First of All, Falcons Won’t Be Such a Patsy for Rams This Time

Five things to remember as the Rams try for an improbable playoff spot . . .

1) The Atlanta Falcons.

Almost 8 weeks have passed since the Rams recorded their first and, thus far, only shutout of the season, a 33-0 victory over the hapless Falcons on a dreary, overcast day in Fulton County Stadium. The Rams better cherish the memory, because these aren’t the same Falcons of Oct. 9.

Steve Dils, a great guy, but a career understudy, was the Falcon starting quarterback that day. Pro Bowl running back Gerald Riggs was hurt. The Falcon offensive line allowed 9 sacks. Linebacker Aundray Bruce, the No. 1 draft choice this year, didn’t have a clue what to do in Coach Marion Campbell’s complicated defense.

What an afternoon the Rams had. They scored five times in the first half. Greg Bell rushed for 155 yards (110 in the first half). Henry Ellard caught 7 passes for 134 yards. Had somebody arranged a game between the Falcons and the nearby University of Georgia football team, I would have taken the Bulldogs.

Now I’m not so sure I’d take the Rams in their rematch with the Falcons on Sunday. Chris Miller, perhaps the best pure athlete on the team, is back at quarterback. Of the Falcons’ 9 losses this season, 5 have come when Miller left or missed a game entirely because of an injury. When he starts and finishes a game, the Falcons are 5-4.

Riggs has returned. While he was gone, though, the Falcons discovered John Settle from Appalachian State. Settle needs less than 100 yards to become the first free agent since 1965 to rush for 1,000 yards. Settle is also the team’s leading pass receiver.

I guarantee an improved Falcon line won’t allow nine Ram sacks again. And Bruce, confused no longer, is playing with more confidence and abandon each week. The same goes for the entire Falcon defense, which has allowed less than 8 points a game during the last 5 weeks.

2) Disturbing Statistics For Ram Followers.

For those of you hoping for a San Francisco 49er late-season collapse, go hope somewhere else. During the last 5 years, the 49ers are 10-0 in the last 2 games of a regular season. Of those 10 victories, 3 have come against the Rams.

Meanwhile, the Rams are 3-7. Even the New Orleans Saints, the third piece to this wacky playoff puzzle, have a better late, late-season record than the Rams. They’re 5-5 in those final 2 regular season games.

Silly numbers? Ram fans better pray so.

3) November.

The month that will live in Ram infamy. Four games. Four losses.

The playoffs? Barring a minor divine intervention, forget it.

The Rams have no one to blame for their troubles except themselves. A loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, you half understand. A loss to the tough Saints--accepted. But to lose to the undermanned San Diego Chargers and then to the strange Denver Broncos is unsettling.

Win 3 of those 4 games and you’re thinking about home-field advantage.

Win 2 of 4 and you’re thinking about a division title.

Win 1 of 4 and you’re thinking about wild-card opponents.

Win 0 of 4 and you’re the present-day Rams: Desperate.

4) Back Slaps.

Pro Bowl ballots are distributed to NFL players next week. Last season, the Rams placed five players--Dennis Harrah, Jerry Gray, Charles White, Doug Smith and Jackie Slater--on the NFC team. This year, who knows?

Harrah is retired, so count him out. Gray has had a trying year, what with teams attacking the Rams’ Eagle defense and its reliance on man-on-man coverage. White has been no factor. Smith has been solid, dependable. The same goes for Slater.

One of the more interesting problems facing NFC voters is the choice of running backs. Roger Craig of the 49ers and Herschel Walker of the Dallas Cowboys are considered locks. Neal Anderson of the Chicago Bears is a likely pick, which leaves one more opening.

You’d think that the Rams’ Bell would be the obvious choice. His touchdown total and 1,000-yard season should be reason enough, right? But there seems to be a moderate amount of support for the Falcons’ Settle, who, like Bell, strapped a team’s running game on his back and carried it for most of the season. Bell deserves the selection, but don’t be entirely surprised if Settle sneaks onto the roster.

Other Ram candidates include Ellard (a sure thing), quarterback Jim Everett (will battle Minnesota’s Wade Wilson, New Orleans’ Bobby Hebert and San Francisco’s Joe Montana for second-team honors), linebacker Kevin Greene (a long shot of sorts, what with the decline in Ram sack production) and kicker Mike Lansford (another long shot, thanks to New Orleans’ Morten Andersen and Lansford’s game in Denver).

5) There’s Always Next Year.

Remember Eric Dickerson? Remember all the great gifts the Rams received from the Buffalo Bills and Indianapolis Colts when he was traded last year?

Well, there’s plenty of presents left, including two first-round picks and three second-round selections in the 1989 draft.

But unlike last year, when they used all five of their first- and second-round choices, the Rams might want to take a new approach. In other words, package.

In order of need, the Rams desperately could use a defensive lineman, followed by an inside linebacker, an offensive lineman (because the Mike Schad experiment has turned out so well), a quarterback and a cornerback. With those five picks, the Rams could draft a player at each one of those positions. Simple.

A better method, considering the Rams’ most pressing needs, is a deal that brings them the best defensive lineman in the upcoming draft. Or the best linebacker/pass rusher. Someone such as, say, Derrick Thomas of Alabama or Broderick Thomas of Oklahoma. Maybe Trace Armstrong of Arizona State, Tracy Rocker of Auburn or Wayne Martin of Arkansas. Anyway, you get the idea. The Rams need someone who can make a difference.

As the draft order begins to take shape, it looks as if the Rams won’t choose their first player until about midway through the first round. By then, the two Thomases will be long gone.

Rather than wave goodby, the Rams should deal. Trade up. Dangle those two first-rounders and maybe a second-rounder for the right to move up, way up, in the draft.

So there. Five things. You’ll be quizzed at a later date.