PRO FOOTBALL : Form Holds, Making Detmer a Packer

Ty Detmer, a Heisman Trophy winner at Brigham Young, has the pro football promise of a ninth-round draft choice. That has been apparent to most NFL scouts and coaches for years.

And the obvious was confirmed on the last day of what might be the last draft when Detmer went to the Green Bay Packers Monday during the ninth round.

Still, he has landed in the one place where he might make it as a pro. His new coach, Mike Holmgren, was for many years Joe Montana’s coach in San Francisco, and Montana, a four-time Super Bowl winner, is somewhat similar to Detmer.

The scouts dismissed Montana, too, ignoring him in the draft for nearly three rounds because he was too short and slight for the pros and lacked a big arm.

Detmer has a chance.

It’s unlikely that the same can be said for another ninth-rounder, Colorado quarterback Darian Hagan, a 49er pick.

Less than 24 hours after the Rams made 315-pound defensive tackle Sean Gilbert the third selection in the draft, they made him a millionaire, several times over. Gilbert signed a five-year contract worth about $7 million, including a $3-million signing bonus.

The quick signing reverses a Ram trend of hard negotiating, particularly with upper-level draft choices, that has cost valuable teaching time for the rookies.

“It’s very important that we have Gilbert signed,” Ram Coach Chuck Knox said. “Now, we know he will be here for mini-camp and training camp. We know what to expect.”

The Rams concentrated on offense in the final seven rounds. They chose Joe Campbell, a 175-pound running back from Middle Tennessee State, during the sixth round and Northwestern offensive tackle Darryl Ashmore during the seventh.

The Rams took quarterbacks Ricky Jones of Alabama State and T.J. Rudley of Tulsa in the next two rounds and plan to try Jones at cornerback, safety or wide receiver. The final selections were running back Tim Lester of Western Kentucky, linebacker Brian Townsend of Michigan, wide receiver Brian Thomas of Southern and center Kelvin Harris of Miami, Fla.

The Raiders finished their draft with five selections, giving them eight overall in the 12 rounds.

Chosen Monday were Tony Rowell of Florida, a tackle the Raiders project as a center; and guard Tom Roth of Southern Illinois, picked during the final round.

They also added safety Curtis Cotton of Nebraska and UCLA’s Kevin Smith, a running back who probably will play tight end, during the seventh round.

During the 10th round, they selected linebacker Alberto White from Texas Southern.

The maybes: If you use enough ifs, the NFL’s 1992 draft-week winners are easy enough to define:

--The trade that brought in Eric Dickerson to alternate with Marcus Allen made the Raiders a success story if top picks Chester McGlockton and Greg Skrepenak, who play defensive and offensive tackle, are all they seem.

--David Shula began his NFL coaching career at Cincinnati with three solid choices in the first two rounds if, long term, David Klingler is an NFL quarterback, and if Darryl Williams and Carl Pickens can do it at cornerback and wide receiver.

--The Atlanta Falcons, who were a steady cellar dweller not long ago, improved again with their fourth consecutive first-round double if they got the right running back in Tony Smith after drafting blocker Bob Whitfield.

--The Washington Redskins were a clear winner with wide receiver Desmond Howard.

--And the New York Jets, with every turn of the wheel, seemed to get the best athlete still on the board. The Jets began with Nebraska tight end Johnny Mitchell, USC linebacker Kurt Barber and Washington tackle Siupeli Malamala.

Maybe nots: The draft-week losers will, as usual, turn out to be those who drafted almost exclusively for need:

--The Miami Dolphins, needing defensive help, began with five consecutive defensive selections. Their No. 1, cornerback Troy Vincent, wasn’t a bad choice--unless you agree, as many do, with the late George Allen.

“Never draft a defensive back first,” Allen said. “No position is easy to fill, but that’s the easiest.”

--The Minnesota Vikings and Houston Oilers, lacking first-round choices, were among several others who paid more attention to their needs than to the quality available, regardless of position.

The needy can get lucky, as the Pittsburgh Steelers did in the 1970s. But the odds are against it.

The money savers: In one of the most ambitious draft-week projects ever attempted, the Dallas Cowboys drafted only players they could sign and accepted only those who would sign on the spot--even before their names were submitted to the league.

It was another first for Jerry Jones, the enterprising, hands-on owner of the club.

“(Jones) established the formula, and we agreed that it was a fair deal,” agent Steve Zucker said after the Cowboys had signed one of his clients, Texas A&M; cornerback Kevin Smith.

Said Smith: “I can put $1 million in the bank, and I’m 22, so that’s not bad.”

Theoretically, Smith could have banked even more if he had dickered with Jones for several months--the traditional NFL way.

