Source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19423147#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
Friday 31 August 2012
Cave girl's DNA gives up secrets
Scientists analyse the DNA of an 80,000-year-old Denisovan girl, shedding more light on her relation to our closest extinct evolutionary kin.
Russellmania! Seahawks rookie Wilson shines in first NFL preseason start
In each of the last three seasons, Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider has said that he wants a quarterback who can "tilt the room." Schneider and head coach Pete Carroll have shuffled through an interesting crew of sub-stars in that time -- veteran Matt Hasselbeck for the 2010 season, and then a somewhat more indifferent combination of Tarvaris Jackson and Charlie Whitehurst in 2011. Before the 2012 season, two new moves were made -- the Seahawks signed former Green Bay Packers backup Matt Flynn to a three-year, $26 million deal, and they drafted North Carolina State and Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson in the third round.
The idea was that by dint of his experience, Flynn would win the starting job, and Wilson could learn and compete. Jackson, still on the team, had become more of an afterthought, and that was more and more the case as Wilson surprised everyone by excelling and frequently outpacing both Jackson and Flynn in practices and through the first two games of the preseason. As a result, and because of a balky elbow that started to bother Flynn mid-week, Carroll decided to start Wilson against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 3 of the preseason, to see what he could do against a quality starting NFL defense.
Three hours later, Carroll had as definite an answer as he's ever received. Wilson performed marvelously, completing 13 of 19 passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns in three quarters of action. The Seahawks had a 44-7 lead at the end of the third quarter, and the 44-14 final was due, in large part, to Wilson's cool head in the pocket and ability to use his feet to make plays. He also rushed for 58 yards on two attempts. Through three total NFL games, Wilson has completed 35 of 56 passes for 464 yards, five touchdowns, one interception, and he has the NFL's best preseason quarterback rating at 119.4.
[Related: Too big for the NFL, John "House" Taylor wallows in obscurity]
In every possible way, the rookie has�unexpectedly looked more like the Seahawks' best quarterback than anyone else on the roster, a fact that Carroll seemed to acknowledge. Wilson's 5-foot-10 5/8 stature, long thought to be an extreme liability to some, wasn't a problem at all, because he knew how to effectively move in the pocket to open line gaps and throwing lanes.
"He had run so much through the first two games, I wanted to see how he would do if he held in the pocket and read it out," Carroll said after the game. "He's done everything we've asked of him. When John was excited about drafting him, and we got the momentum to make that pick, this is the guy we hoped he would be. All the talk about how tall he is and stuff -- I don't see it being a factor. I've watched more carefully than anybody could have watched, and it isn't [an issue] to me."
Receiver Golden Tate agreed. "It's just something that he stands for and how he handles himself. The things that leave his mouth," Tate said. "You get a feeling that he's just very, very special. You don't know what it is, but you get that feeling. You get excited to see him get on the field, because you never know if he's going to throw a perfect touchdown pass or juke a safety to extend the drive. It's hard to put into words, but it's just good to have a guy who seems comfortable sitting back there. He's just a very, very special player, and I'm excited to see him grow."
Carroll said that he would go through Week 4 of the preseason, which the Seahawks end at home against the Oakland Raiders on Thursday night, before making the final decision on the regular-season starter. One thing's for sure -- Wilson couldn't have done much more to put himself in the driver's seat.
"I definitely felt that I was ready to go," Wilson said right after the win. "I believe that when you're prepared, you're never nervous. That's the way I've always been -- just prepare myself the best way so that I can put my best foot forward. We showed tonight that we can play some great football when everybody's working together.
"All I can do is do the best I can to help our team get better -- we have a tremendous team, and it's great to see everybody working together and rolling. All I can do is just keep learning as much as I can, look at the tape, and we'll see what happens."
[Related: Five single-season NFL records that could be broken in 2012]
What has happened so far is that Wilson has made a very difficult thing -- graduating from college to the NFL at the game's most complicated position -- seem relatively simple. Through the preseason, he's been the among the league's most impressive rookie quarterbacks, at least in a statistical sense, and that shows the effort behind the seeming ease.
"It's never easy," Wilson concluded. "All the work we put in, in terms of getting there early and leaving late -- it's a lot of work .You've really got to be dedicated to it, and you have to be. Our team is really dedicated right now -- everybody's loving it, and everybody's intense. Everybody's really caring about what we need to do to be successful."
For the Seahawks to be successful in 2012, they'll need a quarterback with the intangibles and attributes to tilt the room. Three years after he started his search, John Schneider may have found his man.
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Torres scores late, Mexico beats Panama 1-0 (Yahoo! Sports)
Erick Torres scored a one minute into stoppage time and Mexico beat Panama 1-0 Tuesday night to win its group in Olympic qualifying to get within a win of London. Mexico locked down the top spot in Group B by outscoring its opponents 11-1 over three matches. El Tri now will take on Group A runner-up Canada on Saturday at Livestrong Sporting Park in Kansas City, Kan., with a ticket to London on the...
Made In Chelsea girls dress up for National Reality TV Awards 2012 in London
Stars hit the red carpet at the glitzy event
 |  |
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/NEWS_CELEBRITYNEWS/~3/I3zLG9j9lpg/story01.htm
Caring Kate on 'aunty' duty with Lady Louise
Having made no secret of the fact that she's ready to start a family, the Duchess of...
