European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 12, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Friday january 12,1990 the stars and stripes Page 23 Ihm he Bimbo a Himi he a a huh a return to form wanted for Browns Broncos nil playoffs Ybarr Wilner Denver a Bud knows defense even if it did t look that Way last weekend. Dan knows offence although of might not have thought so last weekend. The Browns and Broncos will play for the acc championship for the third time in four years 7 30 . Sunday on an radio and to after barely surviving the first round of the playoffs. Cleveland under Rookie head coach Bud Carson a defensive wizard beat Buffalo 34-30 even though the Bills marched up and Down the Field in the second half. Only a dropped pass by Ronnie Harmon in the end zone in the dying seconds kept the Browns alive. Denver was just As fortunate to Advance. Outplayed by Pittsburgh for most of the divisional playoff game the Broncos put together to drives and pulled off one big play to win 24-23. It was not Vintage Broncos of sense at least not the kind Dan Reeves coaches. We did t Burn the films but i would like to have burned  said Carson who took Over from Marty  this season after More years than i can remember As an assistant coach. We showed them for about four hours. We be got to make corrections and we stayed in there watching to make those corrections. You get to thinking you re pretty Good and then you have the kind of weeks like we had the last  the Browns have gone to a 4-3 alignment under Carson who helped build the steel curtain when Pitts Burgh was dominating the nil in the 1970s. He also put together a Strong defense with the rams and an Over achieving one with the jets before moving to Cleveland. I m sure you will Sec a better Effort and a better defense this sunday Carson said. Well have to be  As will Denver s offence. The Broncos know they have Little Chance of winning a Low scoring struggle with the Browns although they Are better suited to do so this time than in the previous two acc title game meetings. We sputtered a bit but we also came through when he had  Reeves said. We made some big plays and we Felt very fortunate to get that win. In any game you would like to control the Ball More have John Elway on the Field throwing and Bobby Humphrey running. When you arc playing for Clay malt chs predicts a Down to the wire showdown. The conference championship you need All of your  the narrow escape eliminated any Chance the Bron cos will be overconfident on sunday. Well be paying full attention that s for sure safety Dennis Smith said. Well be wide  so will the Browns linebacker Clay Matthews said when you go Down to the end and one play will win it or lose it you remember that said Matthews whose interception at the goal line preserved Cleve land s Victory Over Buffalo. These teams have a habit of playing those kind of games. I think Well Sec another  Broncos add More horses by Mike Preston the Baltimore Sun shortly after the Pittsburgh steel cars were knocked out of the american football Confer ence semifinals 24-23 by the Denver Broncos in mile High stadium sunday. Sect cars linebacker David Little gave the Cleveland Browns a bit of advice. The Broncos arc no longer just John  he said. Granted he is still going to make the big play but now there arc other players that you have to be concerned  Rookie running Back Bobby Humphrey and wide receiver Vance Johnson have joined Elway As the key ingredients in Denver s new Ball control offence. Denver 12-5 will meet the Browns sunday for the acc championship. It will be the third time in four years that the clubs have met for the acc title with Denver having won the first two. In the 1987 playoff Victory Over the drowns when Elway was a one Man show he drove the Broncos 98 Yards in the closing minutes to pro Duce a lie and Rich Kurlis kicked a Field goal in overtime As Denver prevailed 23-20 to win the acc championship. It could happen again but it is More Likely that Humphrey will be doing a lot of the running instead of Elway. And Johnson will be on the end of most of the receptions instead of the three  that possibility was never More evident than in sunday s 10-play, 71-Yard, game winning drive against the steel cars in which Humphrey rushed four times for 24 Yards. Johnson had the big reception. 36 Yards on a Flea Flicker breaking off a Fly pattern that had been shut off and streaking across the Middle. Elway threw Only one other pass 9 Yards to wid cout Mark Jackson. Last year Broncos running backs rushed a combined total of 464 times for 1,8is Yards. This year during the regular season Humphrey who came to Denver from the University of Ala Bama via the supplemental draft had 294 Rush ing attempts for 1,151 Yards and seven touch Downs. Meanwhile Johnson led the team in receptions with 76 for 1.095 Yards and seven touchdowns. There they go again 49ers is. Rams by Dave Goldberg a football writer san Francisco the san fran Cisco 49crs wrapped up the title As nil team of the 80s. Now they try to become one of the teams for All time in any sport. If the los Angeles rams beat the 49ers sunday ii . On an radio and to they head for new Orleans for the Jan 28 super bowl and keep