He’s Just Another Joe? Say It Isn’t So, Marco

Miami Dolphin defensive end Marco Coleman is in only his second season in the NFL, so maybe he doesn’t know, but can he really mean what he said to Mike Strom of the New Orleans Times-Picayune?

“Joe Montana is just another quarterback. It’s not like he’s putting fear in anybody just by him being Joe Montana. He can do all the things other quarterbacks can do, like throw interceptions and get sacked.”

Trivia time: Second baseman Bret Boone was recently traded from Seattle to Cincinnati. How many major league teams have members of the Boone family played for?

Record streak: If the Rams get beaten by Atlanta today for their fifth consecutive loss, it will be the longest losing streak in Coach Chuck Knox’s 21-year career. His teams lost four in a row twice in Seattle and once in Buffalo.

High praise: Martina Navratilova, in an interview with Ann Killion of the San Jose Mercury News, calls Lindsay Davenport, a senior at Murrieta Valley High, her favorite tennis prospect.

“She’s a better all-around player than any of the baseliners out there,” Navratilova said. “I like her the most, personality-wise, of all the young players. She’s going to get better. By the time she gets better, I’ll be out of here.”

Different strokes: The San Antonio Spurs’ Dennis Rodman envisions himself as a counterpoint to David Robinson, the Spurs’ devout Christian and team leader.

“I’m going to be the bad guy, do all the illegal things, and Dave’s going to be the good guy, going to church and doing all the right things. Sometimes, you’ve got to bring a Harley-Davidson in . . . to get a different view.”

Baby boomers: Owner Peter Pocklington of the Edmonton Oilers has given Coach Ted Green the task of trying to put together a youth movement. When his most promising newcomer, Jason Arnott, went down with tonsillitis, Green noted, “I guess it’s a sign of the youth on our team. I’m fortunate it wasn’t diaper rash.”

Perfect choice: Boxing promoter Don King, who is under federal investigation involving charges of tax evasion and insurance fraud in New York, lectured master’s degree candidates at the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania.

“Rhapsodize and soliloquize,” he told them.

Whatever that means.

Out of touch: Doug Moe says he is putting basketball behind him.

Moe was a head coach in the NBA for 15 seasons before he signed a three-year, $2.25-million contract to coach the Philadelphia 76ers starting in 1992, but was fired 56 games into his first season.

“I’m just trying to keep up with my fantasy football league,” he says. “I have absolutely no interest (in the NBA). I don’t even know who is playing for what team.”

Mini-Iditarod: Many Colorado ski resorts offer dog-sledding.

Trivia answer: Eleven. In addition to Bret’s two, father Bob was a catcher for the Phillies, Angels and Royals, and grandfather Ray was an infielder with the Indians, Tigers, White Sox, Kansas City Athletics, Milwaukee Braves and Red Sox.

Quotebook: New York Giant Coach Dan Reeves on the Dallas Cowboys’ Emmitt Smith: “He’s one of those guys, when he touches the ball, you hold your breath.”