Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
SportsTalk: Albert Pujols signs with the Angels and Prince Fielder joins the Tigers. Which team is better now?
Ryan Callahan scored for the fifth time in four days and defenseman Ryan McDonagh snapped a second-period tie to lift the New York Rangers to a 3-2 victory over the Washington Capitals on Sunday.
Kobe Bryant hit a baseline jump shot with 4.2 seconds left and the Los Angeles Lakers wrapped up a six-game road trip by holding on to beat the Raptors 94-92 on Sunday, their eighth victory in nine meetings with Toronto
Arc's five up, five down: After No. 11 Michigan State's 58-48 upset of No. 3 Ohio State, you'd be a fool to discount the Spartans' national title chances now.
Miami coach Al Golden says the worst is behind him, but his headaches figure to continue now that former booster Nevin Shapiro, now in jail, says his involvement with the Hurricanes program will result in stiff penalties.
Eleven shots separated Phil and Tiger Sunday at Pebble Beach as Lefty secured his 40th Tour win. Jason Sobel had hole-by-hole reports.
The United States completed a 5-0 rout of Switzerland in the Davis Cup on Sunday, with 19-year-old Ryan Harrison and John Isner winning closing singles matches.
Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Tessa Worley of France fought off gusting winds to win a second consecutive World Cup giant slalom Sunday in the Andorran Pyrenees. Overall leader Lindsey Vonn was more than a second behind and finished eighth.
Robins: It’s the Year of the Dragon on the Lunar calendar, and this Chinese influence could extend to it also being the year of the Pekingese on the green carpet at the 136th Westminster Dog Show on Tuesday.
AP6. Harrison’s 100-yard return
“That’s the MVP being the MVP,” Steelers safety Ryan Clark said, talking about Harrison’s game-changing play to end the first half.
Despite the crazy ending, this was the play the Cardinals and Steelers talked about the most after the game. It was a 10-point swing at minimum, and ruined the dominant second quarter Arizona played. “It was the difference in the game,” Troy Polamalu said.
Harrison wasn’t even supposed to be covering Anquan Boldin. “He was actually supposed to be covering the running back, but he read the play. That’s what you expect your MVP to do,” Clark said.
The Steelers had called a max blitz and Warner just threw the ball too quick.
The Steelers practiced their “transition offense” after interceptions in practice this week. It came in handy, though I doubt Harrison practiced hurdling over teammate LaMarr Woodley at the 30-yard line.
“I was tired as a dog,” Harrison said about the end of the run. “I’m not going to lie, it was a quarter tank. But I ended up making it.”
Kurt Warner admits he is still haunted every day by the Rams’ loss to the Patriots in 2001. This play will cause a lot more sleepless nights. He simply didn’t see Harrison, and he certainly didn’t think Harrison could return the ball 100 yards for the score.
7. Roethlisberger’s scrambling first down to Heath Miller
Third-and-10, first quarter, four minutes and 10 seconds left for the Steelers. Pittsburgh wasn’t yet in field goal range. Roethlisberger scrambled to his left, saw two defenders, sprinted right, was hit in the leg, stumbled, spun his whole body, and then rifled an 11-yard strike to Miller.
That is Roethlisberger in a nutshell: improvisational, impossible-to-take-down, making a play where none seem available. You can’t coach that.
If it wasn’t for that play, the Steelers are punting. They went on to score their only offensive touchdown in the first half later in the drive.
8. Darnell Dockett’s goal-line stuff of Roethlisberger
At 241 pounds, Ben Roethlisberger is built for more like a bruising goal-line anvil than an average quarterback. He tried to use all his poundage on a third-and-goal from the one on Pittsburgh’s first drive. After rolling out on a bootleg, Roethlisberger decided to keep the ball and took on Cardinals defensive tackle Darnell Dockett. The two collided at the three-yard line, and Roethlisberger appeared to carry Dockett into the end zone.
This play set up a few themes in the game. Ken Whisenhunt challenged and overturned a touchdown, one of two huge challenges wins for the Whis. (He also overturned a Kurt Warner interception in the third quarter.) The Steelers came away with only a field goal because of short-yardage struggles. That would also happen again in the third quarter. The Cardinals holding the fort in the red zone kept them in the game, so they could make their fourth quarter comeback attempt.
Silva: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for NFC teams.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
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Zambia has won the African Cup of Nations, beating pre-tournament favorite Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties in a dramatic final at Stade de l'Amitie.
Wesseling: Each NFL team enters the offseason with a series of pressing needs. Sometimes a team can address them all, sometimes they ignore them all. But if a team's smart, they'll listen to us. These are the most crucial aspects for AFC teams.
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