san Francisco from becoming the first team in a decade to win two straight nil titles. The rams in their Only super bowl were the victims when Pittsburgh won its second straight title in january 1980. A Vic tory sunday would make the rams the first pfc wild card team under the current for mat to make it to the super bowl. Unlike almost anyone else in the nil the rams have proven they can play with the 49crs. In three games including an exhibition this season los Angeles has scored 56 Points. San Francisco 55. The teams arc also similar in Quarter backs receivers and coaches and arc playing the 81 St game in a rivalry that has been one of the most visible in football for 40 Yean. San Francisco s Joe Montana Winner of three super bowls and two super bowl map trophies is c9mingoff his first map season one in which he completed More than 70 percent of his passes and set a re Cord for quarterback rating at 112.6. With Jerry Rice and John Taylor they might make up the Best quarterback wide receiver combination in the nil los Angeles Jim Everett who has emerged this year As perhaps the Montana of the 90s, is a classic quarterback who for at least one year has eclipsed last year s quarterback of the 90s, Randall cunning Ham of Philadelphia. With Everett Henry Ellard and Flipper Anderson the rams have probably the second Best quarterback wide receiver combination in the league. The coaches two san franciscans Rob Inson and George Scifert were part of a staff at the University of Oregon in 1970 that quit in Masse when coach Jerry Frei quit rather than follow orders to fire his assistants. Robinson has been a playoff coach in six of his seven nil seasons. Scifert who in his first year As the successor to Bill Walsh aka the Genius has established his own reputation with a 14-2 record and a 41-13 rout Over Minnesota in his first playoff game. The rout of Minnesota raised the ques Tion can anyone beat the 49ers?" Robinson thinks he can even with a team that lost four straight at mid season and had to travel nearly 18,000 Miles in the past three weeks to arrive at a Point 450 Miles North of its Home base and one game away from the super bowl. They think Hope it s their Lum building on two major trades that brought them Everett from Houston for two no. 1 draft picks and brought them a passic of draft picks from Indianapolis and Buffalo for Eric Dickerson. Among the players acquired with the Dickerson picks Anderson and linebacker nose tackle Fred Strickland one of the keys to their defense. The rams Hope that s enough to end the second fiddle role they be been playing while the 49crs have been winning super bowls. Since Robinson took Over As coach in 1983, they be been in the playoffs six times. But Only in 1985 were they the division Champion and Only in that year did they get to the pfc title game losing 24-0 in Chi Cago to perhaps the Best single season team of the 80s. It s Safe to say the 49crs arc the main reason Robinson is considered a Good coach instead of a Man in a league with Tom Landry Don Shula Chuck Noll Vince Lombardi and Bill Walsh. Robinson gets another shot sunday but san Francisco is hungry to add to the titles it won in 1981.1984 and 1988. We be been there and we know what it s Jike says Montana. You never know what it s like till you get there. We be been there and they Haven t. It would be More of a disappointment for us to lose sunday than it would be for  i be got three rings three but right now Thuv Don t mean a thing says safety Ronnie loll the Leader of the san Francisco defense and one of five 49crs left from the 1981 team that started it All Montana line Backer Keena Turner wide receiver Mike Wilson and defensive Back Eric Wright Are the others. All that matters is now. This year. This  it was that kind of dedication that showed last week when the 49crs crushed Minnesota. Typically the 49ers were ignited by a Short pass from Montana that Rice turned into a 70-Yard touchdown play by romping through the league s Best defense statistically. By halftime it Vas 27-3 and Over. It s that kind of thing that provokes coach speak from Robinson whose defense ranked 21st statistically in the regular sea son. You have to get san Francisco put of synch he says. When they re in it like the first half of the Minnesota game you say my god. They in Gonna score 100 Points. How do you gel them out of this " the rams have done a pretty Good Job of it. Particularly at candlestick where they be won six of their last 10 games including a 13-12 win on oct. I. The rams lost 30-27 to san Francisco at Anaheim dec. 11. The rivalry in t so much a Northern Cali fornia Southern California thing but More the fact the two teams have Pla de so often. This game the first matchup of division rivals in a championship game since the giants beat the redskins three years ago is actually the found Between the rams and 49eres this year. The rams won 16-13 in Tokyo in the exhibition opener last Matig 5. We be had a Chance to play each other so much that we should know each other s offensive and defensive moves Everett says. We know each other so Well there should be no  i see rams and homed helmets in my dreams says the 49crs Turner. The rams Hope that sunday they la be nightmares