Clanregeln » , the call ended the competitive portion of Vin

METAIRIE, La. -- Lately, Saints rookie defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins has been reminding New Orleans interior offensive lineman that theyd be doing him a considerable favor by blocking as hard as they possibly can against him during practice.The 12th overall pick in Iast springs draft out of Louisville still has yet to make his NFL regular season debut because he fractured his left fibula during training camp in mid-August. But that is expected to change this weekend in san Francisco, when Rankins will be eligible to play for the first time.When Im going up against guys, I always tell them, `Just give me a real look. I havent done anything for a while, so I want as close to full speed without trying to kill each other as I can get, Rankins said. Theyve been good about that.Meanwhile, the offensive linemen whove been indulging Rankins request for difficult practice repetitions say the rookie has been wearing them out.To come back the way he has within the amount of time -- just the timeframe and to have as much strength as he has is really incredible right now, Saints guard Tim Lelito said. Hes basically picked up right where he left off. Theres a reason why he was a first-round draft pick, honestly. Hes quick, hes strong, got great hands ... so Im excited to hopefully see him out there in some live situations.Saints coach Sean Payton said Rankins is getting around well and we anticipate this is the week for him to come back.Rankins said coaches have begun rotating him into the first-team defense during 11-on-11 work in practice so he is up to speed with this weeks game plan.The recovery is going as expected. I havent had any setbacks, getting my strength back, getting my endurance back, Rankins said. Its fun to be out there playing. I feel fine. I feel I can be effective. If I didnt feel I could be effective, I wouldnt put myself out there.Saints coaches have said they see Rankins eventually being an every-down player because he is versatile enough to play several spots along the defensive line as either a run stuffer or pass rusher. But Rankins figures that in terms of stamina and experience, he would blame coaches for easing him into his first few games in a more limited role.Definitely coming off an injury as long as Ive been off, you definitely dont want to put the cart before the horse, so to speak, Rankins said. You want to do what you can but dont overexert yourself too much. You dont want to be out there trying to overcompensate and those other issues. So I think theyre going to do a good job of keeping an eye on me, giving me what I can handle, and Ill make the most of those snaps.The Saints defense could use help. The unit ranks 28th in the NFL, allowing 397.4 yards per game, and 31st in points allowed at 30.7 per game.In his last two seasons at Louisville, Rankins registered 14 sacks and 26 + tackles for losses.When Lelito was asked if Rankins looked ready to apply stress on the front of an opposing teams pass-protection pocket, he responded, Absolutely. He can put stress anywhere. The front of the pocket, the side of the pocket. Wherever you want to put him hes putting stress. Hes definitely someone that youre going to have to account for.Game notes S Kenny Vaccaro, who sat out Wednesdays practice with knee soreness, returned Thursday on a limited basis. ... Three other players who sat out Wednesdays practice -- T Terron Armstead (Knee), LB Dannell Ellerbe (Quad) and LB James Laurinaitis (Quad) -- also did not practice on Thursday. ... RB and special teams regular Daniel Lasco, who was not on Wednesdays injury report, missed Thursdays practice. ... LB Stephone Anthony (Hamstring), CB Delvin Breaux (Fibula), WR Jake Lampman (Knee), CB Sterling Moore (Abdomen) and C Max Unger (Shoulder) were listed as limited in practice.---AP NFL websites: http://pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL Fake Shoes Black Friday . The Lightning are 2-0 so far on a four-game road trip, giving the club five straight wins as the guest and improving Tampas away record this season to 11-8-2. Shoes Black Friday Deals 2020 . On Saturday night, the normally free throw-challenged centre did just that. Howard scored 18 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, including 13 of 19 free throws in a 2 1/2-minute stretch, and the Houston Rockets beat the Denver Nuggets 122-111. https://www.cheapshoesblackfriday.com/ . Artturi Lehkonen, Joni Nikko and Ville Leskinen had the other goals for Finland (1-0) while Juuse Saros stopped 28 shots. Tim Robin Johnsgard had the lone goal for Norway (0-2). Wholesale Shoes Black Friday . Peter Gammons, an analyst for Major League Baseballs network and website, drew the ire of hockey fans on Sunday when he criticized the two NHL teams on Twitter for their physical game the night before. Buy Shoes Black Friday . The 19-year-old Olsen played 34 games with the Kelowna Rockets of the WHL this season. In that time, hes recorded 17 goals and 17 assists with 36 penalty minutes. NEW YORK -- Doesnt matter to Caroline Wozniacki that shes ranked 74th. Or that she didnt win a Grand Slam match all year until she got to the U.S. Open. She was sure she was capable of another deep run at a major -- and she was right.Wozniacki reached her fifth U.S. Open semifinal -- and her first semifinal at any Grand Slam tournament in two years -- by beating an injured Anastasija Sevastova of Latvia 6-0, 6-2 on Tuesday night.I always believe in myself, no