49ers LB Discusses `The Stop'

	SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) -- There was nothing subtle about Rickey
Jackson's punishing tackle of Emmitt Smith.
	It was football in its most basic form, a violent one-on-one
collision and a jarring blow that also produced a telling moment in
the San Francisco 49ers' 21-14 victory over the Dallas Cowboys on
Sunday.
	In one swoop, the 49ers stunned Smith, shed their finesse image
and showcased the defensive ferocity they had lacked in the three
previous losses to Dallas, including the past two NFC championship
games.
	``Once I hit him, he knew that we (meant) business. He knew that
we were out there for real,'' said Jackson, a pass-rushing
linebacker who moved to defensive end after Richard Dent went down
with a knee injury Sept. 11.
	``I think it kind of sent a message that we were there to play
and play hard,'' added linebacker Gary Plummer.
	To understand the impact of ``The Stop,'' consider the damage
Smith has done to the 49ers. He had 294 yards rushing and five
scores during Dallas' three-game win streak against the 49ers.
	Smith was well on his way toward another big game Sunday. He had
rolled up 52 yards on 15 carries, including the first of two
scoring runs.
	The score was 7-7 with 2:49 to go in the second period when
Dallas opened a drive at its 40. Smith ran a lead draw through the
right side of the line and was just about to accelerate when
Jackson bolted from right end and delivered a crushing tackle that
stopped the running back cold.
	Smith lay on his stomach motionless for about 30 seconds before
jogging woozily off the field. A few moments later, he regained his
senses and was back on the field but even though he ran for one
more score in the late going, Smith didn't hit his stride again.
	``I mean, he hit Emmitt square in the mouth,'' said Merton
Hanks, who twice denied Dallas with interceptions of Troy Aikman
near the goal line. ``Athletes don't like to lay on the field so
their opponents can see them hurt, and he really had to be hurting
to stay down. That took a lot out of Emmitt. He wasn't running
quite the same after that.''
	Smith, who rushed for 78 yards on the day, gained just 26 yards
on 11 carries after the hit by Jackson, a defensive force in New
Orleans for 13 years before coming to San Francisco as a free
agent.
	Once Smith was slowed, San Francisco turned the heat up on
Aikman. The 49ers sacked him three times, including once by Jackson
to thwart a fourth-quarter drive.
	Aikman, who had no interceptions in his previous three games
against San Francisco, had three of them Sunday, two by Hanks and
one by Deion Sanders.
	Jackson said San Francisco's defense, which underwent wholesale
changes with the additions of two rookie and four free-agent
starters, is finally coming together after early season struggles
that included a 40-8 loss to Philadelphia on Oct. 2.
	``Now, this defense is good enough to shut people out,'' Jackson
said. ``We had no business letting them get that many points.''