European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - October 29, 1988, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Saturday. October 29, 1988 the stars and stripes Page 23 nil Roundup acc should be defensive about super bowl chances by Dave Goldberg a football writer Midway through the nil season the pfc has won 15 games against acc teams the acc has won 13 against the pfc. Yet there Stilt seems Little to indicate thai the belter teams in the acc Are anywhere close to the top learn sin the older conference the ones who have won the last four super bowls by a combined score of 165-56 41 14 on average. The regular season inter conference games Are deceptive. Although in has been gelling blown out of super bowls the acc has won or tied the season series each of the last five years because it can beat up on the Bottom of Floc pfc Tampa Bay Green Bay Detroit and Atlanta. One bit of evidence was Chicago s 24-3 win Over Buffalo at Soldier Field three weeks ago in a game that could conceivably be a super bowl preview both learns Are 7-1. More evidence Cincinnati beat Houston 44-21 Sun Day in a game Between two of the acc s better teams. The no a night Chicago beat san Francisco 10-9 in a game Between two of the rfcs Best. Bui if you look Al the top dozen teams in the nil Al Casl eight Are in the pfc the bears 49ers, saints. Rams redskins Vikings. Giants and eagles All of whom play physically and All of whom play de sense. Only Cleveland and Buffalo in the acc play that Way and the Bills May be too Young to go All the Way this year they acted like they won the super bowl two weeks ago when All they had done was win on monday  Are fun but defense wins games. And super bowls.  is Sweet a few years ago the raiders shipped two worn out receivers Calvin Muhammad and Malcolm Amwell to the redskins one of the few times Bobby Beathard has been snookered in a Deal. That s one reason Why when the raiders were Dick Crine for Doug Williams a year ago Beathard was reluctant to deaf with Al Davis now he has his revenge. Having finally pulled the trigger by unloading Jay Schroeder to los Angeles Beathard picked up an All pro Caliper tackle in Jim Lachey and a pack of draft choices. Schroeder. Meanwhile has been lifted from the last two games is misfiring on a dismal 42 percent pass completion rate and is next to last in the acc Quarter Back ratings. This week coach Mike Shanahan announced that Sieve Buerlein the Man Schroeder was supposed to replace will be the raiders quarterback the res of the season. Beathard can be excused if he s smiling. Fallen mighty in 1984, the acc Wisl was 32-8 against the opposition from other divisions. In 1985, in was 25-15. This year three of the division s cams have Cyl to beat an outside opponent. The raiders Are 0-5, the chargers 0-3 and the chiefs 0-3-1. Reviewing replay the nil which this year has made the instant replay official uart of the regular Crew has Cut in half the rate Al which officials Calls Are being overturned. Midway through the season 301 plays have been reviewed by the instant replay official and 19, or 6 percent reversed. Last season the Halfway total was 34 reversals in 288 reviews an 11.8 percentage. League officials think the decline has come because the replay officials Are get Ling a better grasp of the Rule. I think they used to believe they had to make Bacall says commissioner Vale Rozelle. Now i think they realize that they re Only supposed to overturn the Call of the Field official if it s a glaring  coach of the year Jim Mora who has coached new Orleans just 2 i seasons is Only one win away from tying the team s record for victories by a coach. Mora has 26 wins including 12 last year in the first winning season in the team s 21-year history and 16 of his last 17 regular season games. At 26-14, that gives Ora one less win than bum Phillips who was 27-42 from 198110 1985. Which makes in pretty Clear Why Mora was the nil s coach of the year last season. Quote of the week Raul ally arc and Paul Mcfadden have been alternating pulled Groin Muscles All season so the giants have kept both on the roster pulling the injured one on each week s inactive list Hegre is 10 for ii and Mcfadden 3 for 3, making them 14 of 15 for the season. Maybe Well make the pro bowl As a Landum Mcfadden says. One of us can kick in the first half and the other m the second  inactive beginning this week nil team s won t have to declare their inactive players until an hour before game time. Until now the deadline had been 4 . Saturday. This will allow for saturday night recoveries Rozelle says. Miscellaneous stats Joe Morris became pfc style defense the kind played by the 49m Las week helps explain the acc super bowl record. The giants All Lime Rushing Leader sunday Wilh 4,700 career Yards. That total is the third lowest among Lear leaders to the 4,451 of Kansas