Angeln Allgemein » advantage of the par-5s

(SportsNetwork.com) - With apologies to Paul Revere and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, winning is most certainly a two if by land proposition for the modern-day Kansas City Chiefs. The 2014 Chiefs have lived and died based on the fortunes of running backs Jamaal Charles and Knile Davis, whove combined for 1,388 yards on the ground and scored 21 of the teams 36 touchdowns. Itll be the same scenario for Week 16, when Kansas City visits Pittsburgh, whose run defense has allowed 183 yards and one score in its last two games. Davis had a pair of touchdowns in the Chiefs 31-13 defeat of Oakland last week, while Charles is listed probable to face the Steelers after dinging up an ankle and undergoing a concussion test after a hard hit. Every game from here forward is a playoff game. Were taking that mindset into every game, Davis said. For me, its just a dream to be in the NFL. To make the big plays and help this team win is just huge all around. Meanwhile, the drought continues for the Chiefs wide receivers, whove now gone 17 games across two seasons without a touchdown, matching Denver (1971-72) and Cleveland (2008-09) for the longest streaks since the AFL-NFL merger. Quarterback Alex Smith has 18 TD throws, including five each to Charles and tight end Travis Kelce and four to another tight end, Anthony Fasano. The two Browns teams involved in Clevelands streak were a combined 9-23, while the two Broncos teams were 9-18-1. The fact that theyre still winning games and havent been able to have passing touchdowns like that, it shows that theyre a very resourceful team, Steelers linebacker Arthur Moats said. Both Pittsburgh and Kansas City will need some success this week to stay playoff relevant. The Steelers, at 9-5, are tied for second with Baltimore in a competitively muddled AFC North, each sitting a half-game behind Cincinnati. The Bengals play Monday night against Denver - which has already clinched the AFC West ahead of the Chiefs - while Baltimore heads to Houston. Pittsburgh finishes the regular season with Cincinnati next weekend. The Steelers beat the Bengals, 42-21, in Week 14, then came back and won at Atlanta, 27-20, last Sunday. A win against the Chiefs and Pittsburgh will clinch at least a wild-card berth. The last couple of games have been playoff games for us, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said. Weve had to take that approach and that mindset because of how important every game was where we were record wise, seed-wise whatever you want to call it. Weve kind of had that mentality for the last couple of weeks that its time to get hot and play our best football. So were just going to continue to try to do that. Kansas City was in prime playoff position about a month ago, before a three- game losing skid that was only halted by the win against the Raiders. The Chiefs are now among a gaggle of AFC teams at 8-6 or better and will finish the season against another, San Diego, next weekend. Every game is playoff mode, Charles said. Every game, youve got to come with it. Pittsburghs offense have been the leagues most prolific through 14 games, thanks to an eight-game stretch in which its averaged 424.9 yards and 33.1 points. The Steelers are 6-2 during that run. Were trying to stack wins, cornerback William Gay said. Playing against good opponents and just putting everything on the line. The driving force has been the trio of Roethlisberger, running back LeVeon Bell and wide receiver Antonio Brown. Roethlisberger has already exceeded 4,400 passing yards and hes completed a career-best 67.2 percent of his passes. His 29 touchdowns are three shy of his high watermark, set in 2007. Browns 115 catches are tops in the NFL and a franchise record for a single season. Hes two yards from surpassing the 1,499-yard franchise record he established last year, and one more TD catch will make him the fourth Pittsburgh receiver to haul in 12 in a season, joining Hines Ward (2002), Louis Lipps (1985) and Buddy Dial (1961). Bell has 76 catches of his own, far exceeding the previous team best by a running back - 51 by John L. Williams in 1994. His 2,043 yards from scrimmage are also a franchise record. Bettering the numbers wont be a cake walk against the Chiefs, whose pass defense is No. 2 in the league with an average allowance of 199.2 pass yards per week. Its a good defense. We have to look at a lot more film because they get after the passer (and are) good in the secondary, Roethlisberger said. This is going to be one of our toughest tasks of the year. WHAT TO WATCH FOR A Multi-Toned Bell Pittsburghs Week 15 foe, Atlanta, came in with an all-in strategy to stop the run, and they were successful in limiting Bell to just 47 yards on 20 rushes. Problem is, the run is not the only thing with which Bell can hurt a defense. He caught five passes for 72 yards - including a 