The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • 188

I ANGIXIX TIMIuS siy sunimy, i C3 PRO FOOTBALL WEEK 13 THE OTHER GAMES By TOM LaMARRE, Times Staff Writer Amid Odor, Tolliver Finds a Fresh Start GAME OF THE DAY Philadelphia (8-4) at New York Giants (9-3), 10 a.m. Philadelphia can virtually move ahead of the Giants in the NFC East because of its earlier victory over New York. Acrobatic receiver Cris Carter has helped Randall Cunningham revive the Philadelphia passing game and the Eagles have righted themselves with two consecutive victories after two consecutive losses. With quarterback Phil Simms nursing a sore knee, the Giants have lost two of three, falling to the Rams and San Francisco. The Giants will be without All -Pro linebacker Lawrence Taylor, who has a sprained ankle.

By BRIAN HEWITT TIMES STAFF WRITER SAN DIEGO-The fetid New York Jets are in town. They are 3-9 and possessed of the lowest -rated defense in the NFL Place a clothespin on your nose. The Jets' opponent today at San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium is the Chargers. The Chargers are 4-8. And their offense has scored four touchdowns in its last four games.

Their last seven losses have been by an average of 4.43 points per game. Place another clothespin over your nose. And think about going to the beach, where the air is fresh and clean and where the stateness of a season gone bad SAN DIEGO CHARGERS TODAY'S GAME Opponent New York Jets. AFC GAMES ,1 1 iff Site: San Diego Jack Murphy Stadium. Time: 1 p.m.

Records: Chargers 4-8, Jets 3-9. i Radio: XTRA (690), XEBG (1550). TV: Blacked out. Which would appear to play right into the hands of a Charger pass rush that is led by outside linebacker Leslie O'Neal (10V sacks) and defensive end Lee Williams (10 sacks.) In each of the last two weeks, O'Brien has been forced to leave the game because of hits that made him groggy. The Chargers rank sixth in the league with 34 sacks.

The good news for O'Brien is that his top wide receiver, Al Toon, has recovered from early-season injuries. Toon has only played in three full games and parts of three others, but he's the Jets' leading receiver, with 43 catches for 491 yards and two touchdowns. Last Sunday, in the Jets' 27-7 victory over Atlanta (their first victory at home this year). Toon burned Falcon rookie defensive back Deion "Prime Time" Sanders for eight receptions, 86 yards and one touchdown. If Tolliver outplays O'Brien, the Chargers will probably win.

And if that happens, Henning will probably stay with his rookie for the rest of the season. And if that happens, McMahon's bargaining power will drop like a rock in a pond. McMahon is in the last year of a contract that is paying him $800,000 this year. No matter what happens, he and his agent, Steve Zucker, will demand more next year. If Tolliver matures in a hurry, McMahon won't get close to $800,000 from the Chargers next year.

It is more likely the Chargers will turn McMahon loose on the Plan free agency market, where he can cut a deal with another team. But if Tolliver stinks up the place (remember to keep that clothespin handy) today, Henning will probably stay with McMahon the rest of the way to prevent any further damage to Tolliver's confidence. "The fans and the players should expect perfection," Tolliver says. The fans will settle for four touchdowns from the offense, something the Chargers haven't done yet this year. Charger Notes Charger Coach Dan Henning, a former Jet assistant, on the Jet defense that ranks last in the league: "It's a defense that has struggled statistically and has changed a great deal.

They're fishing around for a stabilizing type front." Adds Charger tackle Joel Patten: "We don't look where they're ranked defensively." Adds Charger guard David Richards: "Look where we're ranked offensively The last time these two teams played each other was 1983. The Jets won 41-29. Only Don Maeek, Billy Ray Smith and Gill Byrd remain from that Charger team. VINCE COMPAGNONE Los Angeles Times Billy Joe Tolliver gets a start today and a chance to win the No. 1 quarterback job.

i Rotters: Page 1 5B. for two bottom-tier NFL teams won't offend your sensibilities. Go to the beach instead of the ballpark, however, and you will miss Chapter Two in the apprenticeship of rookie Charger quarterback Billy Joe Tolliver. Chapter One unfolded five weeks ago in Seattle, where Charger Coach Dan Henning gave Tolliver his first NFL start. It was against the Seahawks in the noisy Kingdome.

And Tolliver was terrible. "Getting into the regular season," said Henning of Tolliver. "was a reality sandwich." In that game, Tolliver completed six of 17 passes for 41 yards. He threw one interception and was sacked twice. The Chargers lost, 10-7, even after Jim McMahon came off the bench in relief of Tolliver and moved the Chargers to a late 7-3 lead on a 14-yard touchdown pass to tight end Arthur Cox.

