Richard Puts A Nasty Dent In Young

Steve Young, who led the San Francisco 49ers to a 38-28 victory over the Dallas Cowboys in the National Football Conference championship game, admitted Monday he felt lucky to even play after his involvement in a freak collision before practice Saturday.

Young was resting on one knee tying his shoes and defensive end Richard Dent was chasing a pass.

Dent, 6-foot-5, 265 pounds, caught the ball a step from Young and couldn’t stop. Young never saw him.

“It was the hardest I have been hit this season without question,” Young said. “Dent ruled me.”

The blow strained Young’s neck and aggravated a left shoulder injury, sending pain shooting throughout his upper neck and shoulder area.

Although Young practiced, the pain continued. By evening, he could barely move his neck.

“He looked like a turtle who had retracted his head into his shell,” said Leigh Steinberg, his agent and friend. “He said, ‘Leigh, I don’t know how I’m even going to be able to play.”’

When he awoke Sunday, the pain and stiffness remained.

“It was scary,” Young said. “I felt terrible.”

He had no choice but to receive a shot of cortisone in the back and neck area and it eventually loosened up. The rest is history.

George Seifert, incidently, put to rest rumors he’s considering resigning as 49ers coach to take an administrative job with the organization.

“I have no idea how they started. It wasn’t anything I said, or anybody close to me would say,” Seifert said. “I don’t plan on retiring or going into a different capacity. I enjoy coaching. I enjoy the San Francisco 49ers.”

Bucs to stay put

Palm Beach financier Malcolm Glazer agreed to buy the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for a record price, pledging to keep the team in town.

Glazer is believed to have paid as much as $192 million for the team with the worst record in NFL history. The late Hugh Culverhouse bought the club for $16 million 21 years ago.

“I don’t want to get into details,” Glazer said, “but it’s the biggest price ever paid for a sports franchise in the world.”

Glazer insisted in the sale agreement he keep the team in Tampa a minimum of two years. The contract also includes provisions for a $35 million penalty if the team is relocated within 10 years.

“The buck stops here,” he said.

Rams hire

The Los Angeles Rams hired former L.A. Raiders and San Diego Chargers executive Steve Ortmayer as their vice president for football operations.

Ortmayer, 50, will be responsible for all football-related personnel decisions. He also have some imput into the hiring of fired coach Chuck Knox’s successor, but said the Rams will be in “no particular rush” to hire.

The Rams are expected to formally announce today their intentions of moving to St. Louis.

But the group called Save the Rams isn’t giving up. Steinberg, co-chairman of Save the Rams, said the fight to keep the team in Anaheim is far from finished.

“The battle has just begun,” said the prominent sports agent. “We are quite sure that (NFL) owners will not think that it’s in the best interests of the league to allow the Los Angeles Rams to move to St. Louis.”

Owners would have to approve a move.

This ‘n’ that …

Miami Dolphins quarterback Dan Marino, who met with several doctors last week, has decided not to have a second surgery on his right Achilles’ tendon.

When 49ers running backs Ricky Watters and William Floyd started a scuffle with Dallas players during pregame warmups, they had a ready explanation.

“I mean, we come out, and they have the audacity to sit there and stretch where we stretch,” Watters said. “They know that’s where we stretch every week. And they come out and try to bump us out of our space. That’s not going to happen.”

Cleveland running back Leroy Hoard agreed to a fouryear, $2.5 million deal with the Browns last week that includes a $1.5 million signing bonus.