Source: http://www.hellomagazine.com/royalty/201208309140/kate-middleton-lady-louise-velodrome/
Thursday 30 August 2012
Re: http://www.mrpaparazzi.com/post/20448
Rock and Roll sent us insane, I hope someday that we will meet again.
Source: http://www.mrpaparazzi.com/post/20448#comment-634277100
Cristiano Ronaldo: 'Photos with TV presenter are from several years ago'
Football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo has taken to Facebook and Twitter to deny...
Source: http://www.hellomagazine.com/celebrities/201208309145/cristiano-ronaldo-denies-rumours-facebook/
Michael Jackson, Amy Winehouse Top Fans' Hologram Wish-Lists
Departed artists like Whitney Houston, Queen's Freddie Mercury and John Lennon also get mentions from fans in Times Square.
By Kate Callahan
<P><b>NEW YORK</b> — After the <a href="/news/articles/1683238/tupac-coachella-hologram-.jhtml">Tupac hologram performance</a> at Coachella made such a huge splash, the team behind the projection system floated the possibility this week of an <a href="/news/articles/1683909/justin-bieber-elvis-hologram.jhtml">Elvis hologram to perform with Justin Bieber</a>. Even '90s girl group <a href="http://rapfix.mtv.com/2012/04/26/tlc-reunion-tour-left-eye-hologram">TLC is rumored to be considering</a> a virtual version of <a href="/news/articles/1683858/left-eye-tlc-death.jhtml">the late Left Eye</a> on their upcoming tour.</P><P>With all that talk, MTV News hit Times Square to ask fans which departed artists they would most like to see perform in hologram form. While some of those interviewed wanted to see other rappers like the Notorious B.I.G. or Nate Dogg, one fan thought Whitney Houston should get the honors.</P><P><embed src="http://media.mtvnservices.com/mgid:uma:video:mtv.com:764208/cp~vid%3D764208%26uri%3Dmgid%3Auma%3Avideo%3Amtv.com%3A764208" width="460" height="260" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" base="."></embed></P><P>"I love her, I grew up singing her [songs], just walking around the house when I was seven or eight," Shayana of Houston said.</P><P>Brits Amy Winehouse and John Lennon of the Beatles were also popular picks, and a few rock fans mentioned Queen's flamboyant frontman. "It would have to be Freddie Mercury because Queen were one of the all-time greatest bands and he was a showman," said a fan named Rob.</P><P>Blane Mader would like to see a hologram of another <a href="/news/articles/1683289/tupac-hologram-coachella-future-of-touring.jhtml">great showman, Michael Jackson</a>.</P><P>"It's a really cliché answer, but in my time I've never seen him and it would just be something awesome to watch," Mader said of the King of Pop.</P><P>Members of the Jackson 5 recently announced that they would love to have a <a href="http://rapfix.mtv.com/2012/04/23/michael-jackson-hologram-jackson-brothers-tour">virtual Michael</a> on their upcoming Unity Tour. "Wouldn't that be wonderful? As a matter of fact, we had that idea two years ago for Michael's Cirque du Soleil show," Michael's brother Jackie Jackson told E! News.</P><P><i>Share your wish-list for future hologram performers in the comments below!</i></P><P><center><a href="http://www.mtv.com/photos/?fid=1617615"><img src="http://www.mtv.com/news/photos/s/spotted/banner/spotted.jpg"></a></center></P>
Related Photos Related ArtistsSource:
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With Tropical Storm Isaac looming, Saints to leave early for Titans game
On Sunday, the New Orleans Saints' planned day off after their Saturday 34-27 victory over the Houston Texans, interim head coach Joe Vitt called his players to the team facility and updated them on changes in plans connected to the impending threat of Tropical Storm Isaac, which could develop into a hurricane and batter the Louisiana coast in the next few days.
NOLA.com reports that Vitt told his players to prepare to make arrangements to evacuate family members. The team had originally planned to leave Wednesday for its final preseason game against the Tennessee Titans. The two teams are scheduled to play at LP Field, the Titans' home venue, on�Thursday. Vitt told the team that they would have Monday off, and Saints personnel would monitor the progress of the storm. If necessary, the Saints could leave as early as Monday for Cincinnati, where they would prepare for the game.
[Also: Patriots agree to contract extension with TE Aaron Hernandez]
Of course, the Saints have seen this all before.
On Aug. 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina wreaked unspeakable havoc in and around the city of New Orleans, seemingly putting the entire area under several feet of water and providing a sympathetic nation with horrific pictures of a population holding on for dear life. The storm caused 53 different levee breaches, submerging 80 percent of the city underwater. Nearly 2,000 have been listed as losing their lives in the natural disaster -- almost 1,600 in Louisiana and over 200 in Mississippi.
[Jason Cole: Bucs RB Doug Martin set to take No. 1 job]
Katrina also caused extreme damage to the Superdome, longtime home of the Saints, and forced the team to play out of venue for the entire 2005 season. They started out as nomads in San Jose, Calif., where they had evacuated in anticipation of a preseason game against the Oakland Raiders, and completed an emotional and confusing season in LSU's Tiger Stadium and the Alamodome in San Antonio. The Saints set up camp as a franchise in San Antonio, and there was some talk that owner Tom Benson would push to relocate the team to the Texas City, or possibly to Los Angeles.
