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ALAMEDA, Calif. Jerrell Freeman Jersey . - Fifteen years of wasted or traded away first-round draft picks have laid the foundation for a dismal decade for the Oakland Raiders.From busts such as JaMarcus Russell to reaches such as Darrius Heyward-Bey, mistakes on draft day led directly to losses on the field as the Raiders have gone 12 straight years without a winning record or playoff berth.General manager Reggie McKenzie might finally have found a player to help end that slide this year in linebacker Khalil Mack. The fifth overall pick out of Buffalo has been an impact player right from the start.He is dominating against the run, a relentless pass rusher and an eager learner who is part of the foundation for what the Raiders hope will eventually be a resurgence.He jumps out on film every week, safety Charles Woodson said. So to us its no surprise what hes doing out there. We know the other team, whether its the quarterback or whether its the tackle or tight end trying to take him on, theyre feeling him. And thats every week. Thats every play, man. This guys going to be special.Since drafting Woodson fourth overall in 1998, the Raiders made 15 first-round picks the following 15 years and dealt three more away in ill-fated trades for Randy Moss, Richard Seymour and Carson Palmer.Only two of those 15 ever made a single Pro Bowl — cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha and kicker Sebastian Janikowski — and many were colossal failures such as Russell.Mack appears to be a full-fledged success.Hes continuing to grow and hes continuing to improve. Each week hes gotten a little bit better, interim coach Tony Sparano said. Hes getting better and better and thats all we can ask for our young players right now is to continue to improve.Macks play has put him in contention to win the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year award. Mack is one of the leading contenders for the honour, along with St. Louis Aaron Donald and Baltimores C.J. Mosley.The Raiders havent had a player win a major post-season award since quarterback Rich Gannon was MVP back in 2002.I cant listen to it, he said. Ill listen to it at the end of year, but not now. The grind is all Im focusing on, and going out and getting better every week.He has done just that. Mack is the top-graded 4-3 outside linebacker, according to Pro Football Focus, just edging out Denver star Von Miller.While many outside linebackers make their names by sacking the quarterback, Mack has been at his best against the run where he fights off blocks to make plays in the backfield every week. Mack is second in the NFL to Houstons J.J. Watt with 11 1/2 tackles at or behind the line against the run, according to STATS.Mack is no slouch rushing the passer despite seeing more than his share of double-teams. He is tied for sixth among all linebackers with 51 quarterback pressures and has four sacks on the season. Mack ranks third in quarterback pressures among linebackers over the past 11 weeks.Its been pretty cool to see the transition from the game moving fast to it starting to slow down, and Im starting to key a lot of different things and read a lot of different things and see how people are scheming, and pretty much knowing how the game works at this level, Mack said.Macks growing comfort level has led to more ways he can be used by defensive co-ordinator Jason Tarver. After starting the season mostly as a strongside linebacker, Mack now moves around the defence to get the best possible matchup and to confuse opposing quarterbacks.Buffalos Kyle Orton appeared flustered by the constant pressure Mack applied this past week from all different areas of the field.Weve been able to move him more and more, Tarver said. But whats great about Khalil is hes a one-time correction young man. He can see it once he does it. Hes very conscious of what hes doing, so when he sees it he remembers the play and you say, Hey, what did you feel here? or, What did you do? Next time you feel that, do this. Hes got it.