Since that time, McMahon has done little more than dodge blitzing linebackers, throw an occasional completion to a wonderful young wide receiver named Anthony Miller and report to the training room on Monday mornings with more aches and pains than the guy on the TV ads with rheumatoid arthritis. So, with an eye to the future, Henning has decided to see what Tolliver has learned since the Seattle debacle. "I don't think Billy was prepared for that first start," Henning says. "I expect him to be better and make some more plays." For his part, Tolliver thought he was ready for the Seahawks. Even though he had just come off injured reserve, where he had languished with a broken left collar bone, he says he wasn't nervous.

He says maybe he should have been. "I'm 0-1 as a starter," Tolliver says. "I'd just like to get back to even so my dad can't call me a flop again." Tolliver's parents have stayed home in tiny Boyd, Tex. this time, although he figures they'll pick up a broadcast of the game on a satellite dish somewhere. His parents, he says, are his worst critics.

"My family calls a spade a spade," he says. "After the Seattle game, my mom told me she didn't know whether she should walk out of the house and be recognized as my The difference between McMahon and Tolliver? Experience, mobility and arm strength. McMahon has been in the league since 1982, and that has taken its toll on his body. He has about half the arm strength of Tolliver. But he is still more mobile.

"I'll stay in the pocket for the simple fact that I can't run," says the self-effacing Tolliver. "That's been drilled into me for three years." Said Charger guard David Richards: "From an offensive lineman's standpoint, one thing you can count on Billy Joe doing is staying right in the pocket whether someone's open or not. There's good and bad about that. The good is we know where he'll be. The bad is if everybody is covered, he's not the kind of guy who will scramble out." Neither is Jets' quarterback Ken O'Brien.

O'Brien leads the AFC in completions with 243. But among AFC quarterbacks, only Miami's Dan Marino (18) has thrown more interceptions than O'Brien's 15. Worse for the Jets, nobody in the league has been sacked more times than O'Brien. Opposing pass rushers have caught him behind the line 42 times. Cincinnati (6 6) at Cleveland (7-4-1), 10 a.m.

A year after playing in the Super Bowl, the Bengals are in danger of missing the playoffs after losing three of their last four games. Boomer Esiason's offense has been inconsistent, and the defense has just been bad, ranking 27th against the run. Bernie Kosar's Cleveland offense has scored only 37 points in the last three games. In the past two weeks, the Bengals routed Detroit, 42-7, and the Browns lost to the Lions, 13-10. Cincinnati beat Cleveland, 21-14, 10 weeks ago, but the Browns have won six of the last eight meetings.

Indianapolis (6-6) at New England (4-8), 10 a.m. With playoff hopes gone, the Patriots will save Steve Grogan some wear and tear, going with their fourth starting quarterback this season former Raider Marc Wilson. Indianapolis has climbed back into the playoff picture with victories over the New York Jets and Chargers behind banged -up quarterback Jack Trudeau. The Patriots beat the Colts, 23-20, in overtime five weeks ago and have won nine of the last 11 against Indianapolis. Miami (7-8) at Kansas City (5-6-1), 10 a.m.

The Dolphins fell out of a tie with Buffalo for the AFC East lead by blowing a 14-0 lead and losing to Pittsburgh last week, but may have bigger problems. Dan Marino left that game with a shoulder injury and Miami may have to go with Scott Secules at quarterback. Even with improving Sammie Smith, the Dolphins don't want to match running games with Kansas City and Christian Okoye. NFC GAMES Chicago (6-6) at Minnesota (7-5), p.m. TV: ESPN.

Forget the NFC Central race. The Bears need a victory just to stay in the hunt for a playoff spot after losing six of their last eight games. It might be best for Mike Ditka to start Jim Harbaugh at quarterback and bring Mike Tomczak off the bench. Minnesota, which has had trouble scoring touchdowns in consecutive losses to Philadelphia and Green Bay, needs to go more to Herschel Walker. The Bears have won nine of the last 12 against Minnesota, including a 38-7 rout the second week of the season.

Green Bay (7-5) at Tampa Bay (5-7), 10 a.m. Don Majkowski, who didn't practice last week, completed his first 14 passes and 17 of 19 in the first half against Minnesota as Green Bay moved into a first-place tie with the Vikings in the NFC Central. While winning three of four, the Packers limited San Francisco, Chicago and Minnesota to a combined 49 points. Vinny Testaverde has led Tampa Bay to its first two-game winning streak since 1984. The Buccaneers have won four in a row from the Packers.

