PRO FOOTBALL DAILY REPORT : AROUND THE NFL : Sharpe’s Future Is Secured Financially

Sterling Sharpe, sidelined because of a neck problem that could end his career, would collect between $3 million and $3.5 million from an insurance policy if he is unable to play again, a newspaper reported Friday.

The long-term disability policy pays off if the Green Bay Packer wide receiver proves that football-related injuries ended his career, The Milwaukee Journal said.

The newspaper said it’s believed that Sharpe, not the team, bought the policy.

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The Cleveland Browns-Pittsburgh Steelers divisional playoff today might become the Snow Bowl. The National Weather Service in Pittsburgh issued a winter storm watch that was to extend past today’s 9:35 kickoff. The forecast called for one to three inches of snow, with possible accumulations of up to six inches.

In San Francisco it has been a wet week, with intermittent rain or thunderstorms and winds of up to 30 m.p.h. expected during today’s game between the 49ers and Chicago Bears.

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Seattle Seahawk owners and Miami Coach Dennis Erickson are going to talk, perhaps as early as today, about the team’s vacant coaching job.

Seahawk President David Behring said that Erickson, who coached at Washington State and is a native of the state, will be interviewed for Tom Flores’ old job during Erickson’s weeklong stay in the San Francisco Bay area. Erickson is scheduled to coach the East team in the East-West Shrine game on Jan. 14.

Fired defensive coordinator Rusty Tillman, a 16-year Seattle assistant, said he will interview next week with Buffalo’s Marv Levy and New Orleans’ Jim Mora about defensive coordinator jobs.

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Jerry Clinton, a St. Louis beer distributor, and Jacksonville lawyer Terry Moore, the representative for other potential buyers, met with trustees overseeing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers about purchasing the team.

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The NFC wild-card game between the Minnesota Vikings and the Chicago Bears last Sunday got the highest rating of any program ever telecast on Fox, the network said. The game averaged a 21.0 rating, with a 40 share, according to A.C. Nielsen Media Research. The highest-rated show previously aired on the network was the Oct. 11, 1990, prime time telecast of “The Simpsons,” which scored an 18.6.