___Online:AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL ;Mark Sanchez Jersey .In a statement released Friday, the Catalan club said the Brazil stars recovery would be monitored to determine when he can begin training again. Mike Singletary Jersey . Dumont, a fifth round draft pick of the Canadiens in 2009, has four assists and 20 penalty minutes in 12 games with the Bulldogs this season. The 23-year-old split last season between Hamilton and Montreal, recording 16 goals and 15 assists in 55 regular season games with the Bulldogs. ANAHEIM, Calif. -- C.J. Wilson isnt too particular about the way he gets his victories. He will take them any way he can get them -- no matter how ugly they are. Wilson surrendered five runs in the second inning after his teammates had scored five in the first, but Mike Trout regained the lead for the Los Angeles Angels in the bottom of the second with a two-run homer, and manager Mike Scioscias much maligned bullpen hung on for an 8-6 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday night. "It was the best luck I had to get that run support and win despite giving up all those runs," Wilson said. "The bullpen had their backs up against the wall. I didnt really give them that much to work with. They had to throw four scoreless innings and they came through." Wilson (8-6) barely navigated through five innings and left with the lead after allowing six runs and nine hits, including back-to-back home runs for the second time in his last three starts. The left-hander, who came in 5-0 with a 1.58 ERA in his previous six outings at Angel Stadium, blew a 5-0 lead in the second before Trout hit his 17th homer in the bottom half. "It was an interesting approach that their team had today. They took a lot of pitches -- first-pitch strikes down the middle -- and then with two strikes they would fight the pitches off," Wilson said. "I dont know how many first-pitch strikes I threw. It felt like a ton. All the hits were deep in the count, so it was kind of a Twilight-Zone type of thing. "After the two home runs, it was like paper cuts to death. Obviously, Willingham and Morales hit the ball really hard, but a lot of the other hits were in-between guys or under the coverage," Wilson added. Trouts homer was Los Angeles last hit until David Freeses one-out single in the sixth. The Twins got a run closer in the fifth on a sacrifice fly by former Angels slugger Kendrys Morales, but Joe Smith got three outs for his sixth save to help extend the Angels four-game winning streak and snap a season-best four-game streak by the Twins. Kyle Gibson (6-6) threw 50 pitches over two innings in his 25th career start, equaling his shortest outing in the big leagues. The 26-year-old right-hander gave up seven runs, four hits and two walks, after coming in with a streak of 22 consecutive scoreless innings. "I juust didnt really have a good feel out there from pitch one in the bullpen," Gibson said. Dan Hampton Jersey. "It felt like I was searching the whole time. It was just one of those weird nights. I didnt feel like I was repeating my delivery. It was pretty clear that I wasnt very sharp. I was leaving sliders over the middle, sinkers up -- I mean, it was a confusing, frustrating night overall." The right-hander found himself in a bases-loaded, no-out jam after 16 pitches and failed to retire any of his first six batters -- although Albert Pujols reached on a fielders choice when shortstop Danny Santana fielded his grounder deep in the hole and Trout beat the rookies throw to second. By the time the inning ended, Los Angeles had pushed across five runs. Josh Hamilton and Howie Kendrick both came up with the bases loaded and hit two-run singles. Erick Aybar, who was hit by a pitch, scored the fifth run on a double-play grounder by C.J. Cron. But Minnesota needed only one inning to erase the deficit. Josh Willingham, who has eight homers in his last 15 games against the Angels, drove an 0-2 pitch to centre field that barely eluded Trouts glove -- which was about 3 feet above the fence. Morales followed with first homer in a Twins uniform, sending a 3-2 pitch into the lower seats in the left field corner. No. 9 hitter Sam Fuld kept the rally alive with a two-out RBI single, Santana drove in another run with a double and Brian Dozier tied it with an RBI single. NOTES: Angels hitting coach Don Baylor was in the dugout during a game for the first time since breaking his right leg while catching a ceremonial first pitch from Vladimir Guerrero on opening night. ... Gibson lasted just two innings on May 10 at Detroit, allowing six runs in a 9-3 loss. ... Joe Mauer, who won three AL batting titles as a catcher and the MVP award in 2009, is hitting .260 in his first season as a full-time first baseman. Only two of his 22 RBIs have come on the road. ... Mauer and C Kurt Suzuki each entered the game 2 for 22 against Wilson. Mauer was 1 for 3 this time against the two-time All-Star and Suzuki was 0 for 3. ... LHP Tyler Skaggs, who hasnt pitched for the Angels since June 5 because of a right hamstring strain, is scheduled to make a rehab start for Triple-A Salt Lake on Thursday in Fresno. Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From China Cheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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