In All the Talk of Coaches, This Guy Was Overlooked

You probably will hear too much in the next two weeks about the feud between the head coaches in Super Bowl XXXIII. Their relationship ended acrimoniously after the 1991 season, when Dan Reeves fired Mike Shanahan as his offensive coordinator in Denver for surreptitiously plotting strategy with John Elway.

But you haven’t heard enough about Atlanta quarterback coach Jack Burns, who was fired in 1993 as Minnesota’s offensive coordinator by Dennis Green.

Burns played no small role Sunday at the Metrodome in the Falcons’ 30-27 overtime victory over Green’s Vikings for the NFC championship.

His greatest contribution is obvious from his title. He is the coach given the most credit for bringing out the talent in quarterback Chris Chandler, who was with five teams in nine years before arriving last season in Atlanta. He is still traveling--to the Pro Bowl in Honolulu for the second consecutive season.

Less obvious was Burns’ role in countering the crowd noise inside the Metrodome, which, according to accepted measurements, makes it seem as if opposing quarterbacks are trying to scream signals over a jackhammer.

Burns, who coached with the Vikings in the Metrodome for two seasons, had a solution. He told his quarterback not to call signals.

Instead, Chandler nudged his center, Robbie Tobeck, when he was ready for the ball and the others in Atlanta’s offense reacted to the snap instead of snap count.

One week after Arizona was flagged nine times for illegal motion and false starts in the Metrodome, no such penalties were called against the Falcons. Neither did they have to call a timeout because of the crowd noise.

“We said, ‘You’re not going to hear anyway,’ ” Chandler said, “ ‘so everybody go on the ball.’ ”

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Even after Minnesota’s Gary Anderson had missed a field goal kick for the first time this season in the fourth quarter Sunday, the cannon in the Metrodome, signaling a Viking score, was fired. . . .

Many in the Twin Cities also took a Viking victory for granted. . . .

There were advertisements in Monday’s local paper for Viking Super Bowl souvenirs and travel packages to Miami. . . .

Minnesotans recalled other disappointments, among them the 1965 World Series. . . .

The Twins returned home from Los Angeles with a 3-2 lead in the series, only to lose twice to the Dodgers. Sandy Koufax won, 2-0, against Jim Kaat in Game 7. . . .

The joy in the Falcon dressing room after the game was tempered when owner Taylor Smith spoke of his late father. . . .

Rankin Smith, the original owner of the expansion franchise that started play in 1966, saw the team win only two playoff games in more than three decades. . . .

He died Oct. 26, 1997, a few hours after the Falcons had lost to Carolina and dropped to 1-7. . . .

Since then, they have won 22 of 26 games. . . .

One reason for the Falcons’ quick turnaround, Coach Dan Reeves said, is the NFL’s salary cap. . . .

“Look at Eugene Robinson,” Reeves said of the Falcon safety, who started in the last two Super Bowls for Green Bay. “There’s no way the Packers wanted to lose him, but they had to make a financial decision.” . . .

Falcon kicker Morten Andersen has been to seven Super Bowls, all as a commentator for Danish television. . . .

Reeves trumps him, having been to nine Super Bowls as a player, assistant coach and head coach. . . .

Viking offensive coordinator Brian Billick is expected to become coach of the Baltimore Ravens and take Minnesota backup quarterback Brad Johnson with him. . . .

If that happens, look for Warren Moon to become the Vikings’ new backup to Randall Cunningham. They must not trust anyone under 35. . . .

For the New York Jets, the bright side in their loss to Denver is that Coach Bill Parcells probably will remain on the sideline for at least one more season. . . .

If the Jets had gone to the Super Bowl, speculation was that Parcells’ plan to move into the front office would have become reality sooner than later. . . .

Maybe Keyshawn Johnson could have covered Ed McCaffrey. . . .

When the Broncos went into the Super Bowl last year, the conventional wisdom was that they were vulnerable to the run. . . .

In two playoff games this season, they have given up 1.1 yards a carry. Miami and New York each was held to one first down rushing. . . .

The next running back to test the Broncos will be Atlanta’s Jamal Anderson. He and his Denver counterpart, Terrell Davis, are close friends who talk to each other at least once a week during the season. . . .

One thing they have in common: both are Southern Californians, Anderson from Woodland Hills and Davis from San Diego. . . .

Another is that neither was considered a Pro Bowl candidate when he was drafted. Anderson was a seventh-round choice from Utah in 1994, Davis a sixth-round choice from Georgia in ’95. . . .

The first time the Super Bowl was played in Miami, Super Bowl II in 1968, the highest priced tickets cost $12. . . .

Official programs for Super Bowl XXXIII cost $12.

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While wondering if Jerry West and Elgin Baylor are looking forward to this week as much as the rest of us, I was thinking: Mike Tyson fights are more spectacle than sport, I like the Australian Open because we get tomorrow’s results today, the Ickey Shuffle is still the best.

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Randy Harvey can be reached at randy.harvey@latimes.com.