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Sunday, November 04, 2001

Compiled by Ed Bouchette

The Denver Broncos' treasure-trove of running backs looks more like a stable of nags these days. Mike Anderson, Olandis Gary and Terrell Davis each has rushed for 1,000 yards and Davis has a 2,000-yard season under his belt.

There was talk they could be the first backfield in NFL history to have three 1,000-yard rushers in the same season. Instead, they may have none.

No one, including Denver Coach Mike Shanahan, is sure who will start at halfback in any given game, including tomorrow night's in Oakland.

Anderson is on pace to have the most yards, 909. Gary is on pace for 446 yards. Davis is on pace for 231.

"'The season ain't over with, so let's not throw that stuff out there just yet," Anderson said.

Lobe blow

Ralph Berlin, when he was the Steelers' trainer, once stopped a player on the practice field at St. Vincent College in Latrobe. Berlin told the player he had to remove his gold chain before he could practice, and the player complied.

That's as old fashioned as playing without a facemask. Today, players wear gold medallions the size of hubcaps swinging from their necks in practices and in games.

The inevitable happened in Texas Stadium. Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson lost a pair of 1.6-karat diamond earrings. The gems were knocked off in a game at Dallas last month.

"I told the guy I didn't want screw-ins and look what happened," Tomlinson said. "I played the first game [against Washington] and it was all right. When I played against the Cowboys, my helmet came off a couple of times, and I think that's what did it. I came to the sideline and I couldn't feel my earrings anymore."

Oh, the hardships modern athletes face.

Green ... with envy

There, but for the grace of God . . .

Trent Green, the latest of the hot quarterbacks when he was Kurt Warner's backup in St. Louis, has had a woeful first half of the season. The Chiefs traded a first-round draft pick to acquire Green, something many Steelers fans had hoped their ballclub would have done instead.

The Chiefs are 1-6 and Green leads the NFL with 12 interceptions. Someday, Green may develop into a good NFL quarterback, but he's doing nothing this season to help Kansas City.

His team's record is 9-17 with him as a starting quarterback.

Chiefs fans are now wishing they had Elvis Grbac back.

"I still believe in the guy," Coach Dick Vermeil said. "I'm not going to jump ship on him. I've been through this before with quarterbacks, with Ron Jaworski [in Philadelphia]. They were going to boo him right out of town. The big thing is, Trent can't lose confidence in himself."

Quick slants

Miami quarterback Jay Fiedler has 174 rushing yards, on pace to shatter David Woodley's team record for the position, 272 in 1981.

Shanahan's Denver Broncos are 11-1 against the Raiders, his former employer. "The Broncos are the only animal left untamed in our cage," Oakland tackle Lincoln Kennedy said.

Jerome Bettis could catch his old Irish teammate, Ricky Watters, and not look back. Watters will not return from a shoulder injury until at least Nov. 25. Bettis needs 101 yards to move past him into 12th place on the NFL rushing list.

Baltimore is 13-2 in November and December since Brian Billick became their coach in 1999. "The way we practice in training camp, the way we lift, the way we practice during the course of the week, is built toward trying to be healthy and fresh in November and December," Billick said.

Denver's Rod Smith already has 57 pass receptions this season. That leads the league and puts him on pace for an NFL-record 130.

Miami's secondary led the NFL with 28 interceptions last season. They haven't had one since the season opener.

ESPN did a fantasy piece on Tom Brady as the lost fourth brother from TV's old "Brady Bunch." Some of his teammates actually asked him, "Is that true?"