We all know what happened instead. The Saints acquired head coach Sean Payton and quarterback Drew Brees before the 2006 season, and went on a miraculous run that included a triumphant return to the Superdome on Sept. 25 of that season. They defeated the Atlanta Falcons, 23-3, in one of the most emotional games in NFL history, went 10-6 on the season, and made it to the NFC championship game, where they lost to the Chicago Bears.
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Chad Dawson: Experience playing QB, point guard in high school help me in the ring (Yahoo! Sports)
In conjunction with HBO Sports, Yahoo! Sports will be featuring special Q&A pieces from Chad Dawson and Andre Ward as they prepare to face each other on Saturday, Sept. 8
Wednesday 29 August 2012
Indianapolis' Luck gets 1 more chance to tune up (Yahoo! Sports)
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Andrew Luck still wants all those seemingly meaningless preseason snaps.
Former NFL WR Hurd ordered jailed in drug case (Yahoo! Sports)
DALLAS (AP) -- A federal judge ordered former NFL wide receiver Sam Hurd to be jailed indefinitely Tuesday for failing two drug tests and allegedly buying drugs while already facing charges he tried to distribute marijuana and cocaine.
Tebow fans aren?t Jets fans
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. ? Whether in Florida Gators or Denver Broncos jerseys or green and white T-shirts emblazoned with his name on the back, New York Jets quarterback Tim Tebow brought a legion of fans with him to MetLife Stadium for his first home game with his new team. It doesn't matter that he's the team's backup, he's the starter in the hearts and minds of his passionate following.
"Tebow Nation" comes in all ages, genders and variety of fans, both� young and old. Some are drawn to him because of his brand of smash-mouth football, others due to his outspoken Christian faith, but no matter the reason why, they love Tebow. More often than not, the Tebow-supporting crowd on hand this Saturday night aren't even Jets fans and their allegiance dates back to his college career in Florida or the last two years in Denver. They couldn't care less about current Jets starter Mark Sanchez or that Tebow is the backup.
Frank Spallone of Brick, N.J., came to the game with his wife and their two children. A New York Giants fan, he came to support his niece who was part of the youth dancers who participated at halftime. But despite his allegiance to the Giants, Spallone was wearing a Broncos No. 15 jersey.
[Related: Peyton Manning throws two interceptions in Denver home debut]
That's right, his Giants were playing and Spallone was wearing the jersey of the other team's quarterback.
"We always cheer for Tebow, that's why we bought the jerseys last year. You hear more about NFL players doing the wrong thing, he does the right thing," Spallone said.
"He's a fantastic role model, my son plays football and he's a fantastic role model."
Spallone's daughter Kailey carried a sign into the stadium, proposing to Tebow -- it was confiscated by security and thrown out. Her younger brother Ryan, who grew up a Giants fan, said he's now splitting his allegiance with the Jets "since Tebow is with them now."
The curious thing about many of the Tebow fans is that they have no ties to the Jets team he now plays on. Simply, they are there for Tebow and purely Tebow. No other player in the NFL can boast of such a purpose-driven following. It is all Tebow all the time.
It is a curious twist from many diehards of the team who are firmly entrenched in Camp Sanchez. In fact, during the first open session of training camp three weeks ago, Tebow was getting booed and heckled by many Jets fans when he missed receivers. He was the only player on the team to receive such treatment.
Saturday night saw a different reaction.
When he entered the game in the third quarter for his first series under center, he got a loud cheer from the Jets faithful, bringing some life to a game that the New York Giants led 16-0 at that point. In his first series under center, Tebow went 4 for 5 for 52 yards and added two carries for 5 yards. He led the Jets to a field goal, their first points of the game.
Among those cheering on Tebow was lifelong New Jersey resident Carmine Monte. A self-described New England Patriots fan, Monte was wearing a Tebow Gators jersey that he bought after Tebow was drafted by Denver in the first round. Monte is drawn to Tebow because of the Jets backup quarterback's "morality."
He came with his friend, Tom Zeukas of Middletown, N.J., a lifelong Jets fan. But Monte isn't switching from the Patriots to their AFC East rival anytime soon.
"If they don't play the Patriots, I'll cheer for Tebow. Not the Jets, I'm a Patriots fan and not a Jets fan," Monte said.
"I'm here for Tebow, not anything else."
Most Jets fans, however, aren't as rabidly Tebow.
[Related: After RG III's poor game, is there now a QB controversy in D.C.?]
William Ng of Bayside in Queens, N.Y., wore his Sanchez jersey to the game while his wife, Christine DeMarco, was sporting a Tebow shirt. When asked about his thoughts on Tebow, Ng took a deep breath and put his hands on his hips before answering.
"I think Tebow is an exciting player, he says all the right things," Ng said.
At this point, Ng looked over a few feet away where his wife was laughing. It was apparent that her husband was trying to be diplomatic.
"However, I think the Jets are better off with Mark Sanchez leading the team," Ng continued. "If he doesn't do well after a couple games, the fans will be screaming for Tebow and that's going to be a difficult thing for him. Sanchez said recently he wants to be a top 10 quarterback, but the fans are getting a bit impatient."
