THE NFL / BILL PLASCHKE : Real Game Begins After Super Bowl

The man who could be the first to touch a ball in Super Bowl XXX next week is one.

The man who could be the last to touch a ball is also one.

From Norm Johnson to Deion Sanders, the biggest game of the year will highlight the biggest game of the next several months--unrestricted free agency.

On Feb. 17, dozens of top players with expired contracts will begin passing out phone numbers and waiting for calls.

The struggling teams will hire seven or eight.

The good teams will hire one or two. But they are often the one or two that lead them to the Super Bowl.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have five--kicker Johnson, punter Rohn Stark, running back Erric Pegram, defensive tackle Ray Seals and linebacker Kevin Greene.

The Dallas Cowboys have only one. But Sanders should count twice, considering the Steelers probably won’t throw a pass within five yards of him on Jan. 28.

“People around here, when they are giving grades, always give me an F in free agency, but that’s fine with me,” said Jerry Jones, Cowboy owner. “I wanted to flunk that. Because I want stability.”

Others feel different.

Bob Ackles, the personnel whiz who helped build the Philadelphia Eagles into contenders this year, is joining old friend Jimmy Johnson in hopes of doing the same thing with the Miami Dolphins. He knows there can be no better way of doing that than through free agency.

“After three years in this new system, people are starting to treat free agency like the draft,” Ackles said. “They pinpoint a need, and go after somebody to fill that need. And they look at a lot more than just what happens on the field. Nowadays, everybody does homework on these guys’ character.”

And with good reason. Team officials everywhere are still chuckling about the $17 million that the Cleveland Browns gave receiver Andre Rison.

Owner Art Modell had to borrow simply to pay Rison his $5-million bonus. It was the beginning of the end of the Browns in Cleveland.

The right free agent can change a team’s chemistry--witness the charge that linebacker Bryce Paup gave the aging Buffalo Bills.

The wrong free agent can turn a team sour--witness the griping that increased in Miami with the arrival of tight end Eric Green.

Leigh Steinberg, the agent who will control the high end of this year’s market with quarterbacks Jeff George, Neil O’Donnell and Jim Harbaugh, said buyers must beware.

“Football players will never be as modular as basketball or baseball players,” Steinberg said. “If a player can hit a home run in Three Rivers Stadium, he can probably hit one in the Oakland Coliseum. But the offensive linemen who stars for the Steelers might not fit with the Raiders.”

Teams realize this, and thus pay big money to keep their stars at home. There is a reason that neither Steve Young nor Troy Aikman has been a free agent.

But every year, a Deion Sanders or two show up. Plus plenty of Kevin Greenes.

“Free agency is the biggest reason for parity today,” Steinberg said. “No matter who comes out, it is still pro football’s quick fix.”

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A list of the top 20 potential free agents, about half of whom will probably change teams:

1. George, quarterback, Atlanta Falcons. The arm can win a championship, if the head doesn’t drive you crazy first. Perfect for the Oakland Raiders.

2. O’Donnell, quarterback, Pittsburgh Steelers. With a decent Super Bowl, he will be hotter then Scott Mitchell was two years ago. The Eagles would love him.

3. Aeneas Williams, cornerback, Arizona Cardinals. A poor man’s Prime Time. The sort of impact player who could lift the Detroit Lions to the next level.

4. Leon Searcy, tackle, Steelers. Still young enough, 25, to anchor a line for the next 10 years. How do you think little Pegram gained 813 yards, anyway?

5. Harbaugh, quarterback, Indianapolis Colts. More than anybody else, he will benefit from a shortage of top college quarterbacks in the draft. Another strong Raider candidate.

6. Darren Woodson, safety, Cowboys. Even though safeties are not considered difficult to find, a simple background check would move this solid guy to the top of the list. Whichever team he plays for next year, that team will win.

7. (tie) Eric Swann, defensive tackle, Cardinals. It took Reggie White only three seasons to lead the Green Bay Packers to within a breath of the Super Bowl. This guy is younger and stronger.

7. (tie) Shawn Lee, defensive tackle, San Diego Chargers. As if Bobby Beathard would ever let him leave. Then again, isn’t that Anthony Miller in Denver?

9. Bob Whitfield, tackle, Falcons. If he can block in that offense, he can block anywhere.

10. Phillipi Sparks, cornerback, New York Giants. A great season was overshadowed in that long-playing New Jersey circus.

11. Chris Warren, running back, Seattle Seahawks. If the Packers sign him, they will be in the Super Bowl next season. Period.

