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 three goals as the New York Rangers beat Philadelphia 5-2 on Saturday for their seventh straight win over the Flyers.
Jeremy Lin hit a free throw with 4.9 seconds left to overcome a dreadful second half and lift the New York Knicks to their fifth straight victory, 100-98, over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
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.
CFT: Jordan Jefferson makes it clear he wasn't happy with LSU's game plan in the Tigers' BCS Championship Game loss to Alabama.
Move over, Hollywood and NFL types, golf's two real A-listers take center stage Sunday at Pebble Beach, both in need of a win.
The United States swept favored Switzerland out of the Davis Cup on Saturday when Mardy Fish and Mike Bryan beat Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3.
Luis Suarez's refusal to shake hands with Patrice Evra overshadowed Manchester United's 2-1 win over rival Liverpool that lifted the defending champions to first place in the Premier League on Saturday.
Marlies Schild of Austria won her sixth World Cup slalom of the season Saturday after overall leader Lindsey Vonn and defending champion Maria Hoefl-Riesch crashed out in the opening run on the windy Pyrenees course.
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.
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MADRID - A leg injury could force Rafael Nadal to skip the next ATP tournament in Dubai, but the top-ranked Spaniard said Monday he should be back in time to play for Spain next month in the first round of the Davis Cup.
Nadal received treatment on his right leg Sunday in the final of the ABN Amro, which he lost to Andy Murray. Although many believed the injury to be linked with the right knee injury that forced him to skip last year's Davis Cup final, Nadal said otherwise.
"It's not the knee, so there's no worry about that," Nadal said Monday. "I'm sure I will recover quickly. It's nothing similar to last year. It's a lot less worrisome, let's hope."
Nadal said he would play for defending champion Spain against Serbia in the Davis Cup from March 6-8 — barring injury — but couldn't confirm he would participate in the Dubai Tennis Championships, which start next Monday.
Angel Ruiz-Cotorro, Spain's team doctor, said Nadal strained a ligament below the knee against Murray but it was not severe and that he should recover quickly.
"It's a result of a combination of things, from fatigue to the change of playing surface,"' Ruiz-Cotorro said. "There are few tennis players who don't go out onto the court without some kind of nag, or problem."
Ruiz-Cotorro said Nadal's offseason regimen has him better prepared for this season then in the past when a grueling schedule often left the 22-year-old battered at the end of the season.
"He's taken a longer break coming in. He's better prepared than ever," Ruiz-Cotorro said.
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Bjorn Bjorg is the only other player to have won six majors by his 22nd birthday, and Nadal can become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to complete a Grand Slam by sweeping all four majors in the same year.
"The season has started well, but it's a long year," said Nadal, who has also won four French Opens and one Wimbledon title. "It's still too early to evaluate anything."
The United States swept favored Switzerland out of the Davis Cup on Saturday when Mardy Fish and Mike Bryan beat Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3.
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Jeremy Lin hit a free throw with 4.9 seconds left to overcome a dreadful second half and lift the New York Knicks to their fifth straight victory, 100-98, over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Saturday night.
Doron Lamb hit a 3-pointer with 3:18 left to put No. 1 Kentucky ahead to stay, and the Wildcats took a big step toward a Southeastern Conference regular-season title by beating Vanderbilt 69-63 Saturday night for their 17th straight win.
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.
