PRO FOOTBALL SPOTLIGHT : A GLANCE AT THIS WEEK IN THE NFL

STEVE TO THE RESCUE

Sorry, Al Davis, but the feeling here is that you made a mistake.

For a man who is said to run the Raiders by the motto, “Simply score more points than the other team, men” (we are paraphrasing, of course), it seemed to go against Davis’ grain to let a talented player waste away because of a grudge over a contract dispute, but that apparently is what happened to Steve Beuerlein.

As a rookie quarterback in 1988, Beuerlein split time with Jay Schroeder. In 1989, he started seven games, and led the Raiders with 13 touchdown passes.

Then came the big freeze. Beuerlein held out during training camp in 1990, and as Schroeder led the Raiders to the AFC championship game, a healthy Beuerlein spent the season on the inactive list, never getting into a game.

He seemed to have won the No. 2 job in training camp this year, but on Aug. 25 he was traded to the Dallas Cowboys for an undisclosed draft choice.

Beuerlein probably could have started for a number of teams, but the Cowboys aren’t one of them. Troy Aikman is possibly the NFC’s top quarterback and he is having a solid season.

But with the Cowboys leading the undefeated Washington Redskins Sunday, Aikman suffered a sprained knee and Beuerlein was thrust into action in relief.

He earned a save, throwing a touchdown pass to Michael Irvin and engineering a clock-killing drive that led to a crucial field goal as the Cowboys ended the Redskins’ dreams of a perfect season, 24-21.

Beuerlein completed seven of 12 passes for 109 yards, but it was his cool under pressure, with RFK Stadium rocking, that was the most impressive part of his game.

He looked good enough to be a Raider.

NO TURKEYS HERE

For much of the last decade, NFL games on Thanksgiving were pretty much a good time to turn off the TV and start eating.

The teams that have been hosts of the games, the Cowboys and the Detroit Lions, were rarely contenders, which made for thin matchups.

This Thursday, however, the games look a little more appetizing.

Opening things up will be the Lions (8-4), who are unbeaten at home this season, against the first-place Chicago Bears (9-3), who are coming off an overtime loss to Miami.

And the best thing is the chance to watch the amazing Barry Sanders going against the Bears’ defense. Sanders rushed for 220 yards and scored four touchdowns against Minnesota Sunday, pretty much knocking the Vikings out of the playoff race.

The second game, Dallas vs. Pittsburgh, got a lot better Sunday when the Cowboys (7-5) upset the Redskins and the Steelers (5-7) surprised the Houston Oilers, who were unable to wrap up the AFC Central title.

Bon appetit!

THINKING ON PAPER

Random thoughts while watching the Raider-Cincinnati game:

Cincinnati was missing its No. 1 quarterback, running back and wide receiver: Should this count as a real win in the standings?

It’s a good thing Jay Schroeder didn’t have to throw much. The few times he tried, it wasn’t pretty.

Then there was Cincinnati quarterback Don Hollas. Wasn’t that the name of Marlo Thomas’ boyfriend on “That Girl”?

NAMES AND NUMBERS

Pepper Johnson set a New York Giants’ record with 4 1/2 sacks against Tampa Bay. The previous mark was four by Lawrence Taylor on two occasions--against Tampa Bay in 1984 and Philadelphia in 1986.

The New England Patriots are 4-8, but they have victories over two of the three AFC division leaders and almost beat Denver, which is tied for the AFC West lead. . . . Buffalo’s Jim Kelly threw four interceptions, but also tied Joe Ferguson’s team record of 26 touchdown passes in one season when he hooked up with Thurman Thomas for a 10-yard scoring play for the Bills’ only touchdown.

The Washington Redskins recorded their seventh consecutive game without yielding a sack and dumped Dallas quarterbacks seven times. The last sack they gave up was to Philadelphia’s Seth Joyner on the final play of the first quarter in Week 5. They have given up just four sacks all season, while recording 42 of their own. . . . Dallas’ Emmitt Smith rushed for 132 yards against a defense that had yielded just 128 yards rushing in the past three games.

The Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t scored a first-quarter touchdown in their last eight games and 11 of their 12 games. . . . The Houston Oilers managed only 24 rushing yards in 17 carries. . . . The loss was Houston’s first in nine games on artificial turf.

Since Marty Schottenheimer left the Cleveland Browns and became the Kansas City Chiefs’ coach in 1989, the Browns have gone 17-26-1 and the Chiefs have gone 26-17-1. The teams have met three times. Each team has won once, and one game ended in a 10-10 tie. . . . Cleveland has forced a turnover in 11 consecutive games and intercepted a pass in six in a row.

