Pro Football SPOTLIGHT

NOTEWORTHY

The Seattle-Washington game drew a crowd of 56,454, the Redskins’ 206th consecutive sellout at RFK Stadium, the longest streak in the NFL. . . . Seattle, winless in season openers since 1988, is now 5-14 in such games. . . . It marked the first time in franchise history the Redskins entered a season with a quarterback who had not thrown a pass in a Washington uniform. . . . The Chiefs’ victory over the Saints gave Joe Montana a 15-2 record in games he has started against New Orleans. He is 10-0 in the Superdome, 8-0 while with the 49ers. He also had a victory against Denver in the Super Bowl after the 1989 season. . . . Kansas City’s touchdown on its first series marked the third consecutive opener a New Orleans opponent scored on its first drive. . . . Marcus Allen’s one-yard touchdown for Kansas City in the second quarter was his 92nd rushing touchdown, fourth-best in history. It also was his 114th career touchdown, fifth-best in history. . . . Morten Andersen’s 48-yard field goal in the second quarter marked the 159th consecutive game in which the Saints’ kicker has scored at least one point, extending the second longest streak in history and longest among active players. . . . The Bengals had never given up a punt and kickoff return for a touchdown in the same game until Sunday against Cleveland. . . . Coach Dave Shula fell to 8-25 at the start of his third season. The Bengals have lost their last nine AFC Central games.

*

Marshall Faulk became only the third rookie in Colts’ history to rush for 100 yards in his first game, joining Alan Ameche and Randy McMillan. . . . Ernest Givins became Houston’s career leader in receiving yards with 65 on three receptions, all in the first half. Givins has 7,478 yards, one more than Drew Hill. . . . Center Bruce Matthews tied Gregg Bingham and Mike Munchak for second place on the Oilers’ career list of seasons played, starting his 12th. Elvin Bethea holds the club record of 16. . . . The Bears scored three offensive touchdowns for the first time since getting four against the Buccaneers last year in the third week. . . . The Minnesota Vikings lost for only the fourth time in 17 games against NFC Central rivals during Coach Dennis Green’s tenure. . . . The Packers’ Sterling Sharpe extended his team record to 88 games in which he has caught at least one pass. . . . Redskin receiver Henry Ellard became the 12th player in history to catch 600 passes, on a reception in the last play of the third quarter. . . . Dave Meggett needs just 231 more punt return yards to move past Emlen Tunnell in first place on the Giants’ career punt return yardage list. . . . Rodney Hampton now needs just 20 yards to move past Ron Johnson (3,732) into third place on the Giants’ career rushing list. . . . The Cowboys haven’t yielded a first-half touchdown in their last six regular-season games dating to a 16-14 Thanksgiving Day loss to Miami. They have permitted only 17 touchdowns in their last 16 regular-season games.

FEW CONVERTS TO NEW RULE

NFL coaches, given a chance to wheel and deal, looked at the new two-point conversion and decided--surprise!--to play it safe.

Only nine of 70 touchdowns resulted in two-point tries during afternoon games. Of the nine attempts, four were successful.

Cleveland holder Tom Tupa became the first player to score under the new rule, running in after a fake kick. Miami’s Terry Kirby also ran in from the 2-yard line and Houston’s Bucky Richardson passed to Pat Carter for the other successful conversion.

The Oilers, Arizona and Pittsburgh failed on two-point passes.

In exhibition games, coaches were much more willing to take advantage of the new option. Of the 251 touchdowns, there were 65 two-point tries (26%). Teams were successful on 26 (40%) of their two-pointers.

This is the first season the NFL has permitted two-point tries. The old AFL allowed them, as do current college rules.

Kirby scored on a dive play, pulling Miami within 21-18 midway through the third quarter. The Dolphins wound up beating New England, 39-35.

“The two-point conversion was important because it put the Patriots in position where they had to go for a touchdown at the end,” Miami coach Don Shula said.

Bill Belichick, Cleveland’s usually conservative coach, surprised Cincinnati with a two-pointer that made it 11-0 late in the first quarter. The Browns lined up to kick, but Tupa, a reserve quarterback, ran through a big hole on the left side. Cleveland won, 28-20.

BACK (SOB) IN NEW YORK....

While Fox showed off its new NFL cast, CBS, which had televised NFL games since 1956, aired paid programming from 12-12:30 p.m., then began 5 1/2 hours of U.S. Open tennis coverage.

At the National Tennis Center, CBS Sports veteran Pat O’Brien opened the tennis coverage like this: “In an environment where all channels look the same, we offer an alternative. Welcome to OUR pre-game show.”

In the background was a monitor tuned in to Fox.

A sanguine O’Brien said CBS realizes what has been lost.

“Are we the headline of the day?” he said. “Absolutely not. It’s the first day of football. With no baseball and people dying to get involved with their teams, that’s the headline.”

WELCOME BACK, WE GUESS

Sterling (No Comment) Sharpe, who walked out on the Green Bay Packers the day before their opener but returned the same day--reportedly after he was promised a $7 million bonus next season--caught a 14-yard touchdown pass in the Packers’ 16-10 victory over the Vikings.