New Orleans (6-6) at Detroit (3-9), 10 a.m. The Saints were the hottest team in the NFL with five victories in six games before blowing a two-touchdown lead and losing to the Rams. Morten Andersen slumped early but has made 15 of 20 field goal attempts. The Lions are making a run at respectability with two victories in three games, beating division leaders Green Bay and Cleveland. Rookie Barry Sanders is already one of the league's best backs.

San Francisco (10-2) at Atlanta (3-9), 10 a.m. The 49ers don't want to get caught looking ahead to the Rams' game next week or planning to bring their two-game lead in the NFC West to Anaheim. San Francisco has won seven of eight games since losing to the Rams. Joe Montana, having one of his best seasons, is far ahead in the quarterback ratings. Interim Coach Jim Hanifan will call the shots for Atlanta after Marion Campbell resigned early last week.

The 49ers trounced the Falcons, 45-3, three weeks ago and are 9-1-1 against the Falcons in the last six seasons. Washington (6-6) at Phoenix (5-7), 1 p.m. Mark Rypien played last week the way the Redskins envisioned he would when they traded Jay Schroeder. Rypien passed for 401 yards and four touchdowns to beat Chicago and keep Washington's playoff hopes alive. Former USC safety Tim McDonald is tied for the NFL lead with seven interceptions.

Phoenix will go back to Gary Hogeboom at quarterback over Tom Tupa. The Redskins have beaten the Cardinals nine of the last 10 meetings, including a 30-28 victory eight weeks ago. It's Still a Big Game for One of the Teams Robinson Won't Even Consider a Letdown LOS ANGELES RAIDERS TODAY'S GAME Raiders: Largest Coliseum crowd of the season expected for Broncos as L.A. tries to keep wild-card hopes alive. Opponent: Denver Broncos.

Site: Coliseum. Time: 1 p.m. Records: Raiders 6-6, Broncos 10-2. Radio: KFI (640). TV: Ch.

39 (San Diego). rJ Rosters: Page 17. Flipper Anderson LOS ANGELES RAMS TODAY'S GAME Opponent: Dallas Cowboys. teams in a wild-card race, trailing three of them, counting potential tiebreakers. Meanwhile, the Broncos are 10-2, have already clinched the AFC West, and are two victories away from wrapping up the home-field advantage for the playoffs.

The Broncos' big problem? Overconfidence? Site: Texas Stadium. Time: 10 a.m. PST. Rams: They need three wins in last four games and Cowboys, with NFL's worst record, are in the way. By CHRIS DUFRESNE TIMES STAFF WRITER IRVING, Rams, last seen lowering Flipper Anderson from their shoulders, have landed their newest star in the Lone Star State in search of more records and ticker tape.

Kick a Cowboy when he's down? You bet. Everyone's taking a number for the chance to lay a steel-toed boot to America's Team. That's three ones in fact, as in 1-11, as in what a difference a hyphen makes. If you're a Ram, why not wind up and knock a Cowboy through a saloon's revolving door? Smack. That one's for Roger Staubach in the 1975 NFC title game-Cowboys 37, Rams 7.

Uummm. That one's for Bob Lilly in the title game of 1978 Cowboys 28, Rams 0. You may never get a better chance to do the Texas two-step on Dallas' face. Why blow it? Anyway, this game isn't about winning or losing, or letdowns. Cowboy Coach Jimmy Johnson is all but conceding the game to the Rams, who might be able to beat his team with one Flipper tied behind their back.

What would it take to beat the Rams? "We would have to play an error-free game," said Johnson, who all but offered the odds of that happening twice in a season. "And the Rams would have to help us, similar to what we had when we played the Redskins at So it has happened? Yes. Dallas' only victory was "a 13-3 stunner at Washington on Nov. 5. "We did not have a single penalty and we did not have a single turnover," Johnson explained.

"And the Redskins turned it over three times and had some penalties, so we were able to squeak out a victory." After last Sunday's dramatic 20-17 overtime win over New Orleans, the Rams appear squeak-proof. The Rams flubbed one play after another for three-plus quarters in New Orleans and still beat the Saints, a good team. So what chance do the Cowboys have? Coach John Robinson would like his team to strike quickly and get out of town, so they can get on to the important business at hand their Monday night showdown against the San Francisco 49ers on Dec. 11 at Anaheim Stadium. The talk of a letdown in Dallas barely raises a Robinson eyebrow, as if such a thought should ever cross the mind of a team so knee-deep in a playoff race.

"If we're going to be thought of in championship play, we've got to stand up and act like it," he said this week. "You can't afford any of that crap. You can't afford to get tired. If you get tired, you get beat. If you have a letdown and get beat, get out of the way and let the guy who really wants this thing to get there.

