DATE: Tuesday, November 11, 1997            TAG: 9711110435

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY JIM DUCIBELLA, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   71 lines

FORGET LAST 2 WINS; DALLAS THE REAL TEST

What Midwestern creampuff is next for the Washington Redskins? Notre Dame? Indiana? Nowhere State?

Don't crow over the Redskins and their 6-4 record or their suddenly invincible defense. It should be impossible to muster genuine enthusiasm over back-to-back victories over the clawless and clueless Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions. When the coaches from those two miserable franchises look back on 1997, they'll circle the day they played the Redskins as the absolute low point of their season.

The Redskins' last two victories are not cause for celebration, unless the bar is set ridiculously low. What those lopsided decisions do is put them in position to rise above the ooze under which most of the league is trapped, starting Sunday. That's when the Redskins and Dallas Cowboys meet in a rematch that looks increasingly spicy because, at 5-5, the Cowboys are about one more defeat from having their playoff hopes doused.

That's good news for the Redskins, who seem to be debunking some negative notions erected around them since Norv Turner became coach in 1993.

Like that ``Dallas thing.'' Before Sunday, Turner's Redskins were 0-13 in games before and after Dallas.

``That stat means a lot more to you guys than to us,'' quarterback Gus Frerotte argued.

Maybe. But linebacker Ken Harvey was more relieved than jubilant with Sunday's win.

``We've had a problem in the past thinking too far ahead,'' Harvey admitted. ``We had to take care of Detroit, then get ready for Dallas. Maybe sometimes we haven't done that in the past.''

Then there's the widely held notion that receiver Michael Westbrook is more fragile than bone china. Of course, evidence shows that Westbrook has been injured every 9.2 receptions (nine injuries, 83 career catches) and has taken longer to stage a comeback than Marlene Dietrich.

Westbrook went a long way toward removing that blemish from his resume against the Lions.

Five days before the game, Turner sat in his office conducting phone interviews. Westbrook kept buzzing by, but he wouldn't stop in as long as Turner was talking.

Finally, after a practice in which he ran half-speed, Westbrook found Turner unoccupied and told him he would be ready to play on Sunday. Even then, Turner didn't fully believe the former No. 1 pick, though he smartly designed a couple of things, just in case.

Westbrook responded by catching four passes for 93 yards, including big-gainers of 31 and 33 yards. He also forced Detroit defensive back Corey Raymond into a 25-yard pass-interference penalty that set up Washington's first touchdown. And, he'll play again Sunday.

Westbrook is a nightmare for every cornerback in the league - and that includes Dallas' Deion Sanders, who hates mixing it up with bigger guys.

There's also the matter of Norv-ember. What's Turner's record in November, you say? The answer is 1-10, at least it was until that recent mismatch in Chicago.

This year, they're 2-0 and have Dallas, the Giants and the St. Louis Rams to play before turning the page on the calendar. Win those three and the NFC East is all but theirs. Win the right two of three - Dallas and New York - and maybe the same thing applies. Better win those, because the franchise hasn't had much luck lately at Arizona and New York, or at home against the Eagles. That's the December schedule.

After Washington, the Cowboys still have Green Bay, Carolina and the Giants to play. New York still has games at Washington, Philadelphia and Dallas and home contests with Tampa Bay and the Redskins. After San Francisco on Monday night, Philadelphia still has Pittsburgh, Giants and Redskins, probably too much to handle for a team its coach charges isn't really paying attention.

Knock down the notion that they take a break before making a Christmas rush and the Redskins should find the playoffs for the first time since 1992. Then, whipping Chicago and Detroit would qualify as something other than shooting squirrels with a cannon.

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