Reeves Might Get Big Game Versus Elway

A review of Week 10 in the NFL, and to dream the impossible dream: Super Bowl XXXIII pitting John Elway, Mike Shanahan and their Denver Broncos against the man who might want to beat them more than anyone else in the world, Dan Reeves.

Is There Anyone Better . . .

. . . at gathering mediocre talent and somehow winning with it than Reeves, the winningest active coach in the NFL with 155 regular-season victories?

Dan Marino has played for Don Shula and Jimmy Johnson and has gone to one Super Bowl. Elway went to three with Reeves, and while he finally won on his fourth trip, giving most of the credit to running back Terrell Davis and Shanahan, the whiny one also let everyone know that he didn’t compile Marino-like statistics because of the restrictions imposed on him by Reeves.

Balderdash. Reeves kept the Broncos within striking distance in the fourth quarter year after year with weak rosters and then used Elway to win it down the stretch.

The Broncos fired Reeves, and Reeves blamed Shanahan, whom he gave his first professional coaching job, for undermining his credibility with Elway.

Shanahan and Elway have been riding high. Reeves, fired after compiling a 31-33 record with the undermanned Giants, was sent to football purgatory, Atlanta.

And now he’s the leading candidate for NFL coach of the year.

Reeves’ Falcons are 7-2--the best start for the franchise--and tied with the 49ers in the NFC West. Atlanta has won 13 of its last 17 games, and after enjoying only two winning seasons since 1980, is preparing to play the biggest game in the franchise’s history Sunday in the Georgia Dome against San Francisco.

If only the Falcons could beat the 49ers, if only they could go on to win the division title, if only they could slip into the Super Bowl, letting Reeves craft the game plan to send Elway into retirement--perplexed forever on how he could have lost his final game to the Atlanta Falcons.

Here’s a Suggestion

Hire Mark Rypien to tutor and baby-sit San Diego quarterback Ryan Leaf.

Most people contend that Leaf will blossom into a great quarterback, once he matures and gains more time under center, but hold on there. Leaf has shown no ability to learn from his mistakes off the field.

In fact, his attitude has become worse. He says over and over again that he couldn’t care less what people think about him, and shows no inclination to listen to any adults. He followed two well-publicized blowups with his worst performances on the field, going one for 14 for four yards against Kansas City, and four for 15 for 26 yards against Denver.

The kid refuses to grow up, and if the Chargers don’t watch out, his stubbornness and childish behavior may undercut his chance to develop on the field too.

The Chargers have talked privately about signing Rypien, but General Manager Bobby Beathard has declined to go that route, although Rypien, like Leaf, a former Washington State quarterback, would be nothing but a positive influence on Leaf.

What’s Wrong With These Guys?

* Detroit Coach Bobby Ross: His team is 2-7 and if he pulls his baseball cap any lower over his eyes, he won’t be able to see the field. Maybe that’s what he’s trying to do.

* Tampa Bay quarterback Trent Dilfer: How bad are things when the hometown fans would rather have Vinny Testaverde back?

* New England Coach Pete Carroll: Not many people know it, but the Peter Principle was named after this guy.

* New York Giant Coach Jim Fassel: A year ago he was coach of the year. If he’s so smart, why hasn’t he found someone to replace Danny Kanell at quarterback?

* The Oakland Raiders: The officials threw 14 flags at the Raiders--anything to keep the silver and black out of the playoffs.

* Kansas City Coach Marty Schottenheimer: Congratulations for not putting yourself in position to be embarrassed in the playoffs.

Stepping Up Big Time

* Tennessee’s dynamic duo of Steve McNair and Eddie George has helped the Oilers win four of their last five and sneak up on Pittsburgh and Jacksonville in the AFC Central.

* Dallas running back Emmitt Smith trampled the Giants, but more important, has thrust the Cowboys back into national spotlight, something the NFL has sorely needed. Dallas is 44-9 when Smith hits the 100-yard mark.

* Denver wide receiver Ed McCaffrey had more yards receiving than anyone else in the league. Would someone explain how he gets open all the time?

* Testaverde, after starting the season behind Glenn Foley--which tells you how smart Jet Coach Bill Parcells is--is 6-0 as a starter in New York.

* Arizona, which tried to blow it, frittering away a 26-17 lead in the last two minutes to fall behind, 27-26, before Joe Nedney kicked a 47-yard field goal with two seconds left. Nedney made a 53-yarder in Week 9 to beat Detroit, and the Cardinals are over the .500 mark after nine games for only the second time since 1988.

* Minnesota running back Robert Smith, who has an injury-plagued history, has to remain uninjured so he can carry the Vikings through their quarterback travails.

Bring Back Y.A. Tittle . . .

. . . to play quarterback for the Giants. No Giant quarterback has thrown for 300 yards since Phil Simms did it Nov. 28, 1993--a span of 78 games. Tampa Bay has an excuse for its similar futility: Dilfer. The Buccaneers have the second-longest streak behind the Giants, Dilfer having gone 30 games since throwing for 300 on Nov. 7, 1996.

Say It Ain’t So, Bruce

The Bengals are terrible, seemingly always have been terrible, but according to Coach Bruce Coslet there’s no need to panic.

Coslet said the team will stick with Neil O’Donnell at quarterback, rather than switching back to Jeff Blake or Paul Justin.

“That’s one of the things I learned [from] Paul Brown: time and patience,” said Coslet, mentioning two things. “You don’t want to hear that and I don’t want to say it, but that’s the truth. Time and patience. Same old Bengals.”

Can there be any more chilling words to Bengal fans?