But Jones has had his fill of that. This year, taking the initiative in the week before the draft, he sent Cowboy representatives into areas where they could bid for local prospects the instant Cowboy scouts made a decision.

The club spent thousands in travel costs, in other words, to save millions in salaries and bonuses. And those who wouldn’t sign weren’t drafted.

Only a well-organized club could have done it that way, and if it isn’t the optimum way to get the best talent in college ball, it’s one way.

It’s up to Joe: When Washington defensive back Dana Hall became the San Francisco 49ers’ top pick, he was asked if he is the next Ronnie Lott.

“I’m a fierce competitor, like Ronnie is,” Hall said. “But I’d rather not be compared to the (Raider safety). He’s done some things in this league that a lot of people will never be able to accomplish.”

The larger question is whether Hall and second pick Amp Lee, a lightly regarded Florida State running back, can help restore order on the 49ers, who have been unraveling since they let Lott get away.

In particular, this hasn’t been the best of off-seasons in San Francisco:

--After missing the playoffs last winter, the 49ers lost Tony Razzano, an able chief scout who quit when he thought the club was replacing him with former coach Bill Walsh. He and Walsh don’t get along.

--Next, the 49ers lost a record seven veterans to Plan B, a problem they formerly avoided with salary promises.

--Along the way, they lost five assistant coaches, a blow that was eased when one of the league’s brightest offensive coordinators, Mike Shanahan, came over from Denver.

“If anything, we’ve gained there,” 49er Coach George Seifert said.

--Then, instead of using one of their quarterbacks in a trade, the 49ers decided to keep all three: Montana, Steve Young and Steve Bono.

--And that decision, which followed two mediocre drafts in 1990-91, kept the 49ers from getting a dramatic improvement in this week’s renewal.

Montana sat out last season after elbow surgery. At 36, can he make it all the way back this year--and bring the 49ers with him?

The top 22: This year’s all-pro All-American team, consisting of the college players drafted first at their positions Sunday, lists one oddity--four defensive backs in the first 18 picks:

OFFENSE

WR--Desmond Howard (fourth pick overall) Michigan (Washington Redskins).

WR--Carl Pickens (31) Tennessee (Cincinnati Bengals).

TE--Derek Brown (14) Notre Dame (New York Giants).

OL--Bob Whitfield (8) Stanford (Atlanta Falcons).

OL--Ray Roberts (10) Virginia (Seattle Seahawks).

OL--Leon Searcy (11) Miami, Fla. (Pittsburgh Steelers).

OL--Eugene Chung (13) Virginia Tech (New England Patriots).

OL--Greg Skrepenak (32) Michigan (Raiders).

QB--David Klingler (6) Houston (Bengals).

RB--Tommy Vardell (9) Stanford (Cleveland Browns).

RB--Tony Smith (19) Southern Mississippi (Falcons).

DEFENSE

DL--Steve Emtman (1) Washington (Indianapolis Colts).

DL--Sean Gilbert (3) Pittsburgh (Rams).

DL--Chester McGlockton (16) Clemson (Raiders).

DL--Alonzo Spellman (22) Ohio State (Chicago Bears).

LB--Quentin Coryatt (2) Texas A&M; (Colts).

LB--Marco Coleman (12) Georgia Tech (Miami Dolphins).

LB--Robert Jones (24) East Carolina (Dallas Cowboys).

LB--Mark D’Onofrio (34) Penn State (Patriots).

DB--Terrell Buckley (5) Florida State (Green Bay Packers).

DB--Troy Vincent (7) Wisconsin (Dolphins).

DB--Kevin Smith (17) Texas A&M; (Cowboys).

DB--Dana Hall (18) Washington (San Francisco 49ers).

Ram Draft Picks

Round Player Position School 1. Sean Gilbert DE Pittsburgh 2. Steve Israel DB Pittsburgh 3. Mark Boutte DL LSU 3. Todd Kinchen WR LSU 4. Shawn Harper OL Indiana 5. Chris Crooms DB Texas A&M; 6. Joe Campbell RB Middle Tennessee State 7. Darryl Ashmore OT Northwestern 7. Curtis Cotton DB Nebraska 8. Ricky Jones QB Alabama State 9. T.J. Rubley QB Tulsa 10. Tim Lester RB Eastern Kentucky 11. Brian Townsend LB Michigan 11. Brian Thomas WR Southern U. 12. Kelvin Harris C Miami

Raider Draft Picks

Round Player Position School 1. Chester McGlockton DT Clemson 2. Greg Skrepenak OT Michigan 5. Derrick Hoskins DB Southern Mississippi 6. Tony Rowell C Florida 7. Kevin Smith RB UCLA 10. Alberto White LB Texas Southern 12. Tom Roth G Southern Illinois