DeMarco admits that she wore her Tebow T-shirt to rile up her husband a little bit, but she acknowledges that Tebow "can bring a lot to the team on the field."
And off of it too.
"It's new eye candy for the ladies," DeMarco said.
"Tebow's giving Sanchez a run for his money there."
Follow Kristian R. Dyer on Twitter @KristianRDyer
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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/tebow-fans-aren-t-jets-fans-181221282--nfl.html
Pairing 'angels' with cancer patients
Just two weeks after his wedding, Christophe Quancard was diagnosed with glioblastoma, one of the deadliest types of brain tumors.
Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/edition_world/~3/MyqaBjoBP7M/index.html
Top 10 moments of 2012 Olympics
From the heroic mythology of the Ancient Games more than two thousand years ago to the spectacle of modern-day athletic gladiators such as Usain Bolt, the Olympics has long been an awe-inspiring and captivating sporting event.
Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/edition_world/~3/kslB9Q4x4pM/index.html
Daddy cool Tom checks out son Connor's DJ set
He might be 50, but Tom Cruise is still one of the coolest dads around. The movie star was...
Source: http://www.hellomagazine.com/celebrities/201208249085/tom-cruise-watches-connor-dj/
Tuesday 28 August 2012
Mayweather associate gets prison in Vegas shooting (The Associated Press)
LAS VEGAS (AP) -- An associate of Floyd Mayweather Jr. was sentenced Tuesday to two to five years in prison for shooting at two men in a car after they argued with the champion boxer at a Las Vegas skating center.
Michael Jackson, Amy Winehouse Top Fans' Hologram Wish-Lists
Departed artists like Whitney Houston, Queen's Freddie Mercury and John Lennon also get mentions from fans in Times Square.
By Kate Callahan
<P><b>NEW YORK</b> — After the <a href="/news/articles/1683238/tupac-coachella-hologram-.jhtml">Tupac hologram performance</a> at Coachella made such a huge splash, the team behind the projection system floated the possibility this week of an <a href="/news/articles/1683909/justin-bieber-elvis-hologram.jhtml">Elvis hologram to perform with Justin Bieber</a>. Even '90s girl group <a href="http://rapfix.mtv.com/2012/04/26/tlc-reunion-tour-left-eye-hologram">TLC is rumored to be considering</a> a virtual version of <a href="/news/articles/1683858/left-eye-tlc-death.jhtml">the late Left Eye</a> on their upcoming tour.</P><P>With all that talk, MTV News hit Times Square to ask fans which departed artists they would most like to see perform in hologram form. While some of those interviewed wanted to see other rappers like the Notorious B.I.G. or Nate Dogg, one fan thought Whitney Houston should get the honors.</P><P><embed src="http://media.mtvnservices.com/mgid:uma:video:mtv.com:764208/cp~vid%3D764208%26uri%3Dmgid%3Auma%3Avideo%3Amtv.com%3A764208" width="460" height="260" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" base="."></embed></P><P>"I love her, I grew up singing her [songs], just walking around the house when I was seven or eight," Shayana of Houston said.</P><P>Brits Amy Winehouse and John Lennon of the Beatles were also popular picks, and a few rock fans mentioned Queen's flamboyant frontman. "It would have to be Freddie Mercury because Queen were one of the all-time greatest bands and he was a showman," said a fan named Rob.</P><P>Blane Mader would like to see a hologram of another <a href="/news/articles/1683289/tupac-hologram-coachella-future-of-touring.jhtml">great showman, Michael Jackson</a>.</P><P>"It's a really cliché answer, but in my time I've never seen him and it would just be something awesome to watch," Mader said of the King of Pop.</P><P>Members of the Jackson 5 recently announced that they would love to have a <a href="http://rapfix.mtv.com/2012/04/23/michael-jackson-hologram-jackson-brothers-tour">virtual Michael</a> on their upcoming Unity Tour. "Wouldn't that be wonderful? As a matter of fact, we had that idea two years ago for Michael's Cirque du Soleil show," Michael's brother Jackie Jackson told E! News.</P><P><i>Share your wish-list for future hologram performers in the comments below!</i></P><P><center><a href="http://www.mtv.com/photos/?fid=1617615"><img src="http://www.mtv.com/news/photos/s/spotted/banner/spotted.jpg"></a></center></P>
Related Photos Related ArtistsSource:
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1684073/michael-jackson-amy-winehouse-holograms.jhtml
Just breathe: Bar Refaeli's heavenly holidays
Jet-setting supermodel Bar Refaeli has been enjoying some well deserved days off in the...
Source: http://www.hellomagazine.com/fashion/201208279095/bar-refaeli-mykonos-greece-holiday/
Mine shootings test Zuma
An official national day of mourning in South Africa on Thursday, called by President Jacob Zuma to memorialize the lives of dozens of miners mowed down in a police fusillade one week ago, turned into an opportunity by his critics to call for his ouster. While government leaders urged restraint, and religious figures prayed for redemption, the embattled president's opponents exploited an opening created by the tragedy to portray his government -- and trade unions allied with Zuma -- as pawns of foreign, white owners.
Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/edition_world/~3/0T9a2s3LJHo/index.html
Shawne Merriman released by Buffalo, possibly ending an unfortunate career
I can't speak to the accuracy of this perception. I'm not Sergeant Steroid. I don't know exactly what he took, how it affected his body, how long he might have benefited from it or what his career would've been like without it. These things are impossible to know.
