Jerry Rice

Cardinals@49ers 8:30 p.m. [ESPN] The season still has four games remaining and Vernon Davis (Maryland), left, already has set the 49ers' single-season record for touchdowns by a tight end with 10. Good thing for him, Jerry Rice wasn't a tight end.

Jacoby Jones danced in several NFL end zones this season as he went from unheralded free agent pickup to one of the heroes of the Ravens' Super Bowl XLVII victory over the San Francisco 49ers earlier this month. He'll now take his dance moves to another stage, and this time, they'll be judged. The wide receiver and Pro Bowl return man was unveiled by ABC tonight as one of the contestants on 'Dancing With the Stars.' The rest of the cast will be announced Tuesday on Good Morning America . Season 16 of the show will debut on March 18 on ABC. The announcement was made during a commercial break of tonight's Academy Awards on ABC. "Jacoby Jones just won a Super Bowl ring," the commercial said.

Remember "The Longest Yard" (1974)? It starred Burt Reynolds in one of his best efforts, as a convict who quarterbacks an inmate team against a squad of prison guards.The plot of "Necessary Roughness," now shooting in Texas, sounds suspiciously similar.There were familiar gridiron faces in "The Longest Yard," and there will be more in "Necessary Roughness." Recruited for the project have been Roger Craig, Earl Campbell, Tony Dorsett, Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Dick Butkus, Jim Kelly, Jerry Rice and Ben Davidson.

The San Francisco 49ers' Randy Moss said Tuesday that he is the best wide receiver to ever play in the National Football League. On Sunday night, he might not even be the best receiver in the game, but he could have the biggest impact. No offense to Moss, he is probably the second best receiver in history. Statistically, only Jerry Rice is better when it comes to receiving touchdowns (197 to 156) and Moss' 15,292 receiving yards are third behind Rice's 22,895 and Terrell Owens' 15,934.

Raiders at RavensTime: 1 p.m. Sunday, Ch. 11Announcers: Tom Hammond and Bob Trumpy.Why to watch: Baltimore returns to the NFL after 12 years, so let's vent one last time about Tagliabue, Cooke, et al, and get on with it.If it's a blowout: Watch till the end, anyway. It's history.Saints at 49ersTime: 4 p.m. Sunday, Ch. 45.Announcers: Kevin Harlan and Jerry Glanville.Why to watch: See Jerry Rice run, see Jerry Rice catch, see Jerry Rice score. And see Jim Mora frown, again.If it's a blowout: Unhook the cable and try to tune in the Patriots against the Dolphins on Washington's Channel 4.Bills at GiantsTime: 8 p.m. Sunday, TNTAnnouncers: Verne Lundquist and Pat Haden.

What's new: Redskins running back Terry Allen hung up on a conference call with the San Francisco media this week after reporters insisted on asking him about his past history of knee injuries. Allen repeatedly told them he wasn't going to talk about the knees and when the fourth knee question came, he cut the connection.Next game: The return of 49ers QB Steve Young notwithstanding, many people around Redskin Park are anticipating a possible matchup between 36-year-old Washington cornerback Darrell Green and 34-year-old 49ers receiver Jerry Rice.

N.Y. Giants (4-7) at San Francisco (8-3)Time: 8: 20, chs. 2, 7.Line: 49ers by 13.Vs. spread: Giants 4-7; 49ers 3-8.Outlook: Remember when this matchup was something to get excited about? This year, you'll be lucky to make it to halftime awake. So will the Giants, who have lost three of their past four. The 49ers are still the 49ers, but they're in second place and looking at a wild card. Still, QB Steve Young is more than enough to beat the Giants by himself, and this might be the perfect opportunity to smooth things over with pouting WR Jerry Rice.

The San Francisco 49ers' Randy Moss said Tuesday that he is the best wide receiver to ever play in the National Football League. On Sunday night, he might not even be the best receiver in the game, but he could have the biggest impact. No offense to Moss, he is probably the second best receiver in history. Statistically, only Jerry Rice is better when it comes to receiving touchdowns (197 to 156) and Moss' 15,292 receiving yards are third behind Rice's 22,895 and Terrell Owens' 15,934.

MIAMI -- San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jerry Rice remembers the time he lined up to start a game against the Atlanta Falcons, focusing on his duel with cornerback Deion Sanders.It doesn't get much better in pro football than Rice vs. Sanders: the best wide receiver against the best cover corner in the game.Rice, who is so intense that he often doesn't sleep much the night before games, was concentrating on the play.That's why he was startled when Sanders reached out to shake his hand.