44-yard catch and run - and will be a vital element regardless on which way the Chiefs attack. Disrupt Big Bens Timing The Steelers have seen Roethlisberger sacked 32 times in 14 games, which doesnt sound terrific, but is still on pace to be Bens lowest number for a season in which he started at least 14 games. Keeping that pace could be an issue, however, if the leagues co-leader in sacks, Justin Houston, gets clear to add to his 17. He and fellow outside linebacker Tamba Hali have 23 combined. OVERALL ANALYSIS Its probably not a preview of the AFC Championship Game. In fact, theres a far better chance that the team that loses this game wont even make the playoffs at all. What it is, though, is a meeting of two teams with significant talent on both sides of the ball. The difference, it seems, comes in the fact that the Steelers have more Plan Bs when the Plan As dont work. Thats whatll matter here. Sports Network predicted outcome: Steelers 20, Chiefs 17 Raptors Jerseys China . Dallas also Monday recalled defenceman Aaron Rome from his conditioning assignment with the Texas Stars of the American Hockey League and assigned goaltender Jack Campbell to the AHL squad. Toronto Raptors Gear . -- A year ago, Flavia Pennetta was close to retiring from tennis. https://www.cheapraptors.com/. And thats good news for Canada. Kelly, who plays No. 8 at the back of the scrum, is captain of the Canadian womens team. Toronto Raptors Pro Shop . According to a report from ESPN, the Green Bay Packers have re-signed the cornerback to a four-year, $39 million deal with a $12. Custom Toronto Raptors Jerseys . Pinch-hitter Tommy Medica singled in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning and the Padres beat the Seattle Mariners 2-1 in their first home game since Gwynn died of cancer Monday. GALLOWAY TOWNSHIP, N.J. -- Jennifer Johnson matched the course record with a 9-under 62 on Friday to take the first-round lead in the ShopRite LPGA Classic. The 22-year-old Johnson, the winner last year in Mobile, Alabama, had 10 birdies -- five straight on Nos. 9-13 -- and a bogey on the Bay Course at Stockton Seaview Hotel and Golf Club. "Ive been playing well the past few weeks, so I felt pretty good about my game," Johnson said. "If you just let it happen and just let a good round come together, normally it does." Haru Nomura had a bogey-free 63, and Christina Kim opened with a 64. Top-ranked Inbee Park and Na Yeon Choi shot 66 in the morning session. But theyre all chasing Johnson, who matched the record set by Laura Davies and Jimin Kang in 2005. Johnson had a shot a 63 on the course two years ago. "On 17, thats when I was 8 under and I was trying to beat my 63," Johnson said. "So then I started getting a little nervous because my goal was to get to 10 under, but I only got to 9. But when you shoot something that youve never shot before, nerves are going to happen." Nomura had eight birdies in her career-low round. "All in all, my putting was on, my shot was really good and the conditions were great," Nomura said. "So everything was perfect today." Kim finished with seven birdies, including a 35-foot putt on 11 that she called "one of the longest putts Ive made since the 90s." Park, winless this season, had five birdies a week after missing the cut in Alabama to end her streak at 22 events. Focusing on not letting her shoulder dip down too much, which she said caused her putts to veer to the left last week, Park drained a 15-foot birdie putt on the first hole.dddddddddddd. For Park, ranked No. 1 for 59 straight weeks, that was all she needed to get back on track. "I was a little bit worried before I teed off today because of last weeks finish," Park said. "But after I birdied the first hole, that really gave me a lot of confidence going into the rest of the 17 holes." Choi closed her round with an eagle on the par-5 ninth. She said she felt "good vibes" all day after watching Rory McIlroy shoot a 9-under 63 at the Memorial Tournament on Thursday. Chois swing coach, Robin Symes, and caddie, David Jones, are both friendly with McIlroy, which has turned Choi into a big fan of the PGA Tour star. "Ive heard a lot of good stories about him," Choi said. "Ive never met him but it feels like we are good friends with each other. And hopefully one day I will see him and meet him." Second-ranked Stacy Lewis and Michelle Wie shot 67, and 17-year-old Lydia Ko was another stroke back. Wie, who has seven top-10 finishes in 10 events this year, finished with five birdies but was disappointed that only one of them came on a par 5. "Going into this golf course, I always want to take advantage of the par-5s on the front nine, but I didnt quite do that today," Wie said. "I think I did well on the par-4s and par-3s today. And tomorrow Ive just got to keep doing the same and try to take advantage of the par-5s." Hall of Famer Karrie Webb, the winner last year, opened with a 69. ' ' '