It's easy to connect those dots, though, and say that Merriman couldn't play without the needle.
He definitely can't play without a team, and he's without one now. The Bills signed him in early 2011, and after giving them just five games in two seasons, they've tossed him aside. Buffalo's offseason acquisitions of Mario Williams and Mark Anderson made Merriman very expandable, especially since he still had a relatively premium price tag.
Of course, that was Buffalo's fault, too.
For some reason, the Bills were in a huge hurry to give him a lot of money in 2011 when it wasn't a sure thing that anyone else was even interested. They didn't get much back on that investment.
Not that there wasn't some surprise to Merriman's release. In those five games he played in 2011, after being injured for all of 2010, he was at least serviceable. His sack numbers were down, but he played well for a defense that seemed to get worse as the year he went on, after Merriman left the lineup.
In the end, the Bills just didn't have it in the budget to pay that much to a backup who they can't trust to stay off the injured reserve. It's not crazy to think that some other team will pick Merriman up and gamble that he's got some health left in him. He's only 28 years old, and there's probably some team out there that could use the depth.
But it's no slam dunk that anyone will pick him up, either. For four straight years, he's been injured or ineffective. His willingness to play for the veteran's minimum will probably have a lot to do with his future NFL employment status.
Any of this would've been hard to believe in the early parts of the 2006 season. Merriman had 10 sacks in just 10 starts in his rookie year in San Diego, then had 17 sacks in 2006, even while missing four games on the steroid suspension. He was very good in 2007, too, with 12.5 sacks.
That's 39.5 sacks in the first three years of his career, which is a first-ballot Hall of Fame pace. If he could've kept up that pace for a nine-year career, he'd have been 15th all time in sacks. A 12-year career would've put him fourth all time. A 15-year career would've put him at a level only previously seen by Bruce Smith and Reggie White.
Twelve or 15 years of that pace would've been a lot to ask, though. Which I guess is why Bruce Smith and Reggie White are in the Hall of Fame.
Rare are the careers that start out so brightly, and then take a nosedive so quickly into a pile of mediocrity, invisibility and steroid jokes. There are a lot of one-hit wonders in NFL history, but when a guy goes so hard for three years, he's proven he's legit. But his fall-off was just as quick and just as thorough as Ickey Woods, Derek Anderson or Don Majkowski.
Not that I'm calling for any sympathy here. There's not much of that among sports fans toward those who get caught juicing, and rightfully so. Just to satisfy my own curiosity, though, I'd have liked to see Merriman have one more healthy year to see if he could regain the form of his first three seasons. But this time, we could trust that he was clean.
Hopefully, he can still get it.
Monday 27 August 2012
Re: http://www.mrpaparazzi.com/post/20407
its sound like an old standard story...she just realize that none want her thats all!!!
Source: http://www.mrpaparazzi.com/post/20407#comment-630842265
Vick back at practice and "close to 100 percent" (Yahoo! Sports)
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Michael Vick will take his next snap in the season opener for the Philadelphia Eagles. Who replaces him if he gets hurt again remains a question.
Russellmania! Seahawks rookie Wilson shines in first NFL preseason start
In each of the last three seasons, Seattle Seahawks general manager John Schneider has said that he wants a quarterback who can "tilt the room." Schneider and head coach Pete Carroll have shuffled through an interesting crew of sub-stars in that time -- veteran Matt Hasselbeck for the 2010 season, and then a somewhat more indifferent combination of Tarvaris Jackson and Charlie Whitehurst in 2011. Before the 2012 season, two new moves were made -- the Seahawks signed former Green Bay Packers backup Matt Flynn to a three-year, $26 million deal, and they drafted North Carolina State and Wisconsin quarterback Russell Wilson in the third round.
The idea was that by dint of his experience, Flynn would win the starting job, and Wilson could learn and compete. Jackson, still on the team, had become more of an afterthought, and that was more and more the case as Wilson surprised everyone by excelling and frequently outpacing both Jackson and Flynn in practices and through the first two games of the preseason. As a result, and because of a balky elbow that started to bother Flynn mid-week, Carroll decided to start Wilson against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 3 of the preseason, to see what he could do against a quality starting NFL defense.
Three hours later, Carroll had as definite an answer as he's ever received. Wilson performed marvelously, completing 13 of 19 passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns in three quarters of action. The Seahawks had a 44-7 lead at the end of the third quarter, and the 44-14 final was due, in large part, to Wilson's cool head in the pocket and ability to use his feet to make plays. He also rushed for 58 yards on two attempts. Through three total NFL games, Wilson has completed 35 of 56 passes for 464 yards, five touchdowns, one interception, and he has the NFL's best preseason quarterback rating at 119.4.
[Related: Too big for the NFL, John "House" Taylor wallows in obscurity]
In every possible way, the rookie has�unexpectedly looked more like the Seahawks' best quarterback than anyone else on the roster, a fact that Carroll seemed to acknowledge. Wilson's 5-foot-10 5/8 stature, long thought to be an extreme liability to some, wasn't a problem at all, because he knew how to effectively move in the pocket to open line gaps and throwing lanes.
