STEVE WALSH, Cowboys 49 21 264 1 DAN MARINO, Dolphins 36 20 255 1 BUBBY BRISTER, Steelers 27 17 253 2 BOOMER ESIAISON, Bengals 28 17 197 5

Rushing

Player, Team Car. Yds. TD BARRY SANDERS, Lions 30 184 0 THURMAN THOMAS, Bills 27 148 1 BO JACKSON, Raiders 19 144 1 JAMES BROOKS, Bengals 17 131 1 LARRY KINNEBREW, Bills 21 121 1 CHRISTIAN OKOYE, Chiefs 23 101 0

Receiving

Player, Team No. Yds. TD RICKY SANDERS, Redskins 12 158 1 BRIAN BLADES, Seattle 10 117 1 VANCE JOHNSON, Denver 9 148 1 GARY CLARK, Redskins 8 145 1 MARK CLAYTON, Miami 7 122 1 STEPHONE PAIGE, Kansas City 7 163 0 LOUIS LIPPS, Pittsburgh 7 130 2 BRUCE HILL, Tampa Bay 7 125 1 ERIC SIEVERS, New England 7 113 0 STERLING SHARPE, Packers 7 105 1 MARK CARRIER, Buccaneers 7 100 1 DALTON HILLIARD, New Orleans 7 97 1 ANDRE RISON, Indianapolis 6 129 1 ROGER CRAIG, San Francisco 6 85 0 TIM McGEE, Bengals 5 127 1 ANDRE BROWN, Dolphins 5 105 1 HENRY ELLARD, Rams 5 100 0 JERRY RICE, San Francisco 5 95 1 WEBSTER SLAUGHTER, Cleveland 4 184 2

BIG PLAYS

Bo Jackson raced 73 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter in the Raiders’ 37-24 victory over Washington.

Michael Zordich of Phoenix intercepted a Steve Walsh pass and returned it 16 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter of the Cardinals’ 19-10 victory over Dallas.

New Orleans’ Dalton Hilliard accounted for 190 yards of offense and two touchdowns, including a one-yard run with 2:12 left in the game, to give the Saints a 20-13 win over Atlanta.

Pittsburgh’s Bubby Brister, returning earlier than expected from a sprained knee, threw two touchdown passes to Louis Lipps, including a 64-yarder in the fourth quarter, as the Steelers beat Kansas City, 23-17.

Philadelphia’s Keith Byars ran for his second touchdown with 5:25 left, lifting the Eagles to a 28-24 victory over the Denver Broncos.

Jerry Rice outdueled defensive backs Bobby Humphrey and Erik McMillan to haul in a 45-yard touchdown pass from third-string quarterback Steve Bono as the San Francisco 49ers defeated the New York Jets, 23-10.

Boomer Esiaison threw two touchdown passes in the first half and five in all as Cincinnati ended a two-game losing streak with a 56-23 victory over Tampa Bay.

Thurman Thomas weaved 30 yards for a touchdown in the first half as Buffalo pulled away from Miami in a 31-17 victory.

Bernie Kosar threw a 77-yard touchdown pass to Webster Slaughter in the third quarter, giving Cleveland the lead for good in the Browns’ 28-17 victory over Houston.

SACK TIME

Miami quarterback Dan Marino was sacked for the first time in 759 pass attempts Sunday and the Dolphins’ NFL-record for consecutive games without allowing a sack was ended at 19 in a 31-17 loss to the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y.

Bills second-year nose tackle Jeff Wright recorded the sack in the second quarter, beating Dolphins center Jeff Uhlenhake and tackling Marino for an 11-yard loss at the Dolphins one-yard line.

Buffalo linebacker Cornelius Bennett recorded another sack of Marino in the fourth quarter.

“The Bills’ defensive line put more pressure on us than any team we’ve played this year,” said Marino, who also threw three interceptions. “They do a good job rushing the passer, and when they get a chance to hit the quarterback, they do it.”

Marino was last sacked 19 games ago by Indianapolis linebacker Duane Bickett. It came late in the third quarter of the Colts’ 15-13 victory over Miami on Sept. 25, 1988.

No Dolphin quarterback had been sacked in Miami’s previous 775 pass attempts.

STREAKS

Seattle’s Steve Largent, returning to action from a broken elbow, caught two passes, extending to 169 his NFL-record streak of consecutive games with receptions in the Seahawks’ 10-7 win over San Diego.

Ozzie Newsome of Cleveland had his streak end at 150 games in the Browns’ 28-17 victory over Houston. Newsome, who injured his ankle in the second half, refused to go into the game for a chance at a token catch that would have extended the streak.

“I had said at the start of the year that I didn’t want to keep it going just by going out there and catching one for just that purpose,” Newsome said. “If I went in and hurt it worse, I could have been out two or three weeks. Now I’ve got a good chance of lining up next week.”

Newsome was held without a catch for the first time since the seventh game of the 1979 season.

Mickey Shuler caught two passes, extending to 86 his streak of games with receptions in the Jets’ 23-10 loss to the 49ers. . . . Stephone Paige had seven catches, extending to 56 his streak of games with catches in the Chiefs’ 23-17 loss to Pittsburgh.

MILESTONES

Kansas City’s Nick Lowery kicked a 50-yard field goal in a 23-17 loss to Pittsburgh. Lowery’s 18th field goal of 50 yards or more broke the NFL mark held by former Chief Jan Stenerud. . . . Chief Christian Okoye rushed for 101 yards, equaling Joe Delaney’s season record of five 100-yard games. . . . New England’s Steve Grogan completed 28 of 46 passes, both career highs, in the Patriots’ 23-20 win over the Colts.

