His Offense Isn’t Flashy--but It Wins

Marty Schottenheimer, coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, is used to criticism of his grind-it-out, run-oriented offense even though his team leads the AFC West with an 8-4 record. His latest critic is former NFL great O.J. Simpson, who said on the NBC halftime show Sunday that Kansas City’s offense was unimaginative and that the Chiefs never would reach the Super Bowl with it.

Schottenheimer brushed off Simpson’s remarks, saying: “They don’t pay me to be imaginative. They don’t pay me to be creative. They pay me to win. They pay O.J. to talk about things like this.”

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Add Chiefs: Schottenheimer disputed a contention that Kansas City’s predictability makes it easier for opposing teams to set their defenses.

“Play-calling is overrated,” Schottenheimer said. “If your people know what to do and they do it fundamentally sound, you’re going to win. That’s what coaching is all about.”

Now we know.

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Trivia time: Who holds the NBA record for most assists in a game?

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New breed: Mike McCormack, chairman of International Management Group, telling Tennis magazine how players have changed:

“Players used to room together, hang around together, go out to dinner together, and try to beat each other on the court the next day.

“Now the players are almost like Saddam Hussein and George Bush. They have their entourages--family, relatives, boyfriends, girlfriends, physical trainers, court psychologists, bodyguards, managers, agents, publicists, the whole group.”

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Tin Men: Indiana Pacer Coach Bob Hill recently fined 11 players for various team violations, including refusing to lift weights.

“They don’t understand coming to work with a purpose,” Hill said. “I can’t slice their chests open and give them a heart.”

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Pen-alized: When quarterback Joe Montana recently returned to practice, San Francisco 49er Coach George Seifert wouldn’t allow reporters to take notes on the sideline.

“He gave new meaning to the phrase, ‘practice without pads,’ ” writes Ira Miller of the San Francisco Chronicle.

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Carried away: Calgary owner Larry Ryckman, after quarterback Doug Flutie led the Stampeders to a 24-10 victory over Winnipeg in the Grey Cup game:

“He’s an owner’s dream. He’s the best. He’s the Wayne Gretzky of football.”

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It pays to lose: Highest paid athlete in the world this year? It’s Evander Holyfield, who lost his heavyweight title to Riddick Bowe.

Holyfield earned $43 million in 1992. Michael Jordan is the runner-up with $35.9 million, only $3.9 million coming from his salary with the Chicago Bulls.

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Thanks, but . . .: Columnist Art Spander of the San Francisco Examiner, in an interview with former UCLA All-American Bill Walton:

“John Wooden used to say, ‘I want you, you and you,’ ” Walton said, “and everyone said, ‘Yes sir. Where do I sign?’ Now UCLA says, ‘I want you,’ and they cough and say, ‘Uh, you can catch me at Duke in the NCAA finals.’ ”

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Trivia answer: Scott Skiles of the Orlando Magic, with 30 against the Denver Nuggets on Dec. 30, 1990.

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Quotebook: Bob Golic, Raider defensive tackle, in a Sport magazine interview: “We have no ethics, no morals. We’re defensive guys. We’re not allowed to have them.”