"He had run so much through the first two games, I wanted to see how he would do if he held in the pocket and read it out," Carroll said after the game. "He's done everything we've asked of him. When John was excited about drafting him, and we got the momentum to make that pick, this is the guy we hoped he would be. All the talk about how tall he is and stuff -- I don't see it being a factor. I've watched more carefully than anybody could have watched, and it isn't [an issue] to me."
Receiver Golden Tate agreed. "It's just something that he stands for and how he handles himself. The things that leave his mouth," Tate said. "You get a feeling that he's just very, very special. You don't know what it is, but you get that feeling. You get excited to see him get on the field, because you never know if he's going to throw a perfect touchdown pass or juke a safety to extend the drive. It's hard to put into words, but it's just good to have a guy who seems comfortable sitting back there. He's just a very, very special player, and I'm excited to see him grow."
Carroll said that he would go through Week 4 of the preseason, which the Seahawks end at home against the Oakland Raiders on Thursday night, before making the final decision on the regular-season starter. One thing's for sure -- Wilson couldn't have done much more to put himself in the driver's seat.
"I definitely felt that I was ready to go," Wilson said right after the win. "I believe that when you're prepared, you're never nervous. That's the way I've always been -- just prepare myself the best way so that I can put my best foot forward. We showed tonight that we can play some great football when everybody's working together.
"All I can do is do the best I can to help our team get better -- we have a tremendous team, and it's great to see everybody working together and rolling. All I can do is just keep learning as much as I can, look at the tape, and we'll see what happens."
[Related: Five single-season NFL records that could be broken in 2012]
What has happened so far is that Wilson has made a very difficult thing -- graduating from college to the NFL at the game's most complicated position -- seem relatively simple. Through the preseason, he's been the among the league's most impressive rookie quarterbacks, at least in a statistical sense, and that shows the effort behind the seeming ease.
"It's never easy," Wilson concluded. "All the work we put in, in terms of getting there early and leaving late -- it's a lot of work .You've really got to be dedicated to it, and you have to be. Our team is really dedicated right now -- everybody's loving it, and everybody's intense. Everybody's really caring about what we need to do to be successful."
For the Seahawks to be successful in 2012, they'll need a quarterback with the intangibles and attributes to tilt the room. Three years after he started his search, John Schneider may have found his man.
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Roger Clemens allows one hit in return to mound
"I hope nothing breaks and I hope I don't pull anything," the 50-year-old righthander told reporters before making start against the mighty Bridgeport Bluefish.
Clemens was successful on both accounts and his performance wasn't bad either as he threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings while striking out two and allowing only one hit. His outing lasted 37 pitches (24 for strikes) while his fastball topped out at 88 MPH on the radar gun. That's certainly not bad for a 50-year-old, no matter the level of competition, though it's also far from an indication that Clemens would be able to do the same thing against big leaguers should he attempt a comeback to Major League Baseball.
For his part, Clemens has said that he's nowhere near "major league ready":
''I don't know how much clearer I can say it,'' Clemens said Friday. ''I'm nowhere near major league ready, nor have I been training or pitching in that type of mode.''
Clemens, however, is also on record as saying he'll do whatever Houston Astros owner Jim Crane wants him to do do and ESPN analyst Curt Schilling predicted that we'll see Clemens pitching in a big league uniform come September "as long as he stays healthy."
We'll see how Clemens' arm feels in the morning, but it's hard to believe this will be a one-time affair. Though Clemens currently doesn't have another start scheduled for the Skeeters, here's betting we'll see him pitching again some time soon.
Want more baseball fun all season long?
Follow @bigleaguestew,�@KevinKaduk and the BLS Facebook page!
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Kansas City Chiefs fan has a Chiefs glass eye (PHOTO)
This is Steve Graham. Steve lost an eye in an accident 45 years ago, right around the time he became a die-hard Kansas City Chiefs fan.
A few years ago, he had an artificial eye made with the team's logo on it and recently shared the picture with the Chiefs-centric blog Arrowhead Addict.
On the list of "gotta support the team" gestures you may come to regret, this barely registers.�Graham told the website he doesn't walk around with the Chiefs eye all the time -- "it can freak some folks out." He has a regular eye that he wears on most days, then switches �for games. And here I thought I was devoted to my team because I dig out my Art Monk jersey out of the closet every September.
Getting a team tattoo; now, that's something you can't take back. Turns out Graham has one of those too.
Thanks, Deadspin
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Sunday 26 August 2012
US women's Olympic team soon to be unveiled (Yahoo! Sports)
One of the hardest tasks for any coach is cutting players. It's even more difficult when many of the players involved have helped you reach the pinnacle of your profession. Fortunately for U.S. women's national basketball coach Geno Auriemma, those decisions are made by a five-member selection committee.
MotoGP: Lin Jarvis Talks Valentino Rossi
After the news that Valentino Rossi was to make a return to Yamaha after two disastrous seasons at Ducati, Yamaha’s press officers were inundated with requests for interviews with Yamaha Racing Managing Director Lin Jarvis at Brno. To accommodate as many people as possible, Yamaha held a press conference to answer the questions that all of the assembled media wanted to put to them. The subjects covered during the press conference were the motivation for ...
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AsphaltandRubber/~3/VWXIu60QcDo/
Ivorian conquered big business
Ivorian-born businessman Tidjane Thiam is all too familiar with the daily challenges of setting the strategy and overseeing the operations of a global company.
Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/edition_world/~3/BF2dzH1STw8/index.html
Pau Gasol visits Chad as part of his UNICEF ambassadorship
As much as we enjoyed watching the 2011-12 Los Angeles Lakers, despite the criticism we heaped upon them for an inconsistent season and a second-round ouster, we're almost relieved in a way that they quickly got to their offseason in the second week of May.
Indirectly, it allowed the team's front office to deal an All-Star center for an All-NBA center, not long after picking up perhaps the best point guard of the last 20 years for a pair of crummy draft picks and a ruddy trade exception. Quite directly, it allowed Kobe Bryant to act as go-to calming influence on Team USA, and Pau Gasol to do some fantastic charity work with UNICEF (all while, whatevs, bringing home a nicely spun silver medal for Spain during the 2012 Olympics).
Pau looked, and forgive my crass tone, more or less beat to hell when the season ended six months ago. A needless NBA lockout was quickly followed with a signed-off on trade that was set to send Gasol to Houston three weeks before the campaign started, only to embarrassingly send the All-Star forward back to Los Angeles once the NBA arbitrarily decided to throw its weight around. A newish Laker offense turned the big man's all-around gifts into an afterthought, sadly, and trade rumors persisted until Los Angeles dealt for Dwight Howard in early August.
[Also: Mavs owner Mark Cuban offers six keys to business success]
Unbowed, Spain's UNICEF ambassador took to Chad on Thursday for a week-long fact-finding mission that he hopes will raise awareness for malnutrition crises that plague that country; one of nine that are part of the Sahel region that dots the middle part of Africa between the Red Sea and Atlantic Ocean. The Los Angeles Times' Mark Medina picked up on Gasol's crusade on Friday:
There, he will help and observe UNICEF officials provide vaccinations and food at�feeding and medical nutritional centers throughout the region. UNICEF says the Sahel region has at least 1.1 million children that will need treatment for severe acute malnutrition. The United Nations has said about 18 million people are affected by a drought and food crisis in the nine countries of the Sahel region.
"UNICEF started warning last year that this situation could happen and began to work on prevention and treatment," Gasol said in a statement, "But not all children in need across the Sahel have been reached. I'm in Chad to remind people that 1 million children are at risk in the Sahel because of the nutritional crisis and that it is possible to end malnutrition."
[More NBA: The fiery Kobe Bryant of the past needs to return]
In the past, I've been accused of bias when begging both the Memphis Grizzlies and the Lakers to run the ball through Pau Gasol more often. And while it's true that I prefer to see basketball run from the inside-out, with Gasol's expert passing touch at the apex of a triangle-based system, that insistence has more to do with Gasol's gifts than it does preference for low or high-post play.
There might be a bias after this, though. Pau Gasol is to be adored, on court and off. Follow his work on Twitter, and visit UNICEF's website to help to contribute to Gasol's mission.
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Shawne Merriman released by Buffalo, possibly ending an unfortunate career
I can't speak to the accuracy of this perception. I'm not Sergeant Steroid. I don't know exactly what he took, how it affected his body, how long he might have benefited from it or what his career would've been like without it. These things are impossible to know.
It's easy to connect those dots, though, and say that Merriman couldn't play without the needle.
He definitely can't play without a team, and he's without one now. The Bills signed him in early 2011, and after giving them just five games in two seasons, they've tossed him aside. Buffalo's offseason acquisitions of Mario Williams and Mark Anderson made Merriman very expandable, especially since he still had a relatively premium price tag.
Of course, that was Buffalo's fault, too.
For some reason, the Bills were in a huge hurry to give him a lot of money in 2011 when it wasn't a sure thing that anyone else was even interested. They didn't get much back on that investment.
Not that there wasn't some surprise to Merriman's release. In those five games he played in 2011, after being injured for all of 2010, he was at least serviceable. His sack numbers were down, but he played well for a defense that seemed to get worse as the year he went on, after Merriman left the lineup.
In the end, the Bills just didn't have it in the budget to pay that much to a backup who they can't trust to stay off the injured reserve. It's not crazy to think that some other team will pick Merriman up and gamble that he's got some health left in him. He's only 28 years old, and there's probably some team out there that could use the depth.
But it's no slam dunk that anyone will pick him up, either. For four straight years, he's been injured or ineffective. His willingness to play for the veteran's minimum will probably have a lot to do with his future NFL employment status.
Any of this would've been hard to believe in the early parts of the 2006 season. Merriman had 10 sacks in just 10 starts in his rookie year in San Diego, then had 17 sacks in 2006, even while missing four games on the steroid suspension. He was very good in 2007, too, with 12.5 sacks.
That's 39.5 sacks in the first three years of his career, which is a first-ballot Hall of Fame pace. If he could've kept up that pace for a nine-year career, he'd have been 15th all time in sacks. A 12-year career would've put him fourth all time. A 15-year career would've put him at a level only previously seen by Bruce Smith and Reggie White.
Twelve or 15 years of that pace would've been a lot to ask, though. Which I guess is why Bruce Smith and Reggie White are in the Hall of Fame.
