KC fans more shocked by Thomas than envious of Rams

(Kansas City-AP) -- Kansas City was full of fans all set to get mad at Missouri's other N-F-L team. But then came that memorable day, a week ago Sunday. The St. Louis Rams beat Tampa in the N-F-C

Friday, January 28th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

(Kansas City-AP) -- Kansas City was full of fans all set to get mad at Missouri's other N-F-L team. But then came that memorable day, a week ago Sunday. The St. Louis Rams beat Tampa in the N-F-C title game to qualify for the ultimate pro football experience -- the Super Bowl.

On the same day, a white S-U-V on the way to Kansas City International Airport flipped over on an icy highway and changed the mood of an entire town. The driver was all-pro Kansas City linebacker Derrick Thomas, who was on his way to the Ram game in St. Louis. Now he's hospitalized in his hometown of Miami, Florida, paralyzed from the chest down. The accident that killed his close friend, Mike Tellis, fractured vertebrae in Thomas' neck and upper back. Services are tomorrow for Tellis in Kansas City, Kansas.

Thomas is one of the game's all-time great pass-rushers, and he faces the prospect of never walking again. That possibility has settled over Kansas City like a fog. The accident has virtually halted Kansas City area talk about the Rams making the playoffs and the Chiefs just missing. There's even less excitement about Sunday's Super Bowl, where the Rams meet the Tennessee Titans in Atlanta. One longtime Chiefs fan says what happened to Thomas takes precedence over the game, and the friendly or heated in-state rivalry.