ISN’T DAN MARINO A GOD ALREADY?

The Miami-Dallas game included perhaps the most watched pregame this season. You can just hear the local radio/television broadcasters giving the play-by-play of the meeting between Jimmy Johnson and Jerry Jones.

Johnson near the 40 . . . he picks his way through a few reporters and players. . . The crowd is getting think now as Johnson drifts toward midfield, he stays composed, slicks down the hair. He eyes Jones, Johnson leans, extends his hand . . . YES THERE IT IS.

Actually, while the Jimmy-Jerry confrontation was most watched, it was not the most cheered act during pregame. The biggest stir came with the invocation, by Pastor Dr. Lee Drake of Broward Community Chapel, who noted the return of Miami quarterback Dan Marino after missing four games with a broken ankle.

“We thank you, Lord, for a healthy Dan Marino,” he said.

And we thank you, Lord, that these teams don’t play again.

THE FOLKS AT SEARS

ARE SO HAPPY

Tony McCoy was back playing for the Indianapolis Colts against the Washington Redskins, only two weeks after the defensive lineman suffered tendon damage in an ankle.

The reason? A freezer.

McCoy, traditionally a fast healer, attributes his latest quick fix the freezer that he bought so he could swath his injured ankle with plenty of ice.

“Everybody asks, ‘Buddha, what’s your secret?,” said McCoy, who missed only one game in 1994 after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery.

“I go home and pray hard and do what I have to do to get myself well. A lot of people just get their treatment and when they go home they don’t take care of themselves.”

HE LIKES EXTRA

CHEESE ON THOSE

First Lady Hilary Rodham Clinton was a guest of Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell against Carolina. Clinton arrived at the start of the third quarter and was given an Eagle jacket and sweatsuit by team owner Jeffrey Lurie.

She left before the game ended, but sources say she picked up five cheese-steak sandwiches for Bill, and a diet Coke.

JUST TO BE DIFFERENT . . .

“GO FALCONS.”

Atlanta’s 20-17 loss to Pittsburgh seemed to please the crowd at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. It seems the local fans, perhaps still smarting from the Braves’ World Series flop, weren’t yet ready to root for the home team.

The crowd of 58,760--the Falcons largest of the season--cheered mostly for the Steelers. When the Pittsburgh players came out before the contest, “Terrible Towels,” were twirling, and chants of “defense, defense, defense,” filled the dome when Atlanta had the ball.

In contrast, the Falcons were booed when they finished pregame workouts.

“I have never been where the visiting team was cheered louder than the home team,” said Pittsburgh’s Andre Hastings.

“I couldn’t tell if I was in Atlanta or Pittsburgh,” said Steeler Charles Johnson. “It’s nice to play an away game and still have the home crowd advantage.”

WE STILL HAVE THOSE

GUTTY PIRANHAS

This from the teams moving, new stadium, when does Los Angeles get a team department.

The Nashville-bound Oilers will play next season in Houston and the following year in Tennessee, owner Bud Adams said. Adams said he would not try to buy out the last year of his Astrodome lease because it would have to be approved by Mayor Bob Lanier, Harris County Judge Robert Eckels and Astrodome USA owner Drayton McLane Jr. Lanier has said he would veto the deal.

Also, if Detroit and Wayne County voters approve a proposed domed stadium for the Lions, the NFL will stage a Super Bowl there, commissioner Paul Tagliabue said. It would be one or two years of the opening of the stadium in downtown Detroit.

“I’m confident when the time comes to pick a date and pick a year, this event will come,” Tagliabue said.

As for the Southland . . . arena football starts in May.

HI EVERYBODY . . .

HI DR. NICK San Francisco quarterback Steve Young sustained a concussion on the third play against the Houston Oilers. . . . Green Bay receiver Antonio Freeman broke his left forearm in the first quarter when he was hit by Tampa Bay free safety Melvin Johnson on a slant near the goal line. Freeman will miss up to six weeks. . . . Giant linebacker Corey Widmer left in the second half because of a bruised chest and did not return. . . . A pileup on an onside kick cost the Jacksonville Jaguars cornerback Dave Thomas (broken left leg) and safety Dana Hall (sprained his lower back). Thomas will have surgery today in Cincinnati. . . . Philadelphia’s Rhett Hall sprained his right knee, wide receiver Chris T. Jones sprained his left ankle and offensive tackle Richard Cooper strained his groin. For the Panthers, tight end Wesley Walls sprained his right knee. . . . Baltimore linebackers Craig Powell (right shoulder) and Mike Croel (left knee), and defensive ends Anthony Pleasant (right ankle) and Mike Frederick (neck) will be examined today. Also, offensive tackle Orlando Brown sprained his right knee. Injuries for the Rams included linebacker Antonio Goss (Achilles tendon), tight end Ernie Conwell (bruised knee) and safety Keith Lyle (concussion). . . . Dallas tight end Eric Bjornson sprained his left ankle while scoring a third-quarter touchdown. Although X-rays proved negative, Bjornson sat out the rest of the game against Miami.

THEM BOOTS ARE

MADE FOR WALKING

Arizona’s Seth Joyner and Michael Bankston stopped Jet running back Adrian Murrell after a two-yard gain in the first quarter Sunday, and then a routine play turned ugly.

Murrell, before returning to the huddle, stepped on Joyner’s chest as he was trying to get up.

“He had the opportunity to step over him and he chose to step on his chest,” Bankston said. “I mean, what man would let another man step on him like that? Would you?.”

Joyner jumped to his feet and went after Murrell, drawing a flag and an ejection for unnecessary roughness. Then Joyner threw his helmet, drawing another 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Murrell, despite not drawing a flag, did not get off completely.

“I think I was throwing more punches on him than Seth was,” Bankston said.