NFL fans might not receive the Christmas day gift they were expecting.

The dream matchup between the league's two best running backs -- Denver's Terrell Davis and Detroit's Barry Sanders -- on Dec. 25 is in jeopardy.

Sanders' father, William, has said his son is unhappy in Detroit and is considering retirement.

	Barry Sanders is less than 1,500 yards away from the NFL's career rushing record.

"Barry's sick of them (the Lions)," William Sanders told The Detroit News earlier this month. "He's sick of losing. He's sick of the whole situation. I told Barry, 'You ought to go in and tell people you want things done.' As long as you don't say anything, they're going to keep misusing you."

Barry, though, has remained just as elusive during the offseason as he is on the field, skipping each of Detroit's voluntary workouts and the team's mandatory minicamp. Coach Bobby Ross said he wants to know by June 1 whether Sanders will play in 1999.

Peter Schaffer, one of Sanders' representatives, said his client's low profile shouldn't be construed as a sign he's going to retire.

"You have to understand Barry Sanders really relishes his free time and offseason privacy more than most people," Schaffer said. "Him not talking to the Lions during the offseason is not out of the ordinary. Actually, it's the norm.

"In his first contract with the Lions, he had a $100,000 workout clause. He never lifted weights there in Detroit. He relished his offseason time more, so we never put another workout clause in his contract."

Through 10 NFL seasons, Sanders has never played in a Super Bowl and appeared in only one NFC Championship Game. Last year, the Lions finished 5-11 with a rookie quarterback (Charlie Batch) and miserable defense.

While Detroit made enough roster moves this spring to contend for a playoff spot in 1999, a Super Bowl berth is probably too much to expect.

RUNNING TO HISTORY
By averaging 91.1 yards a game next season, Detroit's Barry Sanders will pass former Bears running back Walter Payton as the NFL's all-time leading rusher:
Player	Years	Att.	Yards
Walter Payton	13	3,838	16,726
Barry Sanders	10	3,062	15,269
Eric Dickerson	11	2,996	13,259
Tony Dorsett	12	2,936	12,739
Emmitt Smith	9	2,914	12,566

"Would Barry rather win then lose? Yes," Schaffer said. "Is Barry going to retire? Yes. Is it going to be this year? Who knows?

"Clearly, Barry's father is frustrated. One thing I know about living in a free country is that people are allowed to express themselves. If that's his opinion, he's allowed to express it. But that doesn't mean it's Barry's opinion or our opinion or anyone else's."

Here's mine: Sanders will play in 1999 because he has a chance to make history even if his team is at least a year away from becoming a legitimate Super Bowl contender. Sanders is only 1,458 yards away from passing Walter Payton (16,726) on the NFL's all-time rushing list -- a milestone he could reach while playing against the Broncos in the Pontiac Silverdome.

The TD clause
The achievements of Davis played a role in the eight-year contract signed by New Orleans rookie Ricky Williams.

To achieve one of three escalator clauses in the deal, Williams must match or exceed three of the four-year totals set by Davis in rushing yards (6,413), rushing and receiving yardage (7,594), rushing average (4.8) or scoring (366 points/61 touchdowns).

That would increase Williams' compensation in the fifth year of his contract to $8.1 million. It also would raise his base salary in years six through eight to $3.5 million.

Of course, there are no guarantees Williams will see that money because of the frequency teams restructure contracts. Plus, how can Williams expect to post those types of numbers while playing in New Orleans?

Frequent flier
New York Jets quarterback Vinny Testaverde has found a way to satisfy his family and his demanding coach when it comes to offseason workouts.

Jets coach Bill Parcells is a stickler for players participating in his program at Hofstra University in New York, so much so that he told Testaverde he wouldn't receive a $19.5 million contract extension without a promise to attend. Testaverde, though, cherishes the time away from football he can spend with his wife and two children at his home in Tampa.

The compromise?

Testaverde purchased an eight-seat airplane from Tennessee Titans owner Bud Adams for $2 million. Testaverde leaves Tampa for New York on Monday mornings, works out in the afternoon and Tuesday, then flies home. He follows the same routine on Thursday, participating in two sessions before returning to Tampa.

"Other than maybe getting a little jet lag, everything is a positive," Testaverde said. "With my own plane, I actually get to spend parts of every day at home."