His teammates were happy to see him, in a way.

“I said something he probably didn’t like, but he went out and played his head off,” said Packers quarterback Brett Favre.

Said Coach Mike Holmgren: “Say what you want to, these types of things are distracting. I applaud the players for playing as well as they did through this.”

Sharpe, as usual, had no comment.

WE’RE STILL WITH YOU, NORV

Redskins owner Jack Kent Cooke, whose impatience is legendary, fired Coach Richie Petitbon after one season and replaced him with Cowboys’ offensive coordinator Norv Turner.

Turner’s offense, looking anything but coordinated, wilted Sunday in a 28-7 loss at home to the Seahawks. Starting quarterback John Friesz was intercepted twice. No. 1 pick Heath Shuler was sacked twice in his first two possessions.

Said Seahawk Coach Tom Flores: “Washington is going through what we were going through the past few years.”

THERE’S A NEW MARSHALL IN TOWN

Meet Marshall Faulk, NFL superstar.

In his pro debut, the former San Diego State ace rushed for 143 yards and three touchdowns for the Colts. He’d have done more but Coach Ted Marchibroda took him out midway through the third quarter.

“The butterflies weren’t there today,” said Faulk. “I knew what I had to do. The offensive line told me what to do. They told me, you can run the ball in this league.

“It felt great getting into the open field. But it’s not the long runs that really got us to win this game. It’s the constant first downs, the banging for five and 10 yards and getting in on third-and-one and getting the first downs. That’s what got us to win this game.”

Said Oilers Coach Jack Pardee: “He was a great player today. He’s going to have a great career if some catastrophe doesn’t happen. He can run the ball, he has great vision, great speed and does it all. We couldn’t tackle him.”

The Colts won, 45-21. All six Indianapolis touchdowns were scored by players who had joined the team since the end of last season when it went 4-12.

THAT’S THE TRICK

NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue said the league is considering a new method of solving the difficult problem of realignment.

Pull the new divisions out of a hat.

This is not another Fox promotion. He actually said this.

“We would take two or three plans that were all approved by 21 owners, and then draw one at random,” Tagliabue said before the Steelers-Cowboys game. “That way, it would be equal risk and benefit for everybody.”

Tagliabue, who said a resolution on expansion-forced realignment would probably not take place in late September as once hoped, noted that there was precedent for such a blind draw.

“Pete Rozelle did the same thing in 1969, the last time there was realignment,” Tagliabue said. “As long as each of the two or three plans was approved by the owners, everybody would have a chance to benefit.”

Tagliabue’s other alternative is to drop the Charlotte Hornets into the AFC Central and Jacksonville Jaguars into the NFC West, as those are the two conferences with just four teams.

He said he might still pursue that alternative as a last resort.

INJURY REPORT

Oiler quarterback Cody Carlson, starting his first game after the departure of Warren Moon, suffered a second-degree separation of his left shoulder and left the game in the third quarter. . . . Redskin safety Keith Taylor suffered a third-degree tear of his right Achilles’ tendon on a non-contact play in the fourth quarter and will be out for the season. Taylor was scheduled to undergo surgery at Arlington Hospital on Sunday night.

QUOTEWORTHY

Saints lineman Frank Warren after the Chiefs’ Joe Montana passed for 315 yards and ran his Superdome record to 10-0: “The guy is unbelievable. He hasn’t lost a thing. He comes here and waves his magic wand around and we all fall down. It’s unbelievable, except it keeps happening.”

Phil Simms’ replacement, Giant quarterback Dave Brown, after beating the Eagles, 28-23: “I have a lot more respect for Phil having gone through it for 15 years here. I might have aged 30 years in this game here.”

The Falcons’ Andre Rison, after a 31-28 overtime loss to the Lions: “We play the Rams next week. And I’m guaranteeing a win. You can put that out all over the country, I’m guaranteeing we’ll win the game.”

Lion Jason Hanson, who kicked a game-winning 37-yard field goal in overtime after injuring his leg making a tackle: “I couldn’t feel a thing. It was all a blur. I even missed the net on the sideline when I tried a practice kick.”

HOW THEY STAND

AMERICAN CONFERENCE

WEST W L T Pct. PF PA Kansas City Chiefs 1 0 0 1.000 30 17 San Diego Chargers 1 0 0 1.000 37 34 Seattle Seahawks 1 0 0 1.000 28 7 Raiders 0 0 0 .000 0 0 Denver Broncos 0 1 0 .000 34 37 CENTRAL W L T Pct. PF PA Cleveland Browns 1 0 0 1.000 28 20 Cincinnati Bengals 0 1 0 .000 20 28 Houston Oilers 0 1 0 .000 21 45 Pittsburgh Steelers 0 1 0 .000 9 26 EAST W L T Pct. PF PA Indianapolis Colts 1 0 0 1.000 45 21 Miami Dolphins 1 0 0 1.000 39 35 New York Jets 1 0 0 1.000 23 3 Buffalo Bills 0 1 0 .000 3 23 New England Patriots 0 1 0 .000 35 39