Steve Jordan caught three passes, making him the Minnesota Vikings’ all-time leading receiver, with 401 catches. He passed Ahmad Rashad (400). . . . The last time an opposing back rushed for four touchdowns against the Vikings, as Barry Sanders did Sunday, Minnesota was an NFL expansion team. Lenny Moore and Billy Kilmer turned the trick 30 years ago.

FUM-BULLLL!!!

It’s not one of those records you like to brag about, but Seattle’s Dave Krieg was able to joke about it.

Krieg had two fumbles in the Seahawks’ 13-10 victory over Denver, giving him 106 for his 12-year career. That ties the NFL record set by San Diego’s Dan Fouts from 1973 through 1987.

Krieg started the day in third place behind Roman Gabriel’s 105 career fumbles. So it was quite an effort by the former Milton College star. He trailed, but he never quit.

And what did he say about the record? “I only lost two fumbles? I thought it was at least three or four.”

ZEBRA WATCHING

What do NFL owners think of officiating? CBS polled all 28 this week and aired the results on the “NFL Today” Sunday.

In response to the question, “Does the instant replay make on-field officials indecisive?” 15 owners answered yes, nine no, and four undecided. In reply to the question, “Should these be full-time officials?” the results were eight yes, 18 no, and two undecided.

The network also asked the owners if the instant replay should be used in determining close calls, and they answered 15 yes, 12 no, and 1 undecided. If that was an official vote, replay would be history.

THE BET’S OFF

The dreams of a $1.63-million payoff were dashed Sunday when an 11-game betting string was broken for two baccarat dealers at a Las Vegas casino.

“We were in it to win and we didn’t show,” dealer Sean Rowland said as the Miami Dolphins beat the Chicago Bears, 16-13, in overtime. “That’s life. I think I’ll borrow $10 from mom next year and do it again.”

Rowland and fellow dealer Patty Harris picked 11 consecutive NFL winners to parlay an $80 pool into $103,107.

They plunked down the $103,107 Saturday night on the Bears, who were 7 1/2-point favorites over the Dolphins. The Bears had to win by eight for Harris, Rowland and the six other dealers in their group to win the bet.

The Bears had a 13-3 lead at one point, but the Dolphins rallied for their win and the bettors’ loss.

If the women had won Sunday, and picked winners over the next three weeks, their group would have shared a $1.63-million payout at the end of the season.

“I feel real good,” Rowland said, taking a break Sunday afternoon from her job at the Las Vegas Hilton. “We all feel real good. We gave it our best shot.”

The two women, who alone decided each week’s pick, said they took the Bears because they were at home and Miami does not usually play well in cold weather. They passed on three other games, including two they would have won--Philadelphia at Phoenix and the Raiders at Cincinnati.

Asked if she had reservations about passing those games, Rowland said: “None at all. There were a lot of upsets this week. We pick a team and stick with that team with no reservations.”

Harris, however, said she was a little nervous Saturday night when she and Rowland went to Binion’s Horseshoe, in downtown’s Glitter Gulch, to place their big bet.

“I was so nervous that I took a little shot of cognac to steel my nerves,” she said.

IN QUOTES

Washington cornerback Darrell Green, on the Redskins’ first loss: “The hurt isn’t over not going 16-0, the hurt is losing this game. We’ll come back. It’s just one game.”

Minnesota safety Felix Wright, on Barry Sanders: “We watch him on film. We know he’s very good. But he’s a lot better in person.”

Minnesota Coach Jerry Burns, on 34-14 loss to Detroit: “I can’t think it can get lower than this.”

Phil Simms, who replaced injured Jeff Hostetler: “There were very mixed emotions when I came in. I don’t ever want to play under those circumstances, but that’s always the chance.”

Tampa Bay defensive tackle Reuben Davis: “We got smacked pretty good up in Atlanta. It’s like going to school every day and getting beaten up by the bully. It makes you want to play tougher and smack somebody back.”

Cincinnati Coach Sam Wyche on the 38-14 loss to the Raiders: “I’d like to apologize to our fans and supporters.”

Green Bay tackle Tony Mandarich, asked if the Packers are playing to save Coach Lindy Infante’s job: “We’re playing for the Green Bay Packers. I don’t think he wants us to play for his job, but to win.”

Packer linebacker Brian Noble: “There were a lot of people worrying about the future. We wanted to show that no more changes need to be made.”

Pittsburgh cornerback Richard Shelton, on the Steelers’ victory over Houston in sub-freezing conditions: “It’s hard to come out of that dome and into the snow and cold. You get behind on a day like this and all you’re thinking about is getting on that warm plane and getting home.”