e had been given a one-year extension last

That old maxim about defences winning championships was being spread on pretty heavily during Super Bowl week. By the Broncos, of all teams. Yes, the very same AFC champions who tore up the league with a record 606 points, 55 touchdowns coming off Peyton Mannings arm, have been touting how strong their defence has become. Measure it against Seattles unit, which allowed a very miserly 231 points and ranked first against the pass and in overall D, and the Broncos would seem to be whistling a hollow tune. But linebacker Danny Trevathan, a breakout player in his second NFL season, sees plenty of greatness in his defence, too. "Oh yeah. You are supposed to have that attitude," Trevathan said. "On defence youre not supposed to let guys push you over. You are supposed to be the aggressor on defence and you are supposed to have that attitude. I think that is what makes playing defence so passionate to me. "I think this game was meant for tough guys. You cant be soft out here." No one is soft on either of these teams, of course. On the contrary, its only the second time in 20 years that the top seed in each conference got this far. Its also that classic matchup that so excites fans, media and, yes, players. The Seahawks cant wait for the chance to test themselves against Manning, seeking his second ring in an almost-certain Hall of Fame career. "Its going to be a great challenge," middle linebacker Bobby Wagner said. "Theyre talented all across the board. They protect Peyton well and they run the ball well. Hes definitely passed the ball well. Its up to us to do our jobs and make sure that we come ready to play." Expect both sides to be very ready. Denver (15-3, No. 2 in the AP Pro32) is a 2 1-2-point favourite over Seattle (also 15-3, but top-ranked in the AP Pro32). The main reason for that spread: In the points-crazed NFL, fans who bet early dive headfirst into the offence. With their wallets open. Plus, the biggest star in this game, and pretty much any time he is in uniform, is Manning. That draws more support for the Broncos. But not here. Pro Picks sees the Seahawks quick, relentless and heady defence putting more pressure on Manning than he has seen all season. Yes, hes been sacked only 20 times, and he might not go down a whole bunch in the Jersey Meadowlands on Sunday. But he will be forced to throw before he wants to or before his four outstanding receivers -- Demaryius Thomas, Wes Welker, Eric Decker and tight end Julius Thomas -- shake free from the tight coverage of the NFLs best secondary led by All-Pros Richard Sherman and Earl Thomas. Seattle also brings the heat with the deepest rotation of linemen in the league, and some savvy, versatile linebackers. The Seahawks dont take their foot off the gas, either. For the Broncos to prosper, theyll need a huge contribution from Knowshon Moreno and the running game. It could happen, particularly if the Seahawks are overly protective of not letting Manning get on track. But hardly anyone dominates on the ground against Seattle. For those who believe the Seahawks will need to light up the scoreboard to beat the Broncos, we think a couple of touchdowns and a few field goals will do the job. Silent man Marshawn Lynch running the ball in Beast Mode, and some improvisation from quarterback Russell Wilson -- along with the best defence since the 2000 Ravens -- will be enough. Philippe Coutinho Barcelona Jersey . Off-Season Game Plan looks at what the Blue Jackets may do to build upon last seasons success to return to the playoffs again next year. Barcelona Jerseys . The 12th-ranked Haas served well throughout the match at the Ibirapuera arena, allowing only one break point to the 152nd-ranked Italian. Both players held serve until the first-set tiebreak, when Haas stepped up his game to easily clinch the set. http://www.barcelonateampro.com/lucas-di...rcelona-jersey/. -- Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh says he isnt going to change what he does on the field. Lucas Digne Barcelona Jersey . The weekend at Oriole Park has been less kind, with three players suffering varying degrees of injury. The worst ailment of the three, at least optically, is the deep bone bruise suffered by Adam Lind when he fouled a pitch off the top of his right foot in the sixth inning of Saturdays game. Samuel Umtiti Barcelona Jersey . He insists hes not counting. "If youre thinking hits, youre not paying attention to wins," Altuve said Sunday after leading the Houston Astros past the Texas Rangers 3-2.WINNIPEG -- Claude Noel was fired as head coach of the Winnipeg Jets on Sunday morning, but general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff revealed the axe began swinging on Tuesday night. Cheveldayoff told reporters at a press conference Sunday afternoon that he first contacted newly hired Jets head coach Paul Maurice on Tuesday after the team played poorly again, mustering only 14 shots in a 4-2 loss to the Lightning. "I ended up reaching out to Paul after the Tampa game, just to see if I was going to go in a direction like that if he had an interesta" said Cheveldayoff, who also dismissed assistant Perry Pearn. "At that point in time, it still wasnt something that I was ready to do, but (Saturday) night I went to ownership and talked to them about making the change." The Jets lost to the Columbus Blue Jackets 6-3 on Saturday, giving up four goals in the first nine minutes of the second period. Fans booed the team off the ice. "Its not just the last two games, it is the consistency factor," Cheveldayoff said, adding the team kept taking a step forward and then two steps back to stay around .500. The club is 19-23-5 and 10 points back of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The loss also put the Jets on a season-worst five-game losing streak, matching the longest regulation-game losing skid since the team moved to Winnipeg from Atlanta prior to the 2011-2012 