FAMILY TIES

Willie Peete was in the right place to offer his son some words of consolation.

“Hang in there,” Willie, an assistant coach for the Green Bay Packers, told Rodney, the Detroit Lions’ quarterback.

Rodney Peete made his father proud with his play and poise, but he fumbled in the fourth quarter and then threw an interception in overtime to help the Packers post a 23-20 victory.

“I thought he had a lot of composure and I thought he handled himself very well,” said Willie Peete.

Rodney completed 14 of 28 passes for 201 yards and a touchdown and also ran 14 yards for the tying touchdown in the fourth quarter.

But he fumbled a handoff exchange on a reverse as the Lions were driving for a go-ahead score in the final minute of regulation. And then he was intercepted on the first play in overtime, leading to Chris Jacke’s game-winning 38-yard field goal.

“Unfortunately we had the last two big mistakes,” Rodney Peete said.

After the game, father and son exchanged a few words as they were coming off the field at Milwaukee County Stadium.

“He said, ‘Don’t let it get you down, just go on from here,’ ” said Rodney. “We didn’t talk a whole lot.”

Willie and Rodney also got together briefly before the game.

“This is the first time I’ve seen him since August,” said Willie Peete. “We chatted but not football. I just gave him a hug and told him his mother and brother said hello and were pulling for him.

“This is the first time, the big one, and hopefully after this it will become routine.”

IN QUOTES

Steve Bono, former UCLA quarterback now with the 49ers, on his 45-yard touchdown pass play to Jerry Rice: “I was excited when the call came in to go to Jerry. I didn’t hesitate. It was a home run all the way.”

San Francisco linebacker Charles Haley, who had three of the 49ers’ nine sacks of Jet quarterback Ken O’Brien: “. . . . He sat in the pocket and threw. I was kind of proud of him the way he handled it.”

Atlanta’s Deion Sanders after being pushed out of bounds by New Orleans cornerback Robert Massey on a 72-yard kickoff return: “I didn’t get tackled, did I? Nobody caught me. I just wasn’t aware of where I was on the field, and I ran out of bounds, or I would have been in the end zone right now.” Cincinnati quarterback Boomer Esiason on challenging his teammates to end their offensive slump, which included seven quarters without a touchdown prior to the Bengals’ 56-23 win over Tampa Bay: “All week long in the huddle I’d been saying, ‘Who wants to make the big play? Who wants to make the big catch? Who wants to make the big block? Who wants to make the big run? I think they took it upon themselves to make things happen.” Kansas City center Mike Webster on his return to Three Rivers Stadium, where he played for 15 years as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers: “Well, at least they didn’t throw things at me. The thing is, you have a job to do and you have to blot that other stuff out. You have to focus on what you’re doing, but that was tough early.”

SECOND CHANCES

Overtime afforded two kickers the opportunity for redemption Sunday.

Chris Jacke of Green Bay, who missed a 50-yard attempt on the final play of regulation, converted a 38-yard field goal in overtime to give the Packers a 23-20 victory over Detroit. Mark Murphy set up Jacke’s game-winning kick with an interception on the first play of overtime.

Said Jacke: “I felt stupid the first time. I shouldn’t have missed it,” he said. “The second one was a chip shot.”

Similar circumstances prevailed in Indianapolis, where Greg Davis, celebrating his 24th birthday, made good on a 51-yard field goal in overtime to lift New England to a 23-20 victory over the Colts. Davis missed a 46-yard attempt at the end of regulation.

Davis’ explanation: “Believe it or not, longer field goals are easier. There’s no pressure on 50-yard field goals.”

Of course.

LOWLIGHTS

Ken O’Brien of the New York Jets was sacked nine times for 82 yards in losses in a 23-10 loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

Tampa Bay failed to keep the Cincinnati out of the end zone on the Bengals’ first seven drives inside the 20-yard line in the Bucs’ 56-23 loss. The Buccaneers also also had a rare failure of their run defense--James Brooks ran for 131 yards and a touchdown to become the first back in 21 games to reach 100 yards against Tampa Bay.

Rookie Billy Joe Tolliver, inserted as the starting quarterback by San Diego Coach Dan Henning, completed only six of 17 passes for 41 yards before being replaced Jim McMahon in the Chargers’ 10-7 loss to Seattle.

INJURIES

The San Francisco 49ers, already without three defensive starters, lost Pro Bowl nose tackle Michael Carter to a sprained right foot in the third quarter of their 23-10 win against the New York Jets. . . . The 49ers also lost quarterback Steve Young, who left in the second quarter with a knee injury, but he was able to return. With Joe Montana resting his injured knee, former UCLA quarterback Steve Bono spelled Young.

TONIGHT’S GAME

Minnesota vs. New York Giants at East Rutherford, N.J., 6 p.m. PST--The Vikings (5-2) are arguably the hottest team in the NFL with four straight wins and the addition of running back Herschel Walker to complement the league’s best defense.

But after victories against Tampa Bay, Green Bay and Detroit twice, Minnesota faces a considerably sterner challenge in the Giants (6-1), second only to the Vikings in team defense.

For their part, the Giants are trying to keep the meeting of NFC division leaders in perspective.

“It’s hard to tell anything about one game,” Giants offensive coordinator Ron Erhardt said. “This will be a big game for our offensive team. But you can’t put too much into one game. You can’t say if you have a good game you’re a great team or if you have a bad game, you’re a bad team.”

The key battles will be waged at the line of scrimmage. The Vikings have had eight sacks in each of the past three games. Tackle Keith Millard leads the league with 12 sacks and Chris Doleman is tied for third with seven.

New York tight end Mark Bavaro is doubtful with a strained left knee.