PRO FOOTBALL SPOTLIGHT / A GLANCE AT THIS WEEK IN THE NFL : THE WAY WE WERE

Two weeks shy of the sixth anniversary marking the famous Halloween Day trade, the Rams are in turmoil and Eric Dickerson has retired.

In hindsight, the three-team deal that sent Dickerson from the Rams to the Indianapolis Colts in 1987 was regrettable for both parties.

Dickerson, arguably the greatest runner ever, finished his distinguished career as a mop-up man in Atlanta, a blocking back in games already decided.

The Falcons traded the 33-year old Dickerson to Green Bay last week, but he failed the Packers’ physical because of a bulging disk in his neck.

Sunday morning, Dickerson was the in-studio guest on CBS’ NFL Today and all but announced his retirement.

“I don’t think I’ll ever put on a uniform again,” Dickerson said.

Dickerson was warned that he risked serious injury if he continued playing.

“The doctor explained it to me very well,” Dickerson said. “I hadn’t had it explained that well before.”

He retires as the NFL’s second all-time rusher with 13,260 yards, 3,446 shy of Walter Payton’s record.

After two 1,000-yard seasons with the Colts, Dickerson’s production and attitude soured. He had not rushed for 1,000 yards since 1989.

In the midst of a bitter 1987 contract dispute, the Rams traded Dickerson to the Colts in a three-team swap that included the Buffalo Bills, who ended up with linebacker Cornelius Bennett.

In exchange for Dickerson, the Rams received three first-round draft choices and three second-round picks.

Unlike the Dallas Cowboys, who used the draft choices acquired in the Herschel Walker trade to build a Super Bowl champion, the Rams blew their chances.

With the Dickerson picks, the Rams selected wide receiver Aaron Cox, running backs Gaston Green and Cleveland Gary, linebackers Frank Stams and Fred Strickland and cornerback Darryl Henley.

Of the six, only Gary, a non-starter, remains with the Rams. Henley recently left the team after it was made public that he is being investigated for possible involvement in a drug ring.

So what if Dickerson had stayed?

“You know, sometimes you think about it,” Dickerson said. “But I can’t say I regret it.”

GO TEAM

Is it any wonder why the 2-4 Houston Oilers are having problems? After being removed from Houston’s last offensive series of the first half Sunday, wide receiver Haywood Jeffires glared and pointed at Kevin Gilbride, the team’s offensive coordinator.

Jeffires, not one to put personal goals ahead of the team, had his streak of at least one catch in 53 games end against New England.

He and Gilbride shook hands at halftime. “It was just a misunderstanding,” Jeffires said. “Right now, I’m unhappy with some things.”

The Oilers, by the way, won the game.

You should hear them bicker when they lose.

AN NFL POP QUIZ

Leroy Thompson. Lewis Tillman. Natrone Means.

Just one question. Who are they?

Ladies and gentlemen, this is the NFL.

In a year in which the league’s marquee stars are dropping like flies, anonymous newcomers are taking over the headlines.

Thompson? Pittsburgh Steelers, of course. Sunday, he took over for an injured Barry Foster at the half and rushed for 101 yards. Foster left with a bruised shoulder.

Tillman? Easy. New York Giants. He’s the guy who’s replacing star runner Rodney Hampton. So who’s the real star here? In the Giants’ win over Philadelphia, Tillman rushed for 169 yards and scored two touchdowns.

Means. Did you say Chargers? He’s a rookie runner from North Carolina. Sunday, in a losing cause, Means scored the team’s first touchdown in three home games with a one-yard run.

SILENT SUNDAY

Outlined against a gray October sky, on a perfect day for football, on fields of natural grass, here in the sports capital of the world, both the Coliseum and Anaheim Stadium were dormant.

Remember when NFL teams used to play on Sunday?

In the modern age, where television money dictates the where and the when, it came to be that only 16 of the 28 teams took to the fields Sunday, the Rams and Raiders not being among the participants.

How could this happen?

Well, eight teams had byes. The Rams lost to the Atlanta Falcons last Thursday. The Raiders play tonight against the Broncos in Denver.

For the next appearance of your favorite team, please check your local listings.

FOLLOW THE BOUNCING QBs

Quarterbacks come, quarterbacks go. They get the start, they get the hook. They get hurt, they get better. They come off the bench.

A review of Sunday’s on-going dramas.

Rodney Peete seemed to establish himself as the No. 1 driver in Detroit as he completed two second-quarter touchdown passes to lead the Lions to a 30-10 victory over Seattle.

Warren Moon of the Houston Oilers, benched for the first time in his NFL career, took over for the injured Cody Carlson and passed for two touchdowns in relief in the Oilers’ 28-14 victory over New England.

Vinny Testaverde, starting in place of Bernie Kosar, Cleveland’s $27 million backup, tossed three touchdowns passes in the Browns’ 28-17 win over Cincinnati. Kosar now counts his money and the hours until Tuesday’s 1 p.m. trading deadline.

Ken O’Brien, subbing for the injured Bubby Brister, who was subbing for the injured Randall Cunningham, completed 19 of 32 passes for 210 yards and one touchdown in a losing cause for Philadelphia.

That Ken O’Brien? Yep. Just when you were trying to forget, the Eagles signed him Oct. 4 as a free agent.