season. After getting the go-ahead from Jets owner Mark Chipman to fire Noel, Cheveldayoff said he called Maurice again and they reached a verbal agreement on a contract until the end of this season. "We dont have anything on paper, we have a handshake over the phone," Cheveldayoff said. "Hes flying in here (Sunday) night and going in that fashion. Again, hes very passionate about getting here. When we talked about what he would need, basically it was like, What time is the flight?" Born in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., Maurice had been working as a TV analyst for TSN & NHL Network after spending the 2012-13 season as head coach of Magnitogorsk Metallurg of the Kontinental Hockey League. The club earned a 27-13-12 record and missed the playoffs. Maurice inherits a Jets team that has struggled in its third season in Winnipeg, thanks in part to inconsistent goaltending and defensive breakdowns. The 46-year-old has been behind the bench for 1,084 games as an NHL head coach. His first game leading the Jets will be Monday at MTS Centre against the Phoenix Coyotes. This will be the third franchise he has coached, after the Hartford Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes and the Toronto Maple Leafs. He got the Hurricanes to the 2002 Stanley Cup final and made five total playoff appearances with Carolina. "Hiring Paul Maurice is something that we feel very good about as far as the opportunity that we have to hire an experienced National Hockey League coach to come in here and begin putting his stamp on the team, and also on the evaluation process that were all going to be going through," said Cheveldayoff, who was given a contract extension last September through the 2017-18 season. Hes never worked with Maurice, but the hockey world is small and his background checks produced good references. "There was one common theme; (hes) extremely professional, extremely prepared, extremely knowledgeable about the game and a guy that is very direct in one-on-one with his people and his players," Cheveldayoff said. Cheveldayoff, who called Noel a "special" and "caring" person, said he met with him and Pearn Sunday morning at MTS Centre to tell them theyd been let go. The GM says Noel was "very respectful" and theyll meet again in the coming days. Hired after the Atlanta Thrashers moved to WWinnipeg before the 2011-12 season, Noel went 80-79-18 during his tenure with the Jets.dddddddddddd He had been given a one-year extension last June through the 2014-15 season. The team was scheduled to practice late Sunday morning at another local rink, but it was cancelled when Cheveldayoff drove there after the dismissals to give players the news. Captain Andrew Ladd and his teammates shouldered the blame for the coaching changes. "I think it always comes as a shock," Ladd said after the team meeting. "I dont think anyone expected it this morning so its not an easy day. Two good people lose their jobs. Ultimately, it came down to the performance of all the guys in here. Its tough for everyone." Forward Olli Jokinen, a veteran in his 16th NHL season, agreed the players should feel responsible Noel and Pearn had to pay the price for the teams shortcomings. "All of us should be embarrassed that were at the point we have to change the coach," he said. Maurices familiarity with a hockey-crazy market such as Toronto should bode well in Winnipeg, where players are heavily scrutinized by the media and criticized by fans who pack the sold-out MTS Centre. "This is a tough market to play," Jokinen said. "Any Canadian market you play, you know expectations are high. Youve got a lot of media attention, youve got 15,000 GMs watching the games and another couple hundred thousand at home. "So its a place, or any Canadian market, that you as a player you have to put all that aside and focus on doing your job the best you can. Thats all that you can do." He sensed, though, that players were getting easily frustrated and playing "a little bit scared, afraid of making the mistakes." Chevelydayoff, who said his own job "is still a work in progress," admitted he also bears some responsibility for the players he gave Noel to work with. "Ive sat back over the course of 24 hours or whatever and sit there and say, Can I do something else? What else can I do?" he said. "But what I have to be cognizant of is that I dont do something that pushes the franchise backwards from an asset standpoint. Again, this is not without responsibility on my side here, too." The players acknowledged theyll be auditioning for their jobs, although none have played for Maurice. Defenceman Dustin Byfuglien, who moved to right wing for the game against the Blue Jackets, denied Noels message was getting old, but said a new guy in charge might help the team. "I think so," Byfuglien said. "Just someone coming in and no one really knowing him, it could be good for us. "Just getting a new face, a different guy with different attitudes, see how it goes." Retired former Hurricanes goaltender Kevin Weekes, now an analyst on Hockey Night in Canada, gave a glowing endorsement for Maurice to a Canadian Press reporter. "In my entire career, he was the best coach that I played for, both technically, his ability to relate to players, how he treated people, his preparation, you name it." Weekes said. "He was the best coach I played for in the National Hockey League. I played for some good ones, Ive been around a lot of really good people, but hands-down hes the best coach I played for." Cheveldayoff couldnt say whether other changes are on the horizon for the Jets, but he thinks hiring Maurice is a step in the right direction. "We believe that we are underachieving," Cheveldayoff said. "Now its up to the players in some respects to show what theyre all about. "But at the end of the day, we have to take a hard, long look at what other steps there are maybe to move forward." 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