Now it's time to come alive." Winning three of their last four would all but assure the Rams a playoff spot, leaving an outside possibility of their stealing the NFC West title from the 49ers. Now, if you were planning to make Dallas, the league's worst team, one of those losses, well "Step aside," Robinson said. "Either win three out of the next four or step aside, get out of the way. Let the real people in." The Rams are hitting stride at the right time, so much so that star receiver Henry Ellard's absence again today doesn't seem much of an issue. In fact, Ellard might think about getting back into the lineup soon.

Last week, his replacement broke the NFL's single-game reception yardage record. Maybe today it will be Aaron Cox. The Cowboys, meanwhile, are looking for a 10-gallon hat to crawl into. Their last four games are against the Rams, the Philadelphia Eagles, the New York Giants and the Green Bay Packers. Johnson wonders why he can't catch a break.

"We understood that it was going to be difficult, but I still don't understand how this schedule works," he said. "We were the last-place team in the NFL last year, yet we finish with the most By MARK HEISLER TIMES STAFF WRITER Is this their last hurrah? The Raiders have an advance sale over 70,000 and are hoping for a crowd in the 80s today when they play the Denver Broncos. Who knows if we'll ever see it again: the Raiders in the Coliseum, a big game, a big crowd? Raider sources have been talking for two weeks about an announcement after the Denver game that the team is moving north. The usual news silver-and-blackout continues here, but in the Bay Area, Raider partner Jack Brooks said that a decision was near. There are more subplots going here than in a Russian novel.

The Raiders are playing for their lives. So does anyone care that they're facing their ex-coach, Mike Shanahan, now remembered as the outsider who wouldn't let them sit on their helmets? Despite complaints about his non-Raider style, Raider players say they had nothing against Shanahan personally and discount his presence as a factor in anything. "My ex-coach?" Howie Long said. "My ex-coach is Earl Leg-gett also on the Bronco staff now." So who needed another factor, anyway? "I think every Raider game you play is a grudge match," Denver Coach Dan Reeves said. "There's no love lost between either team and there never will be.

Regardless of who's coaching, it's always going to be the Raiders and Broncos and that's not going to change." Of course, this is a grudge match that the Broncos want but the Raiders need. The Raiders are fighting six Record: Rams 8-4, Cowboys 1-11. Radio: KMPC (710), KWNK (670), KRSO (590), KVSD (1000). TV: Ch. 2 and 8 (San Diego).

Rosters: Page 17. difficult schedule of anyone in the league." Has it been a humbling experience? "I haven't slowed down long enough to think about that," Johnson said. "We really haven't had time to reflect on the season, because we've been at this thing night and day for a long period of time." Turn out the lights, the season's over. Ram Notea Ram wide receiver Henry Ellard'i hamstring strain will keep him on the sidelines today, although he is expected to be-100 for the 49er game. end Damon Johnson is questionable with a strained Achilles' tendon.

The Cowboys have lost a franchise-record 12 consecutive home games. Their last win at Texas Stadium was on Sept. 25, 1988, over Atlanta. Former UCLA quarterback Troy Alk-man has started the last three games after missing five weeks with a broken left index finger. He threw for a total of 638 yards in his first two games back.

For the season, Aikman has thrown only four touchdown passes and 12 interceptions. What we've got here is a minor miracle. A year ago, the Broncos were No. 19 in rushing and No. 25 against the rush.

Their lack of strength arid speed showed whenever they got out of friendly Mile High Stadium and onto artificial turf in a string of utter humiliations: 39-21 at Pittsburgh; 55-23 at Indianapolis; 42-0 at New Orleans; 42-14 at Seattle. After the season, they sacked longtime defensive genius Joe Collier for Wade Phillips, Bum's son, who had been running Buddy Ryan's defense in Philadelphia. They said they were going to unleash their players. A question sprang to mind: Just what was it they thought they were unleashing? A new coordinator? A new system? Three new starters, two of them Plan free agents? It figured to take years to work, if it ever did. There was as much enthusiasm before the season for the Kansas City Chiefs as for the Broncos.

Don Heinrich's Pro Preview had the Raiders first, the Chiefs third and the Broncos fourth. Tdday, Denver is No. 6 rushing; Please see RAIDERS, C18 MONDAY NIGHT Buffalo (8-4) at Seattle (4-8) TV: Channel 10,6 p.m. The Bills are hanging on to a one-game lead in the AFC East despite losing two of their last four games. Jim Kelly leads the AFC quarterback ratings, and the Bills have the league's No.

2 offense, but Buffalo has won just two of its last nine road games. Seattle, which has lost four in a row, is going back to Dave Krieg as the starting quarterback. NOTE: All times Pacific. Standings, Page 17,.