SAN DIEGO - His helmet hides the receding hairline. His knowledge of the game offsets declining speed. But Jerry Rice's hands - although still reliable - betray him all the time. His rough, battle-scarred mitts show the wear and tear of a 40-year-old body while revealing a tale about the ageless Oakland Raiders receiver. As a teenager in Mississippi, Rice spent the sweltering summers helping his brick-laying father. He worked tirelessly eight hours a day, busting up his hands to build a chimney or a building.

After the usual introduction folderol, we get the encore dance - Donald's jive with Karina and Peta. Still good, but maybe not quite as high energy as it was last night. Footage from last night: Donald & Peta got compliments from the other contestants up in the kiss and cry and then went ass over teakettle in the interview area. Katherine & Mark prompt the judges to get very silly after they hold up their paddles. I love seeing the masks slip. The brief glimpse we get of Katherine, Mark, and Tristan making silly faces and screaming in the backstage interview makes me wish Katherine had been paired with Tristan - they're partners in goofy.

Cardinals@49ers 8:30 p.m. [ESPN] The season still has four games remaining and Vernon Davis (Maryland), left, already has set the 49ers' single-season record for touchdowns by a tight end with 10. Good thing for him, Jerry Rice wasn't a tight end.

Baltimore-born R&B singer Mario lost out on one of the biggest stages in show business when he was voted off ABC's Dancing with the Stars this week. But his impressive run on the hit TV series has given the 21-year-old performer a shot at reaching new audiences - not just as a musician but also as an actor, industry analysts said yesterday. The question now is what use he makes of the newfound momentum. "Being on Dancing with the Stars opened up Mario to a whole different audience who didn't know of his talent and personality - and they got to see him in a different light than your usual R&B singer," says Biff Warren, president of The Agency, a multicultural marketing and media company that includes such clients as Alicia Keys and Jamie Hector.

BEWARE THE TAINTED legacy. It can come from nowhere, and it's impossible to scrub clean. Or so some would have you believe. The latest to slap a permanent smudge to our pristine memories is Jerry Rice. He hasn't even put on a Denver Broncos uniform yet, and to hear some talk, they'll never be able to erase the image from their minds, that it will blot out everything he did in his prime. Will we ever again be able to recall his greatness? Uh, yeah. Proof, and lots of it, resides right here in town, a short walk from Oriole Park: the Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum and the new Sports Legends at Camden Yards.

Rankings are a compilation of opinions of eight NFL writers from Tribune Publishing papers across the country (last week's ranking in parentheses): 1. Patriots (1) Offensive coordinator Charlie Weis also deserves credit. 2. Eagles (2) Bet you didn't think the defense would be this good. 3. Colts (3) Look for Peyton Manning to pick up where he left off. 4. Vikings (4) Five more TD passes for Daunte Culpepper. Can you say MVP? 5. Jets (5) Jets don't play as well as their record. 6. Broncos (7)

Since the first few practices of training camp, coaches have been impressed with sixth-round pick Gerome Sapp. Sapp has made his mark the way someone of his draft status has to --- on special teams - and is set to become a leader of that unit with the season-ending loss of Adalius Thomas (fractured elbow) starting tomorrow against Oakland. The rookie safety is third on the Ravens with 13 special teams tackles and a fumble recovery. "I didn't want to be any dead weight," Sapp said. "Right now I think I am producing, but I can always do more.

The Player of the Year charity dinner scheduled Super Bowl eve by the NFL Alumni and its presenting sponsor, USF&G Corp., has been canceled because of U.S. involvement in the Persian Gulf war.According to Bruce Bosley, executive director of the Alumni organization, "This decision was not made lightly. It was guided by the dictates of reason and propriety, as we see it."In announcing the joint decision, senior vice president of USF&G Minor Carter added, "We feel badly because of the charitable aspects of this event.

ASHBURN, Va. - The Washington Redskins' run of good health took a drastic turn one day after absorbing their worst loss of the season. Relatively injury-free for the first five games, the Redskins (3-3) learned yesterday that as many as three starters could join starting left guard Dave Fiore on the sideline for Sunday's game against the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Running back Trung Canidate is dealing with a high right ankle sprain, and cornerback Fred Smoot has a sprained clavicle.

IF YOU WANT style points or finesse, then cheer for the Kansas City Chiefs or the St. Louis Rams. If you want ugly, scrappy, hustling football, then here come the Ravens. The Ravens' 24-10 win against the San Diego Chargers on Sunday was hard on the eyes, but it doesn't matter at this point in the season. All that counts is that they came away with the win. The Ravens allowed the Chargers nearly 400 yards of total offense, and they've won two games against teams that have a combined 1-5 record, but this team is right where it should be at 2-1, and looking awfully mediocre.