Cincinnati starter David Klingler suffered a bruised lower back in the loss to Cleveland and was replaced by Jay Schroeder, who completed 19 of 37 passes for 172 yards and two touchdowns.

That Jay Schroeder? Yep.

Joe Montana, who sat out last week with an injured hamstring, made the start and the finish in Kansas City’s 17-14 win over the Chargers.

Add Montana: Think anyone in San Francisco took note that it was the 27th fourth-quarter comeback win of Joe’s career?

DO WE REALLY NEED THE REST?

Most teams look forward to bye weeks. It’s a chance to regroup, rest the wounded, reassess a team’s chances, maybe take a few days off to break up the season.

Don’t tell it to the Seattle Seahawks. Since byes were initiated in 1990, the Seahawks have never won after having an extra week off. Seattle is 0-5 after byes and has been outscored 94-41 in those games.

Sunday, the Seahawks lost to Detroit, 30-10. Looking ahead: Seattle’s next bye is Nov. 21.

LUMPS AND BRUISES

Phoenix rookie running back Garrison Hearst, who scored his first NFL touchdown Sunday, also suffered his first NFL injury. Hearst, the third overall pick in the draft, injured his left leg and was taken off the field on a golf cart. Team orthopedic physician Russell Chick said Hearst sprained the medial collateral ligament of his left knee and would be out two to three weeks. The injury will be re-evaluated Monday.

. . . Mike Sherrard, the New York Giants’ leading receiver, will undergo and MRI today to determine the extent of a left hip injury . . .

. . . Steeler running back Barry Foster bruised his shoulder in the first half and did not return.

QUOTEWORTHY

Seattle Seahawk defensive lineman Cortez Kennedy, on Detroit Lion running back Barry Sanders: “Barry’s unbelievable. If you don’t wrap up on him, he’ll kill you every time. He’s the best running back in the league. He has so many moves, and he never stops, so if you don’t finish him with your first shot, you’ll never get him.”

Philadelphia Eagles linebacker Seth Joyner, after his team’s 21-10 loss to the New York Giants: “At some point in time, you can only do so much rebuilding. We are at the point right now where we are decimated. We can’t get the job done if you don’t have the horses.”

Houston quarterback Warren Moon, who lost his starting job but came off the bench to lead the Oilers to victory: “There are still a lot of things swirling around in my head . I’m still unsure of a lot of things going on around here, but I know we won the game.”

New England Patriot quarterback Scott Secules, who completed 23 of 40 passes in defeat: “Who cares about all the completions and that kind of thing when you can’t follow them up and get in the end zone and you make stupid throws for interceptions . “

Houston Oiler defensive end Sean Jones, after his team improved to 2-4 with a 28-14 victory over the New England Patriots: “We didn’t shovel any more dirt on top of us. We were happy that we won the game, but obviously it was a game that we had to win ... and a game that we should win.”

Pittsburgh Steeler cornerback Rod Woodson, after his team’s victory against the New Orleans Saints: “If we’re not the NFL’s best defense, we’re right there. The NFC is supposed to be the black-and-blue conference, and the AFC is supposed to be a finesse conference, but I dare you to play the Steelers and say we’re not a physical team.”

NOTEWORTHY

Cornerback Eric Davis of the San Francisco 49ers returned Emmitt Smith’s first-quarter fumble for a touchdown to give the 49ers an early 7-0 lead. It was the first time a Dallas opponent had returned a fumble for a score since the final regular season game last year, when Chicago’s Chris Zorich returned Curvin Richards’ miscue for a score.

Richards was soon released after the fumble.

Expect the Cowboys to cut Emmitt Smith some slack.

. . . New England Patriots quarterback Scott Secules, who threw just 70 passes in his first six pro seasons, three as backup to Miami’s Dan Marino, threw 40 on Sunday. He completed 23 of them for 280 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions . . . The Pittsburgh Steelers have allowed an NFL-low 56.8 rushing yards per game . . . The Detroit Lions franchise played its 800th game since the Portsmouth Spartans moved north from Ohio to the Motor City in 1934.

. . .The Bengals, 0-6, are off to their worst start since way back in . . . 1991, when they opened the season at 0-8 . . . In its last three games, the Pittsburgh Steelers defense has scored three touchdowns and only surrendered two . . . Steelers’ quarterback Neil O’Donnell’s streak of consecutive passes without an interception ended Sunday at 109 . . . Although it was in a losing cause, Washington Redskin receiver Art Monk caught a pass for the 154th consecutive game. He had two catches in the game, increasing his NFL career record to 865. Monk still needs 23 yards to pass Don Maynard for fourth in career receiving yardage. He currently has a total of 11,837 yards in 13 1/2 years . . . In place of the injured Garrison Hearst, rookie Ron Moore of Phoenix gained 80 yards in 13 carries. Prior to Sunday, Moore had gained a total of 109 yards in 25 carries.

The Giants’ 21-10 victory over the Eagles ended Philadelphia’s five-game winning streak over New York. The last time the Giants had beaten the Eagles was Sept. 9, 1990, when they won 27-20 at Giants Stadium. Philadelphia had won nine of the previous 10 meetings, while Eagle Coach Rich Kotite, a former Giants’ tight end, had a 4-0 mark against New York.