Suddenly, Rams’ Everett Doesn’t Dread Monday : Pro football: His play in near-miss against San Francisco 49ers reminds of the way things used to be.

A day later, and Jim Everett still was smiling. For the first time in maybe two years, he had every right.

Everett, who has seen his star plummet the last two years, looked relaxed and confident Monday, recounting how he looked so relaxed and confident Sunday in the Rams’ invigorating game against the San Francisco 49ers. They lost, 27-24, but Everett and his teammates were sharp.

How sharp was he? He dropped back to pass 29 times and did everything right 28 times.

He completed has first 12 passes, 20 of 24 overall, passed for two touchdowns, threw the ball away when nobody was open and found his receivers when they were. The only time his coaches graded him unsatisfactory was on an incomplete pass that was nullified by a holding penalty.

And when he was asked if his performance Sunday reminded him of some almost-forgotten times--maybe as long ago as 1989--Everett grinned like a Cheshire cat having a very good day.

“Like old times? Felt like good times,” Everett said. “You know, it felt good to have a smile out there and (have) things rolling.

“We didn’t win that ballgame, and that’s what it all comes down to doing, but it felt good to be effective and an effective leader.”

This is the way it used to be most of the time with the Rams in the pre-collapse days of 1988 and ‘89, when Everett was nearly unstoppable and the offense was one long run to daylight.

The present Rams had gone 10 games without scoring 20 or more points, and Everett had gone four games this season looking as if he might never generate that many points again.

Sunday, though, whether it was zipping short passes to open tight ends eight times for 99 yards and a touchdown, or flicking sharp sideline patterns to wide receivers, Everett was in command.

His first-year position coach, Ted Tollner, said that of all the things he saw in Everett on Sunday, he probably was most impressed by his steadiness under fire in a fluid pocket.

“The thing I liked the best was the way he focused up the field,” Tollner said. “When he was moving in the pocket, there was total 100% focus up the field on what was going on from a coverage and receiver standpoint, and yet he moved with an ease in the pocket. It was a feel of avoiding the pressure, but not a focus on it. The focus was totally up the field.

“That comes, I think, as you’re getting confidence in the game.”

Over the first four games, Everett completed only 50.9% of his passes and threw seven interceptions, giving him a quarterback-rating of 52.2.

In those games, under a steady pass rush, Everett appeared often to fall into the same, unsteady habits of the last two years, hurrying passes and anticipating pressure that sometimes was not there.

The Rams know that a lot of Everett’s game has to do with his confidence, and that he has had many of his darkest moments when his attitude has been shaky. Sunday, Everett started fast.

“I think it was the first time all year . . . that his first ball was caught,” Tollner said. “Then he got into a string where he goes to 12 (passes), whatever it was. You have something positive happen early and you can get on a roll.

“I felt a different air of confidence as the game went on.”