us to take the risk out of it but still rotate the strike and score at a decent rate. We batted at a far b

The NFC is so wide open that a Thursday night meeting between Atlanta and Tampa Bay could wind up having some significance when the playoff races conclude.Neither team has been particularly consistent. Had the Falcons not held off Green Bay on Sunday, they would have been in a freefall similar to last season, when they went from 6-1 to 8-8.When you come through in those, for sure it gives you something, coach Dan Quinn says. To get the job done (Sunday) was significant.The Buccaneers, meanwhile, cant win at home, dropping all three matchups. One of their three wins came in Atlanta to open the schedule.Tampa would be most tempted to throw on offense because Atlanta is ranked only 27th against the pass. Now that their top three running backs -- Doug Martin, Charles Sims and Jacquizz Rodgers -- are hobbled, the Bucs might not have a choice.The challenge isnt just physical, either.Its very difficult physically and its very difficult mentally, too, because they didnt get a chance to process the last game, says Bucs defensive coordinator Mike Smith, the Falcons former coach.We havent even talked to them about the last game, havent talked one word about the last ballgame. Weve moved on to the next one because thats the challenge that we have.The Falcons (No. 6 in AP Pro32) are 2 1-2 point favorites over the Bucs (No. 25). They will respond better to the challenge.FALCONS, 30-24KNOCKOUT LEAGUE TIPDenver did the deed last Sunday, though it wasnt easy. How can we not go with DALLAS this week?No. 2 Dallas (minus 7) at No. 32 ClevelandSearching really hard for Browns first victory. This isnt it.BEST BET: COWBOYS, 27-16No. 23 Carolina (minus 3) at No. 26 Los AngelesDespite their win over Cardinals, dont see Panthers as favorite here.UPSET SPECIAL: RAMS, 20-17No. 11 Pittsburgh (plus 2 1-2) at No. 24 BaltimoreThis would have been upset special if we knew more about Big Bens availability. Still ...STEELERS, 24-20No. 3 Denver (pick-em) at No. 7 OaklandAre Raiders ready for changing of the guard in AFC West? Not quite.BRONCOS, 23-20No. 10 Philadelphia (plus 2 1-2) at No. 14 New York GiantsLate-game collapse at Dallas could plague Eagles for a while.GIANTS, 21-20No. 30 Jacksonville (plus 8) at No. 4 Kansas CityCant believe the Jags will be horrible once again. As for a win against Alex Smith-less Chiefs -- nope.CHIEFS, 27-20No. 16 Buffalo (plus 7) at No. 5 Seattle, Monday nightBills need LeSean McCoy on the field to compete.SEAHAWKS, 22-10No. 17 Detroit (plus 6) at No. 8 MinnesotaBoth teams come off road duds. Take the hosts.VIKINGS, 17-14No. 28 New York Jets (plus 4) at No. 21 (tie) MiamiThis game will not be decided by outstanding QB play.DOLPHINS, 16-13No. 21 (tie) New Orleans (minus 2) at No. 31 San FranciscoNiners arent ready to beat anybody right now.SAINTS, 29-16No. 27 Indianapolis (plus 7) at No. 9 Green BayPackers are SO banged-up, but still the better side.PACKERS, 23-14No. 19 Tennessee (plus 4 1-2) at No. 20 San DiegoEven though they cant finish, Chargers are solid enough.CHARGERS, 30-23.---Last Week: Against spread (7-6). Straight up: (9-3-1)Season Totals: Against spread (54-60-4). Straight up: (67-50-2)Best Bet: 4-4 against spread, 5-3 straight up.Upset special: 5-3 against spread, 5-3 straight up---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Vapormax Mens Canada . - NASCAR announced a 33-race schedule for the 2014 Nationwide Series with virtually no changes from this years slate. Vapormax 95 Sale . The injury bothered Bledsoe in the Suns victory over the Clippers on Monday and he sat out the teams home loss to Memphis on Thursday night. http://www.airvapormaxcanada.com/nike-just-do-it-shoes-canada/air-max-95.html . LOUIS -- St. Vapormax 2020 Canada . -- When the Florida Panthers fell behind by two goals in the first period to the top team in the NHL, it appeared they were on their way to yet another loss. Air Max 97 Plus Canada . -- Anaheim Ducks defenceman Luca Sbisa will be out at least six weeks with a torn tendon in his right hand. Mushtaq Ahmed, Pakistans bowling coach, believes that Yasir Shah struggled with the expectation of backing up his matchwinning display at Lords on the opening day of the second Test.Yasirs ten-wicket match haul was key to Pakistan securing their 75-run victory in the opening Test and propelled him to No. 1 in the world, but he finished the first day at Old Trafford with 0 for 111 from 31 overs as centuries from Alastair Cook and Joe Root led England to a commanding 314 for 4.Although he made a couple of deliveries grip on the Old Trafford surface - two, in particular, spun and bounced appreciably at Root and Cook - England were able to milk him far more comfortably than they had done last week.With only four frontline bowlers, Misbah-ul-Haq did not have many places to turn to for the lengthy spells required to allow him to rotate his three quicks. Yasir bowled 18 overs unchanged - split by the lunch interval - and by the time he was given a break, England had taken him for 69 runs and gone some way towards ensuring no immediate hangover from their poor display against at Lords.Sometimes the expectation does put you under pressure and you are trying to deliver the same performance, Mushtaq said. You start losing your basics, discipline and what he did in the last Test match. He got 10 wickets last time and maybe that momentum carried on and he forgot the basics.I think the ball wasnt coming nicely from his hand, he added. We did discuss it, but during a game its very hard for a coach to tell a player what to do. But we have good communication so I sent a couple of messages because the ball was coming out flatter with less spin. On a first-day pitch, the margin of error for a legspinner against good players like Root and Coook is very small.dddddddddddd.Root and Cook both used the word tempo when pinpointing a key difference to their approach than at Lords, finding the right balance between not allowing Yasir to settle but avoiding anything as reckless as Roots top-edged slog-sweep or Moeen Alis wild second-innings hack.It was just nice to see an improvement on the way we played him in the first game, Root said. Playing him with a straight bat, not going across the ball as much, on a day-one wicket it definitely made it a lot easier for us to take the risk out of it but still rotate the strike and score at a decent rate. We batted at a far better tempo than at Lords.Root, though, did admit a degree of nervousness when he brought out a strong slog-sweep against Yasir in the 51st over, with the captain at the other end, but this time it skimmed to the boundary rather than into the hands of a catcher. Such are the fine margins for batsmen.However, Mushtaq backed Yasir to respond positively from his tough day and play a role on a surface that Cook expects to break up later on. A worthy example to draw on, although not an occasion anyone associated with England cares to remember, is the Adelaide Test in 2006-07. Over the first two days of that match, England racked up 551 for 6 and Shane Warne took 1 for 167 before producing of his greatest displays on the final day to conjure a famous victory.I always believe as a good bowler you have to bowl good overs against good players to get them out. He didnt do that today but he will come out tomorrow, hes a strong guy, he wasnt hiding and thats a positive thing, Mushtaq said. ' ' '