*

NATIONAL CONFERENCE

WEST W L T Pct. PF PA Rams 1 0 0 1.000 14 12 San Francisco 49ers 0 0 0 .000 0 0 Atlanta Falcons 0 1 0 .000 28 31 New Orleans Saints 0 1 0 .000 17 30 CENTRAL W L T Pct. PF PA Chicago Bears 1 0 0 1.000 21 9 Detroit Lions 1 0 0 1.000 31 28 Green Bay Packers 1 0 0 1.000 16 10 Minnesota Vikings 0 1 0 .000 10 16 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 0 1 0 .000 9 21 EAST W L T Pct. PF PA Dallas Cowboys 1 0 0 1.000 26 9 New York Giants 1 0 0 1.000 28 23 Arizona Cardinals 0 1 0 .000 12 14 Philadelphia Eagles 0 1 0 .000 23 28 Washington Redskins 0 1 0 .000 7 28

THIS WEEK

SUNDAY’S RESULTS

* Rams 14, Arizona 12

* Detroit 31, Atlanta 28 (OT)

* Indianapolis 45, Houston 21

* Cleveland 28, Cincinnati 20

* Kansas City 30, New Orleans 17

* Green Bay 16, Minnesota 10

* N.Y. Giants 28, Philadelphia 23

* Seattle 28, Washington 7

* Chicago 21, Tampa Bay 9

* Dallas 26, Pittsburgh 9

* Miami 39, New England 35

* N.Y. Jets 23, Buffalo 3

* San Diego 37, Denver 34

TONIGHT’S GAME

* Raiders at San Francisco, 6 p.m.

NEXT WEEK

SUNDAY’S GAMES

* Seattle at Raiders

* Rams at Atlanta

* San Francisco at Kansas City

* Buffalo at New England

* Indianapolis at Tampa Bay

* Detroit at Minnesota

* Miami vs. Green Bay at Milwaukee

* Pittsburgh at Cleveland

* Cincinnati at San Diego

* Denver at N.Y. Jets

* Houston at Dallas

* Washington at New Orleans

* N.Y. Giants at Arizona

MONDAY’S GAME

* Chicago at Philadelphia, 6 p.m.

BY THE NUMBERS

TOP 10 TOUCHDOWN SCORERS

Player Yrs Rush Rec Ret TD Jim Brown 9 16 20 0 126 Walter Payton 13 110 15 0 125 *-Jerry Rice 10 6 118 0 124 John Riggins 14 104 12 0 116 *-Marcus Allen 13 92 21 1 114 Lenny Moore 12 63 48 2 113 Don Hutson 11 3 99 3 105 Steve Largent 14 1 100 0 101 Franco Harris 13 91 9 0 100 Eric Dickerson 11 90 6 0 96

ALL-TIME RECEPTION LEADERS

Player Yrs Rec Yards TD *-Art Monk 16 889 12,031 65 Steve Largent 14 819 13,089 100 James Lofton 16 764 14,004 75 Charlie Joiner 18 750 12,146 65 *-Jerry Rice 10 708 11,776 118 Ozzie Newsome 13 662 7,980 47 Charley Taylor 13 649 9,110 79 Drew Hill 14 634 9,831 60 Don Maynard 15 633 11,834 88 Raymond Berry 13 631 9,275 68 Gary Clark 9 612 9,560 62 *-Henry Ellard 12 600 9,866 48

*-active

ACTIVE COACHES WITH 100 VICTORIES

Coach Yrs W L T PCT Don Shula 32 328 158 6 .675 Chuck Knox 22 190 146 1 .565 Dan Reeves 14 130 85 1 .605 Marv Levy 14 120 88 0 .577 Marty Schottenheimer 11 100 64 1 .610 Tom Flores 12 100 80 0 .556

TOP PERFORMANCES

PASSING

Player, Team Att. Cmp. Yds. TD DAN MARINO, Dolphins 42 23 473 5 DREW BLEDSOE, Patriots 51 32 421 4 JOHN ELWAY, Broncos 46 36 371 3 RANDALL CUNNINGHAM, Eagles 39 20 344 2 JIM EVERETT, Saints 37 26 326 2 JOE MONTANA, Chiefs 33 24 315 2 JEFF GEORGE, Falcons 37 29 281 3 TROY AIKMAN, Cowboys 32 21 245 1 STAN HUMPHRIES, Chargers 22 12 232 3

RECEIVING

Player, Team Rec. Yds. TD IRVING FRYAR, Dolphins 5 211 3 ANDRE RISON, Falcons 14 193 2 MICHAEL IRVIN, Cowboys 8 139 0 WILLIE DAVIS, Chiefs 7 109 1 HENRY ELLARD, Redskins 7 105 0 QUINN EARLY, Saints 8 101 0 SHANNON SHARPE, Broncos 9 97 1

RUSHING

Player, Team Car. Yds. TD EMMITT SMITH, Cowboys 31 171 1 MARSHALL FAULK, Colts 23 143 3 BARRY SANDERS, Lions 27 120 0 CHRIS WARREN, Seahawks 22 100 2 NATRONE MEANS, Chargers 22 96 1 ERRIC PEGRAM, Falcons 23 93 1