‘Little’ Butcher Produces Two Big Plays : Turning point: Special teams player/linebacker recovers one fumble, forces another to set up touchdowns.

When Philadelphia cut Paul Butcher in 1989, then-Eagle Coach Buddy Ryan told reporters he should have known better than to acquire a player from Detroit because “they go 5-11 and they think it’s a good year.”

The Rams were 5-11 in 1990 and nobody was celebrating. They were 1-3 before Sunday’s game with Green Bay and contemplating the horror of another five-victory season when special teams specialist/reserve linebacker Paul Butcher took the matter into his own hands.

He took the ball into his hands. He took Vai Sikahema into his hands. And he performed CPR on the Rams, a team that was gasping for itslast breath.

A loss Sunday--everyone associated with the Rams agreed--would have been a death knell for their playoff hopes. So, with an offense that seems virtually incapable of scoring a touchdown, Butcher took over, twice showing his teammates the way to the end zone.

With the Rams trailing, 7-6, late in the first half, Butcher, who was in the game at linebacker because of an injury to Brett Faryniarz, jumped on a loose ball fumbled by Packer fullback Allen Rice at the Green Bay 15-yard line.

Rice was attempting to make his way around right end when Ram defensive end Karl Wilson caught him from behind and jarred the ball loose. Butcher shed a block and fell on the ball.

He thought he had a chance to get up and score but was pinned on the ground . . . by a teammate.

“I was doing my job, containing on the play,” Butcher said. “I jammed the tight end, saw the ball on the ground, threw the tight end out of the way and jumped on the ball.

“I tried to get up and Larry Kelm tackled me. I said, ‘C’mon man, you’re tackling the wrong color jersey.’ ”

Five plays later, Robert Delpino dived over from two yards and the Rams had a 13-7 lead. On the ensuing kickoff, Butcher tattooed Sikahema at about the 15, dislodging the ball, which popped into the hands of Anthony Newman, who never broke stride in scoring the touchdown that broke the Packers’ backs.

“We’ve got the little guys on this team playing well,” Coach John Robinson said. “We’re struggling now with some of the featured people who haven’t gotten into rhythm yet. The guys who are supposed to carry the team are off to a slow start, but a lot of no-name people have played well.”

Butcher can live with the no-name reference, but don’t call him a “little guy.” He’s listed at a charitable 6 feet and 230 pounds, but looks smaller. Robinson said Butcher “just lacks size, or else he’d be a starter because he certainly has the competitiveness and intelligence to be a starter.”

Butcher’s response?

“I say to the Coach, ‘Baloney!’ ” he said. “I can go out there any time. I think the smaller the dog, the meaner the bite. That’s my philosophy. Just put me out there and I’ll show him.”

In case you hadn’t noticed, Butcher has the correct mind set for a special teams player.

“He’s a guy after my own heart,” defensive end Kevin Greene said. “He’s a psychotic, schizophrenic-type personality.”

When someone asked if he was attempting to dislodge the ball from Sikahema, Butcher shook his head. “No, I was just trying to kill him.”

Butcher had made an earlier attempt on Sikahema’s life, drilling the Packer kick returner as he fielded a punt on the first play of the second quarter. Reserve fullback Mosi Tatupu came over to Butcher on the sideline after the play and told him, “Hit him like that again, Butch, and he’ll fumble.”

And Butcher credited Glenell Sanders with providing him that chance, chasing Sikahema into his path.

“Glenell forced him right to me,” Butcher said. “He tried to juke me but I stuck with him and got the hit. It felt like I hit him right in the numbers and I guess I got my hand through and popped the ball loose, but I’m not sure, it happened so fast.”

Newman wasn’t too sure what happened either, except that all of a sudden a football was tumbling through the air in front of his facemask. He snatched it out of the air and sprinted untouched over the goal line.

“I was thinking I was going to make the hit and then Butcher came out of nowhere and hit the guy really good,” Newman said. “The ball popped up, I happened to be there and caught it out of the air and rammed it in. I had the easy part. Butch did the dirty work.”

That, of course, is just the kind of job he revels in. So maybe it was appropriate that Butcher did his celebrating from the seat of his pants.

“It all happened so fast,” Butcher said. “I saw Anthony Newman in the end zone and the crowd was going crazy and I was sitting on the ground saying, ‘Hey, that was me that caused that.’

“It makes you feel good.”

It was an all-around feel-good kind of day for Butcher, who not only had four special team tackles, the forced fumble and the fumble recovery, but also saw considerable action at linebacker, rotating with Fred Strickland after Faryniarz’s injury.

Butcher enjoyed having a chance to hit opponents without sprinting 50 yards first, but he understands his lot in life.

“I love to play linebacker, but I have to approach every game like I’m going to make something happen on special teams. I proved myself at linebacker in training camp and they know they can trust me as a backup. I mean, I feel I could be a starter, but special teams, that’s why I’m in the NFL.

“That’s why I’m here, to make things happen, get the crowd excited, make some big hits. Special teams are my forte. Everyone is always saying I’m undersized, but after six years in the league, I think I’ve proved them wrong.”

He was clearly a big man for the Rams Sunday.

And what does he think Ryan would say about his play now?

“I couldn’t care less,” he said, smiling.