导出博客文章NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Marcus Mariota sees a noticeable upgrade in the talent
around him when he looks around the Tennessee Titans locker room.We have a lot
of guys in here now that are just studs, and thats exciting, Mariota said. At
the same time, now the expectations are higher, the standards higher, and thats
what youve got to live by. We cant just come out here and be satisfied with
enough. Weve got to be coming out here trying to get better.Well, at an
NFL-worst 5-27 the past two seasons, the Titans certainly have lots of room for
improvement.Amy Adams Strunk, who took charge as controlling owner in March
2015, fired Ken Whisenhunt after a 1-6 start and chose to keep Mike Mularkey as
head coach after he went 2-7. When she also hired a new general manager in
Tennessee native Jon Robinson, who got his NFL start with the Patriots, it
marked the first time since 1981 this franchise changed both coach and GM in the
same offseason.Robinson started revamping the roster, bringing in a handful of
free agents and trading for DeMarco Murray. He also traded away the No. 1
overall draft choice and brought in 10 draft picks for Mularkeys exotic
smashmouth offense designed to help out Mariota, the quarterback taken No. 2
overall in 2015.Last season was tough, said Mariota, who lost only five games in
his career at Oregon. At the same time, now we have an opportunity to build from
that and get better. Im totally excited about it.Here are some things to watch
for when the Titans report for training camp July 29:TENNESSEE BORDER: Mariota
missed a combined four games as a rookie because he hurt each knee when hit in
the pocket. Robinson signed center Ben Jones away from Houston and drafted Jack
Conklin out of Michigan State eighth overall to bolster an offensive line that
gave up an NFL-worst 54 sacks. An offseason injury to veteran Byron Bell erased
the opportunity to move right guard Chance Warmack to left guard, and the Titans
hope someone pushes undrafted free agent Quinton Spain, who started the last
seven games in 2015 at left guard.IMPROVED BACKFIELD: Mularkey wants to run the
ball much better to help Mariota and improve an offense that ranked 30th,
averaging 311.8 yards per game. Robinson picked up Murray for the price of a
revised contract and swapping 13 spots with Philadelphia in March, hoping the
running back looks much more like the NFLs 2014 Offensive Player of the Year.
For insurance, Robinson also drafted Heisman Trophy winner Derrick Henry out of
Alabama with his third selection in the second round.The new running backs could
help Tennessee end an ugly drought. Only Mariota has run for 100 yards or more
over the past two seasons, and the quarterback needed the longest run in the
league last December to reach 100 yards.CATCHING ON: Mularkey challenged the
Tennessee wide receivers this offseason to step up and play better. Injuries
ended the season for both Kendall Wright and Justin Hunter, and Dorial
Green-Beckham showed tantalizing flashes without consistency. Mularkey has made
it very clear to Hunter he expects the fourth-year player to be a receiver
defenses cant stop. Robinson also signed Rishard Matthews from Miami and drafted
Tajae Sharpe of Massachusetts in the fifth round; the rookie was working with
the first team as the offseason program ended.LEBEAU IN CHARGE: Ray Horton left
for Cleveland after losing the head job to Mularkey, and Dick LeBeau stuck
around to be defensive coordinator. Hes made it clear the Titans will go after
the quarterback much more this season, trying to improve from 12th in total
yards allowed but 27th in points given up. Robinson brought in veteran
cornerbacks Brice McCain and Antwon Blake, and Arizona safety Rashad Johnson.
Linebacker Kevin Dodd of Clemson was the No. 33 draft pick overall.INJURY
UPDATE: Linebacker Derrick Morgan, who had season-ending shoulder surgery in
2015, is expected to be fully available at the start of camp. He was limited at
times during the offseason. Dodd also is expected to be available after having
preventative surgery on his right foot in late May.---Online:AP NFL website:
www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed:
http://twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow
Teresa M. Walker at
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Mark
Pysyk Jersey . Halifax beat the Saint John Sea Dogs 7-5 on the strength of
two goals apiece from Nikolaj Ehlers, Matt Murphy and Brent Andrews. Jonathan
Drouin also scored and had three assists while Zachary Fucale made 17 saves for
the Mooseheads (16-8-0), who led 6-1 after two periods.
Mike
Hoffman Panthers Jersey . -- Former San Diego Chargers safety Paul Oliver
was found dead at his Atlanta-area home Tuesday night, and a medical examiner
said Wednesday that the ex-player committed suicide.
