SPOTLIGHT / A GLANCE AT THIS WEEK IN THE NFL : SEVEN-SACK SALUTE

On the day he set an NFL sack record, Kansas City’s Derrick Thomas took special inspiration from a name that appears on the Vietnam Memorial in Washington.

Robert Thomas, Derrick’s father who was a captain in the Air Force, was shot down over Vietnam and was last seen parachuting from his plane.

In pregame ceremonies Sunday before the Chiefs’ game against Seattle, four Air Force jets flew over Arrowhead Stadium. A few minutes before kickoff, an Air Force officer, Capt. Jim Preston, gave Derrick a yellow headband for luck.

“Whenever Air Force planes fly over the stadium, it gives me a great deal of motivation,” said Thomas, whose seven sacks in the Chiefs’ 17-16 loss to Seattle broke the NFL standard of six.

The seven sacks give the second-year linebacker from Alabama an NFL-leading 15 for the year. He broke the single-game sack record of six set by San Francisco’s Fred Dean against New Orleans in 1983.

It was the sack he didn’t get that ruined the day for Thomas and his teammates. Dave Krieg, scrambling out of Thomas’ grasp, connected with Paul Skansi on a 25-yard touchdown pass as time ran out, giving the Seahawks a victory.

“My objective is to win ballgames,” Thomas said. “We didn’t win today, so down the road somewhere the record might mean a lot. But right now it doesn’t mean much.”

Seattle tackle Andy Heck, who spent much of the day trying to stop Thomas, said: “He has outstanding quickness. If he gets an edge on you, he’s going to blow right past you.”

CAUSE AND EFFECT

Eric Dickerson’s NFL rushing record of 2,105 yards set in 1984 should stand for the next 100 seasons. So says statistical analyst Bud Goode.

Rule changes involving the clock have affected NFL games to the extent that established records will be extremely difficult to break, Goode said last week.

Starting this year, the NFL decided to speed up games to try and keep them at or less than three hours by keeping the clock moving in several areas where it was stopped previously.

According to Goode, the league rushing average is down 12% from last year and rushing plays are down 14%.

The difference between those averages from last year to this year is so great that odds are one in 100 that such a difference occurred by chance, Goode said.

Scoring is down 7% from last season (from 20.6 points per team per game to 19.1 points), Goode said, adding that the odds are one in 20 that this change is not because of luck or chance, but because of the shortened games.

Other key statistics where the averages change at the one-to-100 level are: total plays, down 12%; first downs total, down 12%; first downs rushing, down 14%; first downs passing, down 12%; total yards gained, down 12%; yards passing, down 12%; pass attempts, down 12%; passes completed, down 10%; total punts, down 18%; kickoffs returned, down 14%, and penalties, down 11%.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Speaking of Eric Dickerson, the former Ram had another ineffective performance in Indianapolis’ 13-10 victory over New England. Dickerson gained 25 yards in 14 carries and now has 133 yards in 42 carries (a 3.17 average) with no touchdowns. That holdout/suspension obviously did him and the Colts a lot of good.

Another familiar name, Marc Wilson, is still having no success with the Patriots. Wilson completed eight of 23 passes for 87 yards against the Colts. In his nine New England starts, Wilson is 1-8, 0-5 this season.

On the Patriots’ last chance with 1:01 left, Wilson threw two incompletions and was sacked twice.

NAMES AND NUMBERS

Kansas City kicker Nick Lowery’s field goal in the Chiefs’ 17-16 loss to Seattle gave him 1,082 career points, moving him past Don Cockroft into 12th place on the all-time NFL scoring list. . . . The defensive touchdown by the Chiefs in the third quarter was their first touchdown of any kind in eight quarters. The Chiefs’ last offensive touchdown came on Oct. 21 in a 19-7 loss at Seattle. . . . Christian Okoye’s one-yard run in the third quarter gave him 3,252 rushing yards in his career, moving him past Mike Garrett into third place on the Chiefs’ all-time list.

The Raiders lost for the first time in 11 home games since Art Shell replaced Mike Shanahan as coach on Oct. 3, 1989. . . . Chris Jacke set a Packer record with five field goals.

The San Francisco 49ers extended to 15 games their NFL record for consecutive road victories with a 24-6 victory over the Dallas Cowboys. . . . The 49ers’ 17-game winning streak ties the second-best mark in NFL history, held by the Oakland Raiders in 1976-77. The record is 18 in a row, by the 1933-34 and 1941-42 Chicago Bears and the 1972-73 Miami Dolphins. . . . Counting playoff games, San Francisco has won 26 of its last 28 road games. The only two losses in that span were both by a single point--10-9 to the Bears and 24-23 to the Cardinals in 1988.

