Dan Marino

Green Bay (6-5) at Chicago (5-7)Time: 1 p.m.Line: Packers by 3 1/2.Vs. spread: Packers 4-7; Bears 10-2.Last week: Packers beat 49ers, 20-3. Bears lost to Lions, 21-17.Series: Bears lead 82-69-6.Last meeting: Bears won, 14-13, on Nov. 7 at Green Bay.Outlook: Bears QB Jim Miller's dream season ended Wednesday when the NFL suspended him for four games for violating its drug policy. That's the last thing the Bears needed heading into a rematch against Green Bay with their playoff hopes on the line.

DENVER -- There isn't much that happens around the Denver Broncos that doesn't pass the scrutiny of coach Mike Shanahan.When he watched defensive end Neil Smith make a halfhearted charge at Miami quarterback Dan Marino in last week's AFC divisional playoff game, he brought it to the attention of the 11-year veteran on the sideline."

In the quest for kicking perfection, the Minnesota Vikings' ageless Gary Anderson is all alone this week.When Jason Elam of the Denver Broncos saw his 37-yard field-goal attempt blocked Sunday, it left Anderson as the NFL's only kicker who hasn't missed this season.The 39-year-old veteran has made all 23 field goals and 51 extra points he has attempted for the Vikings. Counting five field goals he made at the end of last season for the San Francisco 49ers, Anderson has hit 28 consecutive three-pointers and needs three to tie the NFL record.

I've watched the Miami Dolphins play quite a few times this season and am more confused than ever before about what's going on.Why won't Jimmy Johnson let Dan Marino play like Dan Marino? I've been a great admirer of both the coach and the quarterback over the years. But why do these Dolphins run so frequently on first down?It can't be Marino's idea. I might understand Johnson's obsession with attempting to establish a running game if Miami had a strong, talented running back or an offensive line that blocks well for the run. The Dolphins have neither.

The first time Dan Marino passed this way, he was a mere rookie quarterback with the Miami Dolphins. Almost exactly 14 years ago -- on Oct. 23, 1983 -- he led the Dolphins to a 21-7 victory over the Baltimore Colts at Memorial Stadium. Threw for two touchdowns and 157 yards in a driving rainstorm.That was before he amassed any of his 23 NFL records, before his nine Pro Bowl selections, before his nine pro surgeries, before anyone knew how truly great a quarterback he was.Back then, he was a first-round draft choice and a curiosity -- as in how he fell to the 27th pick overall after five other quarterbacks, not all of them named John Elway or Jim Kelly, were selected.

Coaching a football team obviously isn't challenging enough to keep Jimmy Johnson's fertile mind occupied.A psychology major in college, the Miami Dolphins coach likes to break up the monotony by playing mind games. In 1993, he guaranteed the Dallas Cowboys' NFC title victory over the San Francisco 49ers.He was up to his old tricks last week after Dan Marino's lackluster performance in the opener against the Indianapolis Colts when he said that the thought of benching Marino for Craig Erickson has "crossed my mind."

The day after the "Commotion by the Ocean" turned into the "Knee by the Sea," Barry Switzer savored the spoils of victory.Switzer, the coach who was overlooked in all the hype over the Jerry Jones-Jimmy Johnson confrontation when Dallas went to Miami on Sunday, got the high-profile spotlight of an interview at halftime of the Monday night game.Switzer, who just 11 months ago was labeled "Bozo the Coach" '' by a New York tabloid after the fourth-and-one fiasco in Philadelphia, took the high road.

Top performances300-yard passersPlayer, Team, C-A, Yds., TDEsiason, Ariz., 35-59, 522, 3Brunell, Jac., 24-37, 354, 1Detmer, Phil., 26-44, 315, 2Favre, G.B., 27-49, 310, 2100-yard rushersPlayer, Team, No., Yds., TDMurrell, NYJ, 31, 128, 2Allen, Wash., 31, 124, 2Harris, Chi., 23, 112, 0Bettis, Pitt., 21, 111, 2Morris, Ravens, 26, 109, 0Phillips, StL, 14, 106, 1Green, StL, 13, 106, 2100-yard receiversPlayer, Team No. Yds. TDCarter, Minn. 7 142 0Emanuel, Atl. 4 109 0Harmon, Hou. 7 108 1McDuffie, Mia. 6 106 1Pickens, Cin. 12 103 0They said it"This is definitely the bottom for a bunch of our careers."

You probably should have taken the home team against the point spread when making NFL picks this season. The host club is 82-66-2, based on the midweek line employed in this column. Favorites, after a fast start, have backed up to 74-72-2, and the underdog at home has moved out to 24-18.I always feel much more comfortable when my selections are playing at home. There's no substitute for the extra enthusiasm provided by the home fans and, in many critical situations, the officials seem to get caught up in the crowd's roar and give the marginal calls to the home team.

Booed, embarrassed and besieged, Jim Kelly was well past denial, running smack up against resignation, when he faced a large media contingent Sunday in the bowels of Buffalo's Rich Stadium.What the Buffalo Bills quarterback said shocked reporters more than the intentional grounding penalty he drew on the goal line in the game's final minutes, or the interception he threw shortly after that.What Kelly said was, if he doesn't get the job done, he should be replaced by Todd Collins."I'm man enough to realize if you can't get it done, no matter what the position, it's time to move on to something else," he said.

