lingzi
1454 posts
|
ARLINGTON, Texas—The only drama at the end of this one was whether rookie
DeMarco Murray would set the Dallas Cowboys franchise rushing record, a
remarkable feat considering its gone from Hall of Famer Tony Dorsett to NFL
rushing king Emmitt Smith. Brian Urlacher Authentic Jersey . Murray
indeed pulled it off, running through a shoddy St. Louis Rams defence for 253
yards, including an early 91-yard touchdown that got the Cowboys started toward
a 34-7 victory on Sunday. Murray ran for the most yards in the NFL this season
and the ninth-most in league history. His touchdown was the second-longest run
in team history, topped only by the NFL-record 99-yarder by Dorsett in January
1983. He also had the most yards ever against the Rams, replacing Jim Brown on
that list. “I never thought in a million years that Id ever have a day like
this,” Murray said. “This is what Ive been working hard for since my Pop Warner
days.” As impressive as Murrays performance was, it came against the Rams, who
fell to 0-6 and came in with the NFLs worst defence against the run. They had
allowed 163 yards per game, more than two first downs more anyone else. The
holes were so plentiful that when Murray took himself out to catch his breath in
the fourth quarter, fourth-stringer Phillip Tanner finished that drive with 35
yards on the first four carries of his career, capping it with a six-yard TD
run. St. Louis wasnt even able to exploit a line featuring a starting left guard
who was unemployed as of Monday. “Its easy to run the ball when youre not making
tackles,” Rams safety Quintin Mikell. “When youre not getting guys on the
ground, theres not much you can do.” For Dallas (3-3), the real satisfaction was
ending a two-game losing skid and emphatically breaking a stretch of 11 straight
games decided by four points or less. “It was the first one where we could take
a knee to win,” receiver Miles Austin said. “Its a good feeling.” The Cowboys
never trailed and left no reason for team owner Jerry Jones to criticize coach
Jason Garretts play-calling—except maybe to wonder why Murray didnt have a
bigger role in the offence until this game. Get this: Murray didnt even start
against the Rams. With lead back Felix Jones out with a high ankle sprain,
Tashard Choice trotted out first. The plan was for him to share the load with
Murray, a third-round pick whose development was slowed because he missed most
of training camp with a hamstring injury. It took all of one carry for Murray to
become the main option. On a first-and-19 from the Dallas nine-yard line, Murray
went through a giant hole on the left side, cut through an attempted ankle
tackle, then outran Mikell. It was a heck of a way to score the first touchdown
of his career, and it more than doubled his career rushing total of 71 coming
into the game. Murray had 187 yards through three quarters, and the Cowboys were
up 20-7. Because they wanted to run to protect the lead, it was clear that
Murray would get a shot at Smiths club record of 237 yards set Oct. 31, 1993, at
Philadelphia. Murray followed with a 43-yard run that couldve gone for a 73-yard
touchdown had he not run out of gas along the way. He finished it two yards shy
of Smiths mark. “I just wanted to get down and protect the ball,” he said. The
record fell on his next try, an eight-yard run. He finished with 25 carries and
an average of 10.1 yards. Dallas ran for 294 yards overall, spiking a season
average of 84.8 that had been among the leagues worst. For the local fans, it
was a terrific start to a baseball-football doubleheader between teams from
Dallas-Fort Worth and St. Louis. Game 4 of the World Series began just down the
street less than an hour after this game ended. Josh Hamilton of the Rangers and
Lance Berkman of the Cardinals showed up in uniform as honorary captains for the
pregame coin toss. The Rams were the perfect foe for the Cowboys to cure all
that ailed them. In addition to their trouble stopping the run, they were
without quarterback Sam Bradford (high ankle sprain) and were averaging the
fewest points in the league even with him. A.J. Feeley made his first start
since 2007 and was 20 of 33 for 196 yards with one interception and one sack.
But the offence gained only four yards in the third quarter, and had only two
good drives. The first ended in a six-yard touchdown run by Steven Jackson that
got St. Louis within 14-7. The other ended with a fourth-and-goal from the 1
that was stuffed in the final minutes. “We couldnt get any rhythm and left the
defence on the field entirely too long,” Jackson said. “For whatever reason,
this keeps being the same old story.” Jackson finished with 70 yards, 46 coming
on the touchdown drive. Brandon Lloyd caught six passes for 74 yards in his St.
Louis debut. He was acquired from Denver earlier this week. St. Louis also saw
right tackle Jason Smith and backup defensive tackle Darell Scott carted off.
Both were taken to a hospital for evaluation and were expected to fly home with
the team. Smith, a Dallas native, had a strained neck; Scotts injury was called
a blow to the head. Dallas Tony Romo was 14 of 24 for 166 yards, with two
touchdowns. He didnt have to throw much because the running game was doing so
well. However, he hit Dez Bryant for four passes and a touchdown in the second
half, which was significant because theyd hooked up for only two catches after
halftime all season. Romos other TD throw went to Jason Witten. Notes: Dallas
rookie kicker Dan Bailey made two field goals, including a career-best
51-yarder, giving him 16 in a row. ... Brown had 237 yards against the Los
Angeles Rams in 1957. ... Murrays 91-yarder also was the longest against the
Rams. ... Both teams came in with a single rushing TD. Only Kansas City had
less. ... The Cowboys havent allowed a first-quarter touchdown this season. ...