The last eight receptions for Butch Rolle, a reserve tight end for Buffalo, have gone for touchdowns, including a one-yard pass play from Jim Kelly in the Bills’ 45-14 victory over the Phoenix Cardinals.

Miami’s 17-3 victory over the New York Jets was the sixth win in a row for the Dolphins, who have not allowed an offensive touchdown in their last four games. Miami has not permitted a rushing touchdown in 24 quarters.

The Chicago-Atlanta game was the Bears’ 57th consecutive sellout at Soldier Field. . . . The Falcons have lost 15 consecutive road games. Their last road victory was Nov. 20, 1988, against the Raiders at the Coliseum. . . . The Bears are the only team in the NFL with more rushing yards (1,508) than passing yards (1,456).

LAST QUESTION

Tampa Bay Coach Ray Perkins said he has known of Craig Heyward’s ability since the running back’s high school days in New Jersey. Perkins also said he wasn’t surprised when Heyward gained 155 yards against his Buccaneers in the Saints’ 35-7 victory.

That having been said, Perkins yanked off his microphone and abruptly terminated his postgame news conference when asked if his team was prepared for such a performance by Heyward.

“Based on last week (Heyward gained 122 yards against Cincinnati), you think we didn’t prepare for it? That would have been pretty stupid,” Perkins said.

The reporter apologized and said he didn’t mean it that way. “Whether you meant it or not, that’s what you said,” Perkins said and walked out.

NO SALE

Former player Reggie McKenzie may have become the first director of marketing and sales to draw a 15-yard penalty in Seattle’s 17-16 victory over Kansas City.

In the second quarter, Seattle quarterback Dave Krieg and John L. Williams combined on a 44-yard pass play. An official indicated Williams had gone out of bounds on the Kansas City 18, but McKenzie ran to the official as he stood on the sideline, and began waving his arms wildly and yelling in his face.

A yellow flag flew, and instead of first down on the 18, Seattle had first down on the 34.

“I didn’t see what happened,” said Coach Chuck Knox, who ran over and ordered McKenzie away. “I just told everybody to get back and stay there.”

IN QUOTES

New Orleans running back Craig Heyward, who has been booed in the past by Saints fans: “I never knew they were booing me, but now that you tell me, to heck with them.”

Seattle Coach Chuck Knox after the Seahawks pulled out a last-second victory over Kansas City: “I don’t know how many more of these games I can take.”

New England defensive end Brent Williams after the Patriots lost to Indianapolis, 13-10: “Anybody that takes consolation in a close loss is just fooling themselves. People don’t pay their money to see football. They pay their money to see winning football.”

Ram Coach John Robinson on the 9-0 New York Giants: “We couldn’t compete with their efficiency.”

San Diego Coach Dan Henning on cornerback Gill Byrd, who has seven interceptions--four in the past three games: “He’s got more receptions than some of our receivers.”

Denver quarterback John Elway on the 3-6 Broncos: “I told you guys at the beginning of the season, this was the best team I’ve ever been on. I’ll never say that again.”

INJURIES

The Rams lost wide receiver Henry Ellard to a slight hamstring pull in the first half of a 31-7 loss to the New York Giants.

Running back John Stephens of New England was listed as day-to-day after sustaining a bruised left knee late in the first quarter of the Patriots’ 13-10 loss to Indianapolis.

Tampa Bay quarterback Chris Chandler sustained a concussion on a third-quarter sack by Rickey Jackson and Jim Wilks in the Buccaneers’ 35-7 loss to New Orleans. . . . Buccaneer defensive end Jim Skow suffered a severely sprained left elbow in the first quarter and was sidelined. Wide receiver Danny Peebles was taken from the field with an injured left knee in the second quarter.

A shoulder injury sidelined Chicago quarterback Jim Harbaugh midway through the fourth quarter of the Bears’ 30-24 victory over Atlanta.

A sprained right knee forced Miami receiver Mark Clayton to sit out the second half of the Dolphins’ 17-3 victory over the New York Jets.

Wide receiver Andre Reed of Buffalo left the game with a sprained left ankle in the first quarter of the Bills’ 45-14 victory over Phoenix.