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. Here are his mid-season NBA awards. MVP: (KEVIN DURANT-Thunder) - Has been
sensational this season and more importantly, the most consistent player in the
league. Considering that his team has been without star guard Russell Westbrook
and with the free agent departure of sharpshooter Kevin Martin, hes had to carry
the majority of the load to not only keep his team afloat but more importantly,
at an elite level.
Henrik
Borgstrom Panthers Jersey . Coach Tom Thibodeau says the former MVP will
probably start travelling with the team in the next few weeks. Rose tore the
meniscus in his right knee at Portland in November and was ruled out for the
remainder of the season by the Bulls.
Denis
Malgin Jersey . Clarke was injured while practicing on the Doha Golf Club
range after the pro-am on Tuesday. The Northern Irishman arrived at the course
on Wednesday hoping to start, but after hitting a few balls on the practice
putting green Clarke advised officials he was not fit to play. Speculation is
mounting that Formula One is about to be revamped by a U.S. takeover that could
bring new life and a higher profile for a sport that is struggling to attract
new fans.Media reports suggest that F1s largest and controlling shareholder, the
hedge fund CVC Capital Partners, is preparing to sell the business to U.S. media
conglomerate Liberty Media for around $8.5 billion; more than four times CVCs
original outlay in 2006.At last weekends Italian Grand Prix, Formula Ones
commercial boss Bernie Ecclestone met with CVC co-chairman Donald Mackenzie,
whose rare appearance in the paddock fueled speculation of an imminent deal.
When speaking at Monza, however, the 85-year-old Ecclestone would not confirm
whether or not a sale is going ahead.Liberty, a multi-billion dollar, mass-media
company is run by 75-year-old John Malone. He is ranked 184th on the Forbes list
of billionaires -- 69th in the U.S. -- with a net worth of $7.1 billion, and
Forbes credits him as being the nations biggest individual landowner, with over
two million acres across seven states.Malone would not be a newcomer to the
high-end world of sport, since Liberty owns Major League Baseball side Atlanta
Braves.Reportedly, with Malone in charge, F1s new chairman would become Chase
Carey, the executive vice-chairman of 21st Century Fox.Despite its American
base, Ecclestone was skeptical as to whether a takeover by Liberty would
increase F1s success in the United States, which currently hosts only one of 21
races on the calendar and has no drivers competing in the championship. The only
U.S. representative on the grid is the U.S.-backed Haas team, which arrived in
F1 this season and has done reasonably well thanks to experienced French driver
Romain Grosjean.To open the American market you need to have 10 races in
America, sell tickets cheap and have a huge number of hamburger stands -- but
then it would not be F1 any longer, Ecclestone told F1.com, the sports official
website. But if all that scenario of the takeover is happening, then they can do
what they want.CVC is F1s biggest shareholder with a 35.5 percent stake,
followed by U.S. fund manager Waddell & Reed with just over 200
percent.dddddddddddd Ecclestone has 5.3 percent stake in F1 but his family
Bambino Trust has a further 8.5 percent, rounding up his involvement up to about
14 percent.Ecclestones own position in the event of a Liberty buyout is another
subject of interest in the F1 paddock.When asked about it, the British
billionaire replied in his trademark enigmatic style: I havent got a clue.Red
Bull team principal Christian Horner, who welcomed Libertys interest, could not
foresee a near-term exit for Ecclestone even under new management.It could be a
really exciting deal for Formula One if it happens, Horner told reporters at
Monza.But for a new group to come in without him being there would be very
difficult, so Id assume hell be around for some time.Like Horner, Toto Wolff,
the Mercedes head of motorsport, is enthusiastic about the prospect of a change
of ownership -- despite being a close ally of Ecclestone.Wolff, who was
interviewed alongside Ecclestone by F1.com, highlighted that the sports
longstanding business boss has built an empire and we are benefiting from
it.However, Wolff is also aware that a new investor could boost F1 -- which is
in a transition period as it tries to win back flagging TV audiences, battles
against falling crowds and plans to implement new rule changes for 2017 designed
at increasing speed and overtaking.Veterans like Jenson Button, Felipe Massa and
Fernando Alonso are edging close to retirement, and a wave of talented young
drivers, led by 18-year-old Dutch star Max Verstappen and 19-year-old Frenchman
Esteban Ocon, is breaking through.Along with fresh investment, Wolff thinks the
sport would also benefit from U.S. expertise in promoting sports in a digital
world. By contrast, Ecclestone has been reluctant to open F1 up more to social
media.There are things we can learn from the American way, particularly in the
digital areas, Wolff said. They will have a close look and then analyze what
they think needs to be changed and what needs to remain.There is a reason why
these guys can afford to buy this. ' ' '
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