Bewerbungen » Lindblom, who came to Texas as a reliever in t

DAVIE, Fla. -- Being an aggressive cornerback, Xavien Howard interrupted an inquisitors question Tuesday, and it went incomplete.The subject was Howards most eye-catching attribute, and the Miami Dolphins rookie eagerly jumped in midway through the query.Ball skill, Howard answered. Ive been a playmaker. They got me here for a reason. Ive just got to do what I did in college, and do more. Yes sir. Takeaways. Yes sir.Now that hes back at practice, the Dolphins second-round draft pick is showing some swagger. Howard missed the first three weeks of camp recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery, which may have spoiled his chances of starting at cornerback in the season opener.He was activated last week from the physically unable to perform list, practiced for the third day in a row Tuesday, and could provide a significant upgrade in a shaky secondary.It feels good to be back out there competing again with my guys, Howard said.The former Baylor star required right knee surgery after hurting his knee on the final day of minicamp in June. That temporarily took him out of the competition for the job opposite veteran newcomer Byron Maxwell.Howard said his goal remains to win a starting job this year, and hes not fretting about the practice time missed.I wouldnt call it a setback, he said. Id just say its a learning process that I went through, and Im just learning from it -- a lot of mental reps, just seeing what the older guys were doing and learning from them.Before the injury, Howard received favorable reviews in offseason drills. New coach Adam Gase especially liked the knack Howard showed for deflections and interceptions.He gets his hands on a lot of balls, Gase said. When he does get both hands up to make a play on the ball, he usually catches it.Howard made nine interceptions in his final two years at Baylor, and now the Dolphins are eager to see him in an NFL game. Hell sit out Thursday against Atlanta, but expects to play in next weeks preseason finale, and has no doubt hell play in the season opener Sept. 11 at Seattle.In Howards absence, converted receiver Tony Lippett has been working with the first team at cornerback. Expected to join the mix eventually is veteran newcomer Chris Culliver, who has yet to practice while he recovers from a serious knee injury last Thanksgiving.This week the Dolphins have slowly been working Howard into one-on-one and team drills.I wouldnt say hes far behind mentally, Gase said. Hes dialed in to what were doing. Hes playing one-on-one coverage a lot of the time. Thats his strength. Were going to try to lean on his strength of matching him up with somebody and letting him go.That sounds good to Howard. He wore an NFL uniform for the first time Friday, watching from the sideline when the Dolphins played at Dallas.I just couldnt explain the feeling, he said. It was my first NFL game and I was excited, cheering guys on.Soon he expects to have teammates cheering for him.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Steven Wine on Twitter: http://twitter.com/Steve-Wine. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/steven-wine Cole Aldrich Jersey .B. - Sebastien Auger made 44 saves as the Saint John Sea Dogs edged the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan 2-1 on Saturday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Aaron Brooks Jersey . Each of Houstons starters scored in double figures as the Rockets improved to 2-0 against the Spurs this season, with both victories coming on the road. They also moved within 3 1/2 games of San Antonio (22-7) for the lead the Southwest Division. http://www.cheaptimberwolvesjerseys.com/ . The defence is doing its part, too. Drew Brees threw a pair of touchdown passes in the first half and the guys on the other side made sure that was enough, sending the Saints to a 17-13 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night. Andrew Wiggins Jersey . 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It was the first win for Colon (4-2) since April 23 at Boston, and he joined Bert Blyleven, Dennis Leonard and Jack Morris as the pitchers with the most wins over the Rangers at 19. "I like to pitch here," Colon, who has 175 wins in 16 seasons, said through a translator. "I dont know why." Coco Crisp got three hits, and had the first of three straight Oakland doubles in a four-run fifth inning that broke a 1-1 tie. He scored when Yoenis Cespedes hit a line drive just over Adrian Beltres head with the third baseman playing in, and Cespedes came home on Brandon Moss line drive to the wall in right. Josh Lindblom (0-1) lost in his 2013 debut and first major league start. Lindblom was replaced by left-hander Joseph Ortiz after striking out Josh Donaldson in the fourth. Smith hit an RBI single and went to second when left fielder David Murphy dropped the ball trying to make a throw home. The error allowed Smith to score on a single by Chris Young for a 5-1 Oakland lead. "The first four innings I was able to make pitches and work myself out of jams," Lindblom said. "That fifth inning, I couldnt make the pitch." Smiths opposite-field homer to left for a 1-0 lead in the second was the 13th straight solo homer for the As, tying a franchise record set in 2007. Jed Lowrie had three hits, including one of five doubles for Oakland. The two outs Smith made were with the bases loaded as the As stranded a season-high 15. Texas pitchers walked a season-high eight, although two were intentional. Even Colon had problems with walks -- by his standards. He matched his season total by walking Geovany Soto twice. "Those dont happen too often," As manager Bob Melvin said. Top Texas prospect Jurickson Profar made his first appearance in the majors this year at second base and was immediately put to the test by Crisp, who had infield hits his first two times up despite Profars best efforts. The 20-year-old went far to his left to grab the first one and fielded the next almost behind tthe bag at second, but Crisp beat the throw both times.dddddddddddd. Profar drove in both Texas runs without a hit, scoring Soto with a grounder in the third and Mitch Moreland with a sacrifice fly in the fifth. "The first one, we needed a groundball, he got the groundball," Rangers manager Ron Washington said. "He handled his at-bats well tonight. We scored two runs, he got both of them." With Ian Kinsler on the disabled list because of bruised ribs, Profar is back with the Rangers after homering in his first big league at-bat as a 19-year-old last year. "Im feeling more comfortable in the box and on the field," said Profar, who hit .424 during an eight-game hitting streak that included the first multihomer game of his career before getting called up from Triple-A Round Rock. "It starts from there." Colon was helped by three double plays in the first four innings, including a pair started by Moss at first base when he snagged hard grounders from Lance Berkman and Moreland, stepped on the bag and got the runners trying to go to second. He came out after throwing 95 pitches. "I mean, hes 40 and wed like to try to get him through a season," Melvin said. "So anything over 100 for me is starting to get a little uncomfortable for me. To give us seven, just short of 100, is terrific." Lindblom, who came to Texas as a reliever in the off-season trade that sent franchise hits leader Michael Young to Philadelphia, gave up seven hits and four runs in 4 2-3 innings filling in for Alexi Ogando, whos on the disabled list with right biceps tendinitis. The 25-year-old had 101 relief appearances over two seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Phillies but struggled in the Texas bullpen during spring training. The Rangers decided to try him as a starter at Round Rock, where he was 4-0 with a 2.08 ERA. "Fastball command was a little off today," Lindblom said. "I wasnt able to command my heater in and out, which has kind of been my staple all year." NOTES: Rangers C A.J. Pierzynski (strained oblique) was the designated hitter in the final game of a two-game rehabilitation stint at Double-A Frisco on Monday. He went 1 for 3 with a single and is expected back in the Texas lineup Tuesday, when hes eligible to come off the disabled list. ... Athletics RHP Chris Resop cleared waivers and was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento. Oakland designated him for assignment Friday. ' ' '