matter what my ranking, said Wozniacki, who used to be No. 1. Ive beaten pretty much everyone in the draw before.The 48th-ranked Sevastova twisted her right ankle on the opening point of the second game and clearly was hampered by that. During the changeover after the third game, a trainer examined and taped up the ankle during a medical timeout.Ive rolled my ankle several times, and even this year, I was out for three months with a sprained ankle. So I feel real sorry for her, Wozniacki said of Sevastova in an on-court interview in Arthur Ashe Stadium. It happened early in the match, and then I kept kind of just pushing her back and tried to make her move.Wozniacki, twice the runner-up at Flushing Meadows, will meet No. 2 Angelique Kerber in Thursdays semifinals.Kerber, making a push to move up from No. 2 in the rankings, and to earn a second Grand Slam title of 2016, rallied to win the last nine games in a 7-5, 6-0 victory over Roberta Vinci, last years runner-up here.I know that I can beat everybody, Kerber said, and this is what gives me also a lot of confidence and motivation.Its been quite a resurgence for Wozniacki, who lost in the first round of the Australian Open, missed the French Open with that bum ankle and was beaten during the first round of Wimbledon.But after dropping the opening set of her first-round match against Taylor Townsend at the U.S. Open, Wozniacki has won 10 sets in a row. She eliminated 2004 champion Svetlana Kuznetsova in the second round and No. 8 Madison Keys in the fourth.Wozniackis last trip to the semifinals of a major came in 2014, when she lost the U.S. Open final to her good friend?Serena Williams. Wozniacki also was a finalist in New York in 2009, losing to Kim Clijsters. Wozniacki exited in the semifinals in 2010 and 2011.This was a tough way for Sevastovas U.S. Open to end. She hadnt ceded a set until Tuesday, beating No. 3 Garbine Muguruza, the French Open champion, and No. 13 Johanna Konta on the way to her first Grand Slam quarterfinal.Before this tournament, Sevastovas best Grand Slam run was reaching the fourth round at the 2011 Australian Open, where she lost to -- it just so happens -- Wozniacki in their only previous meeting.After a series of injuries, including to her back, Sevastova found tennis depressing, and she left the sport in 2013. After more than a year away, during which she studied accounting and marketing in Austria, Sevastova decided to give the sport another go.Against Wozniacki, she never really had a chance to play her best. After all of 24 minutes, it was 5-0, and half of Wozniackis 22 points came vvia unforced errors by Sevastova.dddddddddddd.That trend would continue, and Sevastova was visited repeatedly by the trainer. As they spoke during one changeover, Sevastova appeared on the verge of tears as she pointed to her troublesome foot.Kerber has a chance to overtake Serena Williams at No. 1 after the tournament. Kerber moved into her third major semifinal of the year.Kerber beat Williams in the Australian Open final in January, then she lost to Williams in the Wimbledon final in July.In tough moments, Vinci said about Kerber, the mind is important.In 2015, Vinci reached her first major final by stunning Williams to end the Americans bid for the first calendar-year Grand Slam in tennis in more than a quarter century.But after being two points from taking the first set against Kerber while serving for it at 5-4, 30-all, the No. 7-seeded Vinci faltered badly. She missed a forehand long, then netted a backhand to get broken there -- and that was just the beginning of her collapse.Trailing 6-5 and serving at love-40, Vinci missed her first serve, then was called for a foot fault on a second serve. That resulted in a double fault, ceding the set.As she walked to the sideline, Vinci looked at the line judge who made the call and smiled sarcastically, giving him a thumbs-up and applauding with her racket.If they called it, Vinci said later, I must have done it.Its a rare ruling in Grand Slam tennis, especially at a critical juncture -- although there was, of course, the most famous foot fault of all on the very same court:In the 2009 US Open semifinals, Williams was angered by the same type of call: a foot fault that resulted in a double fault; in that instance, it set up match point for her opponent, Kim Clijsters. Williams brandished her racket and yelled at the line judge, and the point she was docked for that ended the match.This time, the call ended the competitive portion of Vincis quarterfinal: She managed to take only 10 of 38 points the rest of the way.Vinci has been dealing with an injured left Achilles tendon -- she wore black tape in the shape of a V that framed her left calf -- and a bad back. Still, her varied game, filled with slices and drop shots and net rushes, gave Kerber fits for most of the first set.I was playing better than her, said the 33-year-old Vinci, who mentioned at her news conference that she will decide after the season whether to retire.I really dont want to be someone who says, Im retiring, then, after two weeks, No, Im not retiring. Im retiring. Im not. I dont know. Its something Ill need to figure out at the end of the year, Vinci said in Italian, with a laugh. Lets see what Im feeling and if I have a desire to continue. Putting aside my injuries, Im playing good tennis.But Kerber hung in there to reach her first US Open semifinal since 2011.Im staying more positive and believing in my game, Kerber said. I think that right now, I can win matches like that. ' ' '