Rare are the careers that start out so brightly, and then take a nosedive so quickly into a pile of mediocrity, invisibility and steroid jokes. There are a lot of one-hit wonders in NFL history, but when a guy goes so hard for three years, he's proven he's legit. But his fall-off was just as quick and just as thorough as Ickey Woods, Derek Anderson or Don Majkowski.
Not that I'm calling for any sympathy here. There's not much of that among sports fans toward those who get caught juicing, and rightfully so. Just to satisfy my own curiosity, though, I'd have liked to see Merriman have one more healthy year to see if he could regain the form of his first three seasons. But this time, we could trust that he was clean.
Hopefully, he can still get it.
Saturday 25 August 2012
Island dispute opens old wounds
The policeman tapping on our car window makes it clear we are in a no-go area before placing his hand over the lens of our camera.
Source: http://rss.cnn.com/~r/rss/edition_world/~3/cFtlkukLF2M/index.html
Neil Armstrong Dead -- First Man on Moon Dies at 82
Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, has died today. He was 82. Armstrong died following complications resulting from cardiovascular procedures, his family said in a statement. It is not known where he died.The statement from…
Exclusive: Avril Lavigne shares details of her surprise engagement
Falling in love was the last thing Avril Lavigne expected when she stepped into a Los...
Source: http://www.hellomagazine.com/celebrities/201208239074/avril-lavigne-exclusive-engagement-ring/
Friday Summary at Brno: Of Red Flags, Fast Ducatis, & Future Ducati Riders
Friday would prove to be an eventful first day of practice at Brno. Thrills, spills, and plenty of flag waving, mostly of the red variety, as crashes played havoc with the day’s schedule. It started in the morning, during FP1 for MotoGP, when Valentino Rossi ran wide in the final corner, and his rear wheel kicked up a couple of sizable rocks. The rocks hit Dani Pedrosa, on the top of his foot and the ...
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/AsphaltandRubber/~3/o98KNzxgexc/
Rookie LB Audie Cole amazes Vikings with consecutive pick-sixes
Everyone always knew that Audie Cole was a great athlete -- it just took him a while to find the right position on the football field. With the standard "it's just the preseason" disclaimer in full effect, it seems that Cole may have found his true niche. Selected in the seventh round of the 2012 draft by the Minnesota Vikings, the former baseball player, basketball player, and boxer was a standout for North Carolina State at strongside and middle linebacker. Though he received invitations to the 2012 scouting combine and led his team in tackles each season from 2009 through 2011, Cole was very much under the radar as the draft approached.
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Cole's in the spotlight now, because of what he accomplished in Minnesota's 36-14 Friday night victory of the Buffalo Bills/ On consecutive plays in the fourth quarter, Cole picked off passes from two different Bills quarterbacks and ran them both in for touchdowns. The first pick came with 3:28 left in the game, as backup Tyler Thigpen threw from his own 11-yard line. Cole grabbed the ball at the Bills' 20-yard line, and ran in for six. The Vikings kicked off, the Bills started from their own 22 this time, new backup Brad Smith came in, and Smith repeated Thigpen's mistake -- he hit Cole at the 30, and that was all she wrote.
"To see Audie do what he did, that's a big deal," Vikings coach Leslie Frazier said after the game. "He seems like one of those guys who maybe is someone who has a knack for the big play."
For Cole, the only issue was his form on the first runback. "Everybody said I should have just run it straight in," Cole said. "I don't know. I don't touch the ball usually, so I tried to make some moves out there."
[Fantasy: Juggernaut Index No. 14: The San Diego Chargers]
Second-year Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder remembered playing against Cole when Ponder was Florida State's quarterback -- fortunately, Cole never made Ponder look quite this foolish.
"Fortunately, I never threw a pick against him," Ponder told TwinCities.com. "I remember him sticking out as a great player on defense. I've never seen back-to-back interceptions like that on defense before. Obviously, he made an impression tonight. He's had a good camp. Good for him. I'm happy for him."
Of course, this is preseason, and though Cole impressed greatly in this game, his roster position is as tenuous as that of any seventh-rounder. He won't have much time to celebrate before he gets back to work.
[Fantasy Football '12: Sign up now and get an early jump on your friends
"I have to pick it up on special teams and keep going," he said. "I made a lot of mistakes out there tonight. Everyone saw two good plays; I made five bad ones. I've got to correct those and keep going."
Not a bad start, though. On the other side. Buffalo Bills head coach Chan Gailey -- a noted quarterback tutor -- had to be pretty exasperated with the whole thing.
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Re: http://www.mrpaparazzi.com/post/20365
OK�so zayn is muslim and he celebrates eid. OMG! im muslim too and i celebrated eid
Source: http://www.mrpaparazzi.com/post/20365#comment-628127962
Friday 24 August 2012
Re: http://www.mrpaparazzi.com/post/20405
Kristen's former publicist Ruth Bernstein also reps Katy Perry. She will have her hooked up with Pattinson in no time. That's why she had Katy drop John Mayer so suddenly-because Kristen just fired her. She'll have it all over the press in no time flat at Rob and Katy are an item now. She's a�vindictive�b itch like that. ALL publicists are.
Source: http://www.mrpaparazzi.com/post/20405#comment-627536634
Lopez eager for fresh, healthy start with Hornets (Yahoo! Sports)
WESTWEGO, La. (AP) -- Robin Lopez always saw himself as a defense-first big man, someone who can grind out low-scoring games.
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