12. Lomas Brown, tackle, Lions. He’s 32, so only sign him if you’re close.

13. Dale Carter, cornerback, Kansas City Chiefs. A defensive version of George. You must love his athletic ability and ignore reports that he once hit a woman in the face with a slice of pizza.

14. Kimble Anders, fullback, Chiefs. He had his best season when it counted. Some are actually looking at him and thinking, “Daryl Johnston.”

15. Mark Chmura, tight end, Packers. Shop carefully. The Cowboys’ Jay Novacek was once a free agent. But so, too, was the Dolphins’ Eric Green.

16. Rodney Hampton, running back, Giants. A 49er waiting to happen .

17. Robert Porcher, defensive tackle, Lions. If this rising star skips town, the Lions’ playoff hopes may soon follow.

18. Jeff Hostetler, quarterback, Raiders. Has yet to prove he can win without Bill Parcells on the sidelines. But his toughness would make blue-collar teams in St. Louis or Pittsburgh a nice fit.

19. Quentin Coryatt, linebacker, Colts. An interesting case. Could move to a different scheme and become the next Paup. Or will he become another Broderick Thomas?

20. Bryan Cox, linebacker, Dolphins. This should be fun.

PACKER FALLOUT

It took only four hours in Dallas to turn the charming story that was Green Bay into something as messy as week-old snow.

The Packers left town with a coach in the hospital in serious condition. With many of the players upset about perceived unfair treatment from the league, concerning everything from chop blocks to constant regular-season trips to the Cowboys.

And with a small-town cop implying that their defensive star is a phony.

The good news is, receiver coach Gil Haskell is making a strong recovery from a broken skull suffered in a sideline collision in the loss to the Cowboys. He was buoyed by hundreds of letters from Southern California, where he spent 14 years while coaching with USC and the Rams.

“The Haskell family would like to extend its heartfelt thanks to everyone in Los Angeles for their many cards, letters, phone calls and prayers on Gil’s behalf,” said his wife, Nancy, in a statement.

She is the former Nancy Van Acker, who worked in the Ram speakers’ bureau and was their entertainment coordinator.

The bad news for the Packers is, White is taking flack for criticizing the Chattanooga police department during his sermon about race relations and his recently burned-out church.

White criticized police where he was born for failing to solve the 1992 murder of his stepfather, who was found slumped in his car and beaten on the head.

White said, “The Chattanooga police said they were doing their best, but a murderer is still on the loose. I’m tired of hearing how they’re doing their best . . .”

The murder has been publicized frequently on “Crimestoppers.” A $1,000 reward was offered. Lt. Richard Heck of the Chattanooga police, in a response intended for White, said, “Stop beating us up in the press. Pick up the phone if you want an update. And sweetening the reward with some of your fat salary wouldn’t hurt.”

QUICK KICKS

NICE TRY: After the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Denver Broncos, 31-21, on Sept. 11, Bronco Coach Mike Shanahan said:

“There won’t be another team that scores three touchdowns in that stadium this year. In fact, I’d be surprised if there’s not another team that scores three touchdowns against them anywhere.”

Since then, the Cowboys have given up three touchdowns five times, four times at Texas Stadium.

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ADD DALLAS: In the last three seasons, the Green Bay Packers and Cowboys each lost the same number of games at Texas Stadium--six.

Think about it.

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LOSING GROUND: When David Shula was named coach of the Cincinnati Bengals in December, 1991, he was 306 victories behind his father, Don.

When Don retired two weeks ago from the Dolphins, David was 315 behind.

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CAMEO SPOT: The word is that Steeler cornerback Rod Woodson will become the first player to come back from major knee ligament surgery and compete in the season.

But he still limps, so don’t expect to see him in anything but five-defensive-back situations in the Super Bowl.

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CAMEO QUOTE: Michael Irvin, Dallas wide receiver, when asked if he thought he would see Woodson covering him on Jan. 28.

“Do you think that I’m worried about Rod Woodson coming up and playing me five months after that surgery?” Irvin said. “That’s pretty wild. Maybe they might put him in at safety for a play or something like that. But to play cornerback and put him on the NFL autobahn alone, that’s pretty scary.”

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BACK ON THE HOT SEAT: The good news for fans of human beings is that Wayne Fontes is returning as coach of the Detroit Lions.

The bad news is that owner William Clay Ford has told him that he must not only make the playoffs this time, but win a playoff game . . . or else.

In his eight-year coaching career, Fontes has now recorded a league-record 58 “or elses.”