Through intrepid efforts and at great personal risk, your correspondent sneaked into a highly confidential recent meeting. Here's what I saw: The setting is a large, well-appointed conference room at NFL headquarters in New York - accessible only via a single elevator. Dominating the room is a life-sized portrait of former commissioner Paul Tagliabue, illuminated by lights at least twice as bright as any others on the ceiling. Gathered around the heavy oak table are NFL announcers from every network - play-by-play men, analysts, studio talking heads, even some sideline reporters.

The NFL Today Noon [chs. 13, 9] Dan Marino has an exclusive interview with Brett Favre. That guy just kind of flew under the radar when he decided to unretire, didn't he? When Marino asks Favre how much longer he expects to play, you are justified to snort at whatever the answer is.

Please stay home, Brett Favre. It's not that I would mind watching you play a little longer. Heck, I recently called you the fifth-greatest quarterback of all time. And you showed last season that you can still play at an elite level. No, I'm not asking because you did anything wrong. I'm asking because we, the sports media, need to be protected from ourselves. You see, for the past three NFL offseasons, we tried to sell newspapers and drive television ratings by speculating madly about whether you would retire.

HOW THE GAME WAS LOST The Ravens could do nothing right on offense, defense or special teams, falling behind 23-0 in the first 13 minutes, and trailing by 30 points at halftime. The Colts out-gained the Ravens by 198 yards and forced three turnovers in the first half. BIG LETDOWN Cornerback Samari Rolle called last Monday night's game against the New England Patriots "our Super Bowl" before the Ravens went down to the wire with the NFL's only unbeaten team. So what was last night's debacle against the Indianapolis Colts, the first preseason game for the Ravens?

Billy Donovan's waxing and waning on whether to leave Florida and take the head coaching job with the Orlando Magic follows a long tradition, not just in sports, but in the public arena of flip-flopping. Or as Jimmy Durante once sang, "Did you ever have the feelin' that you wanted to go and still had that feelin' that you wanted to stay?" Here are some other flip-floppers who come to mind: Bill Belichick -- For several heartbeats in 2000, he was head coach of the New York Jets. But the news conference to introduce him turned out to be his exit interview.

MIAMI -- Persistent inquisitors wanted Peyton Manning to tell them what they wanted to hear. Manning would not cooperate. No, he kept saying, this had nothing to do with getting any animal off his back, be it a monkey or a parakeet. "I have never played that card," he said. "I don't even know what that means. I'm just proud to be on this team." They named him Most Valuable Player of the Super Bowl, but was he? Did it make much sense to single out one Indianapolis player as being that much worthier than any other on a night when the defense absolutely embarrassed the Chicago offense and when Dominic Rhodes came off the bench to run for 113 yards?

When the Ravens signed Gary Stills as an unrestricted free agent in March, the eighth-year linebacker talked with coach Brian Billick, defensive coordinator Rex Ryan and special teams coordinator Frank Gansz Jr. But there was one person Stills eagerly sought out: fellow linebacker Terrell Suggs. Falcons@Ravens Sunday, 1 p.m., Ch. 45, 1090 AM, 97.9 FM Line: Ravens by 4 1/2 Prime numbers Jerseys pictured on PG 1D (from left to right): John Elway (7), Dan Marino (13), Joe Montana (16), Johnny Unitas (19)

1934 THE SHAPE OF THE FOOTBALL WAS CHANGED, MAKING IT EASIER TO THROW 1935 - 1945 GREEN BAY'S DON HUTSON PLAYED 11 SEASONS AND BECAME THE LEAGUE'S FIRST GREAT RECEIVER. WHEN HE RETIRED AFTER THE 1945 SEASON, HE HELD 18 NFL RECORDS. HIS MARK FOR TDRECEPTIONS (99) STOOD FOR FOUR DECADES. 1945 WASHINGTON'S SAMMY BAUGH SET THE RECORD FOR HIGHEST SINGLE-SEASON COMPLETION PERCENTAGE (.703). CINCINNATI'S KEN ANDERSON BROKE THE RECORD IN 1982 (.706) LATE 1950's THE RUN-AND-SHOOT OFFENSE WAS CREATED BY AN OHIO HIGH SCHOOL COACH, GLENN ELLISON.

Where does Peyton Manning go from 49? To a gaudy 5,085? A precise .710? Or perhaps an otherworldly eight? We're talking NFL passing records here. Manning, the quintessential quarterback of the Indianapolis Colts, would prefer the Super Bowl, but his single-season record of 49 touchdown throws didn't do it last year. Now, he and the Colts are back in pursuit of an ostentatious, diamond-studded championship ring, and if a couple of NFL records happen to fall out of the passing tree along the way, so be it. Manning had one of last season's story lines by chasing - and ultimately bettering - Dan Marino's record 48 touchdown passes in 1984.

CANTON, Ohio - Dan Marino had challenged Miami Dolphins fans everywhere to "overrun Canton" for his Hall of Fame induction, and they had responded all weekend in astonishing numbers. So minutes before the speeches yesterday, Marino lowered a shoulder into fellow inductee Steve Young backstage. "I need somebody to call a corner blitz and blindside me," Marino said. The two quarterbacks were nervously getting ready for one more big appearance in front of a football crowd. Typically, neither let anybody down.