Around the league
AFC West: Three concussions over the past two seasons appear to have caused a premature end to the career of Kansas City tight end Ted Popson. The Chiefs are negotiating an injury settlement with Popson so he can retire . . . Kansas City considered signing ex-Denver cornerback Darrien Gordon, but opted for Cris Dishman in the belief he was a more physical player. "Cris Dishman is physical at the line," Dishman said. "He hits, bumps on the receiver. That's what the Chiefs were looking for. They wouldn't have signed me if I wasn't their type of player."

AFC Central: Cleveland could have the steal of the free-agent signing period in ex-Arizona linebacker Jamir Miller, who accepted a one-year contract after not finding a suitable multiyear deal. The Broncos discussed signing Miller before the draft as a pass-rushing end, but instead selected Texas Tech's Montae Reagor with the first of its two second-round draft choices. Some teams might have been scared by the fact Miller would face a one-year suspension if he failed a drug test. Miller, though, hasn't failed one since 1995 and is coming off a breakthrough season. The Browns said they will attempt to give Miller a lucrative contract extension next season if he's playing well to prevent him from re-testing the free-agent market . . . Move over, Oronde Gadsden. Baltimore wide receiver Kendrick Nord also may make the jump from the Arena Football League to the NFL. Nord, signed by Philadelphia Eagles as a rookie free-agent quarterback out of Grambling in 1996, made the conversion to wide receiver with the Iowa Barnstormers last year in the AFL. Nord is competing with Floyd Turner and James Roe for the fifth receiver slot in Baltimore.

AFC East: Like Jets quarterback Testaverde, ex-Broncos wide receiver Willie Green is commuting to his offseason workouts in Miami. Green leaves his North Carolina home on Sundays and returns Thursdays . . . Ex-Cleveland Browns coach Sam Rutigliano believes Eric Green could become one of the NFL's best tight ends now that he signed with the New York Jets. "He's in the right place," said Rutigliano, who coached Green at Liberty University. "Eric Green has never even touched his potential. He might not like what I'm going to say, but I don't care. He's the kind of guy who needs someone like (Bill) Parcells, Bobby Knight, (Vince) Lombardi or (Don) Shula to pound him and not let him do it to it his way."

NFC West: The St. Louis Rams sent a banner signed by players and coaches to the students at Columbine High School after last month's shootings . . . Robert Holcombe could give Greg Hill a good battle for the backup role behind Marshall Faulk in St. Louis. Holcombe, a 1998 second-round pick, had 84 yards in his first NFL game but gained only 146 the rest of the year. "Robert Holcombe is a different kid today than he was a year ago," Rams coach Dick Vermeil said during a recent minicamp. "He's calmed down a little bit. He's so wound tight, so intense, that sometimes it's a negative. I think he's so much more aware, more understanding of how you've got to run the ball in the National Football League. I've been impressed with his improvement."

NFC Central: Green Bay coach Ray Rhodes put his new team through the ringer during a recent minicamp, conducting a conditioning test that some describe as a "suicide run." Players ran stop-and-start sprints that equaled 2,100 yards, then were asked to jog for 10 minutes at their own pace. "I do have a different conditioning thing than has been done around here in the past," said Rhodes, who is aware of claims that Green Bay had gotten soft over the past two seasons. "The players know we will be in great shape as a football team this year."

NFC East: Bill Bidwill said he has no plans to sell the Arizona Cardinals even though a stadium referendum was voted down last Tuesday by area voters. Bidwill is being courted by Texas billionaire Bob McNair, who will probably be unable to acquire an expansion franchise for Houston because of the NFL's obsession to return to Los Angeles. There is speculation that the referendum will be reintroduced to voters with a lower sales tax portion, a measure designed to appease the large numbers of senior citizens who helped quash the first referendum. The Cardinals are the only NFL team playing in a college stadium, something that is killing revenues and preventing the league from allowing the area to host another Super Bowl . . . The heat will be on Philadelphia kicker Chris Boniol to rebound from a miserable 1998 campaign. Free-agent acquisition David Akers has made seven of nine field goals, including four from 47-plus yards, entering this weekend's NFL Europe games. Boniol has never proven worth the four-year, $2.6-million contract he signed to leave Dallas in 1997. Akers did fail in a one-game stint with Washington last September, missing two long field-goal tries and hitting short kickoffs before being dropped in favor of Cary Blanchard.

Alex Marvez writes for the Denver Rocky Mountain News.