Ronnie Dunn sang the national anthem, just like he did the night before at the
World Series. Major Wright Womens Jersey . The 11th seed
from Thornhill, Ont., who often trains in the Catalan capital during the season,
advances to meet sixth-seeded Spaniard Nicolas Almagro on Thursday. Jay Cutler Womens Jersey . Scotts goal ended
a 305-minute drought for the Sounders (3-1-1). Michael Gspurning picked up his
second straight shutout and third of the season. Colorado (3-3-0) was blanked
for the second straight game, both on the road. http://www.nflbearsprostore.com/charles-tillman-jerseys
.5-million, two-year contract. Nix batted .250 with a career-high 16 home runs
and 44 RBIs in 124 games for the Washington Nationals last season. Devin Hester Womens Jersey . The Calgary
Stampeders werent as lucky, but theyre happy to have a veteran like Kevin Glenn
to step in for injured starting quarterback Drew Tate. Coach John Hufnagel said
he expects Tate to be out for five or six weeks after the Calgary pivot suffered
a left shoulder injury last week in Toronto. Brandon Marshall Pink Jersey . Now the
seventh-seeded Oceanic hope to pull off a colossal upset when they takes on the
powerhouse Saint John Sea Dogs in the best-of-seven series for the Presidents
Cup. The Sea Dogs, who open at home on Friday night, are the defending QMJHL and
Memorial Cup champions who finished first with a 50-15-3 record and lost only
one playoff game enroute to the final, an overtime loss to Chicoutimi in the
semifinals. LONDON —Canada will get its choice of venue and surface when it
faces top-ranked Spain in the first round of the 2013 Davis Cup World Group.
While that means the Canadians will be able to maximize the talents of
hard-serving Milos Raonic, team captain Martin Laurendeau doesnt think theres a
surface out there that can slow down the powerful Spanish. “The Spaniards win
everything from clay to grass, to indoors to outdoors,” he said Wednesday on a
conference call from Montreal. “Theyre good and they have the depth to really
not be fooled by any kind of surface.” Still, hosting the tie and having control
over the venue provides the best chance Canada has against the Davis Cup
juggernaut. They will be able to stay away from clay surfaces, which favour the
Spanish and deaden the serve of world No. 15 Raonic. “Weve just got to be sure
we pick the surface and the conditions that really will help to help maximize
our No. 1 player,” Laurendeau said. “Hes obviously shown that he can beat a lot
of top players. “If we were to play in Spain, they would for sure play us on
clay, even if its indoors. Now we have the opportunity to play on a surface that
suits our game a lot more. We can control that, so thats the reassuring part.”
The two teams have met only once before, with Spain winning 4-1 at home on clay
in 1991. Given Canadas weather and the Feb. 1-3 dates for the best-of-five
series, an indoor venue was pretty much a lock. Laurendeau said hes sure Tennis
Canadas phone will be ringing off the hook with offers to host, but theres no
rush to commit and they will make a strategic decision. Canada is ranked No. 12
in the 16-team World Group and kept their spot in the competitions elite group
with a 4-1 victory over South Africa in a playoff last weekend. Earlier this
year, Canada lost 4-1 to France in the first round of World Group play.
Laurendeau said tennis has great momentum right now in Canada and a match like
this will only give that a boost. “But on the other hand, we are playing the
best team of the draw. So its a toough assignment,” he added. Richard Dent Jersey. “But eventually, like
Ive said before, we need to beat a seeded team and the best chance we have to
beat a seeded team will be at home. “So, whether its France or its Spain or
another country, we need to pull an upset somewhere. We do have players and we
do have doubles who are in a position to win and upset a team at the moment. I
really believe that.” Spains captain Alex Corretja isnt taking the Canadians
lightly. “Canada was one of the strongest rivals we could have gotten, not only
for the quality of a team led by Milos Raonic but also because well have to play
as visiting team just one week after the Australian Open, which means another
long trip and time change,” he said. “It will be a complicated tie.” Elsewhere,
Switzerland was paired against the Czech Republic in Wednesdays draw, setting up
a potential head-to-head between two of the top players in the game—Roger
Federer and Tomas Berdych. The top-ranked Federer has a career 11-5 record
against Berdych, but the No. 6 Czech defeated him in four sets at the U.S. Open.
Berdych also beat Federer in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon in 2010 and at the
2004 Athens Olympics. Switzerland will be at home for the series. Federer does
not always play in the early rounds of the Davis Cup, and his plans for 2013 are
uncertain. In other matches, the United States will be at home against Brazil,
and Argentina will host Germany. Its also France versus Israel, Kazakhstan
versus Austria, Italy versus Croatia and Belgium versus Serbia. Federer played
in last weekends playoff against the Netherlands, winning both of his singles
matches to lead Switzerland to a 3-2 victory that ensured his country stayed in
the World Group for 2013. Berdych secured all three points for the Czechs in
their semifinal win over Argentina. The Czechs will host Spain in the final Nov.
16-18. The Czechs hold a 6-2 advantage against Switzerland, although the Swiss
won the last time they met on home soil in 1998. —With files from The
Associated Press ’ ’ ’
|
Home
5 posts, 2 voices
shanggu
469 posts
