Detroit Free Press

THE LIVE ALBOM:* For all the hoopla over Sunday's game, the fact is, if the Lions lose, everyone will say, "Never mind. The last two games are the important ones."

DATELINE UNKNOWN -- The crack of the bat was sweet and true -- a solid hit, extra bases for sure -- and as spectators rose in a collective "oooh," Barry Bonds began to run.

ATLANTA -- Bruce Smith, the symbol of Buffalo power, was on his knees in the end zone, the posture of surrender. All around him, Cowboys were dancing, doing high steps, mugging for the crowd. Half of them had their helmets off so the TV cameras could catch their faces. They mobbed Emmitt Smith, who had just scored a touchdown on fourth-and-one, a muscle test, yours versus ours, late in the game, the championship on the line; Smith had gone in standing up. Touchdown. Now flashbulbs exploded and rolls of toilet paper came flying from the stands.

OAKLAND, Calif. -- That sound you heard Sunday afternoon was two legends falling off the rainbow. The difference is, one landed in clover, the other flat on his back.I am talking Jack Morris. I am talking Dennis Eckersley. Once upon a time, they would have made a complete pitching staff by themselves. Let Morris go eight innings, drag him off the mound with the smoke coming from his nostrils,

Maybe the Godfather had it right. In his regime, the rules were clear. If you were family, you were safe. If you were family, there was an obligation. Family meant loyalty. You knew where you stood.

Bob Probert was in a hot dog joint the other day when a stranger spotted him and the stranger was drunk and all of a sudden, he's Probert's best friend. He throws his arm around him, he's slobbering, "Hey, Probie!" like they're old pals."He wanted me to go muskie fishing with him," Probert says. "He kept bothering me, saying let's go, let's go, we'll have a great time. And at the end he says, 'Hey, Probie, we'll get a cooler and I'll buy the beer.'