City s de Podolak and he 4,267 of new Orleans George Rogers. But the giants arc in their 64th season while in saints Are in their 22nd and the chiefs in their 2qth. No running Back has gained More than 90 Yards in a game against either the sleepers or the Vikings this year. What does it prove the St Celers Are 2-6, the Vikings 5-3. Five nil receivers have caught passes in consecutive games in five or More seasons Steve Large no who holds the nil record Wilh 160, Ozzie new some of Cleveland 135art Monk of Washington 74 Marcos Allen of the raiders 75 and Mickey Shulor of the jets 71 Eric Dickerson needs 865 Yards an average of just Over 108 a game in the second half of the season 10 become the first Back to Rush for 10,000 Yards in his first sin years in the nil Al his Pace just under 110, hell just make it. There have been just three shutouts at the mid Way Point and san Diego has been the victim twice losing 10 Denver 12-0 and Indianapolis 16-0. The other was the rams 33-0 win Over Atlanta saints take gut Check As schedule toughens by Dave Goldberg a football writer the new Orleans saints who have been squeaking by the Tampa Bays and Del oils Siart this weekend 10 learn How the either half lives. In could be just in time. After winning its first six games by a combined total of 30 Points new or leans bad its first Blowout last sunday a 20-6 win Over the los Angeles raiders. Moreover the seven teams they be beaten have a combined record of 16-40. We could be 1-7 As easily As we re 7 1," general manager Jim Finks said not untruth fully. Now come the 6-2 rams the Start of a Hel Lacious second half schedule that continues with the redskins rams again Broncos giants Vikings and 49crs. The saints Are favored by 2w, which is the Home dome advantage minus a Little. But the Saint can run and the rams can be run on. If a few Orleans occasion ally Leaky secondary holds up. Saints 20-17. Cincinnati plus 3 at Cleveland the Browns need this one to have a shot at the acc Central title and they should get it they lost 24-17 Al Cincinnat with Mike Pagel Al quarterback. Now it j Bemie Kosar who threw for 314 Yards and three touchdowns in Bis first full game this season. He gives us a lift just walking on the practice Field says Emie accords the Browns general manager. The bengals 4-11 last season Are the league s Surprise team in part be cause Sam Wyche has let Bis talented offence play without the gimmicks that Hurt it so often in part because of some talented Young defenders. Norwill Wyche try any gimmicks on de sense against Kosar. Hell understand what we re doing Wyche says. The Guys thai play the Best sunday will win. There won t be any body outsmarting the other  the bengals Are flashy but the Browns Wilh Kosar Are solid particularly with the wind blowing off the Lake. Browns 28-20. Minnesota plus 4 Al Smi Francisco this ii a Chance for the 49ers to avenge last year s playoff loss that Cost what seemed an inevitable super bowl last year. But Joe Montana s tentative performance monday could be extended if pc ill Millard and Chris Doleman can emulate Dan Hampton and Richard Dent. Vikings 20-19. Web Langton minus 1 at Ilo usum the first sunday night game will be Doug Williams is. Warren Moon two quarterbacks just Back from illness and injury. But everything else being equal make it Joe Gibbs is. Jerry Glanville and make it. Redskins 27-20. Green by plus 7 Al Buffalo watch the kickers. The Bills escaped last week because Teddy Garcia missed three Field goals for new England. The packers lost because a Zendejas missed two Field goals and was thrown Back into the Pool of floating Zende Jases in favor of Dale Dawson Bills 21-9, Chicago minus 5v, to new England the Way Doug Flutie s former Chi Cago teammates Are playing defense the question is whether the runes can score Soj Points. Bears 14-5. Dealer plus 1 at Indianapol John Elway is Back but Kart Mecklenburg in l for the Broncos. Can Elway Over come Erie Dickerson without his Best defensive player indoors. Colts 20-17. Phoenix pins 3 to Dallas the cowboys won in Arizona because Gen Emings decided to have kicker Al Del Greco run the bait from 32 Yards  cowboys lost in Philadelphia because Tom Landry did t know what Yard line Ewason Landry 20-16. New York sluts minus 7 i Detroit two weeks ago the giants were id Point favourites Harry Carson threw a chair at halftime and new York won 30-10. Give two Points for Home Field one Point for an absence of chairs in the Visi tors locker room and giants 27 10. Miami minus 3w to my Bay if Vinny can pass straight make it an upset in the Battle of Florida bucs 27 24. Other games Home team in Caps jets minus 5 24, Pittsburgh 17 Phil Adelphia minus now 20, Atlanta 13 Seattle menus 8w 22, san Diego 6 raiders minus 6 it 20, Kansal cily2. Last week 3-11 spread10-4 straight up. Season 42-66-4 spread69-41-1 straight up