r an entire month -- which included trips to Gothenburg, Sweden; Helsin

Heres a look at Thursdays NFL preseason games (all times EDT):EYES ON KAPSan Francisco at San Diego, 10 p.m.All eyes will be on Colin Kaepernick, who has vowed to continue his protest and sit during the national anthem. He gets his final shot to earn back San Franciscos starting quarterback job. Kaepernick looked rusty last week in his first game action since November.San Diegos first-round draftee, DE Joey Bosa, finally signed, but is expected to sit out.Bosa missed 31 days and three preseason games during the nasty contract spat.NO GURLEY MANLos Angeles at Minnesota, 8 p.m.Although running back Todd Gurley wont be allowed near the field, coach Jeff Fisher still intends to evaluate several competitions for roster spots, particularly along the offensive line and in the secondary.Vikings quarterback Shaun Hill, a 15-year veteran who will take over following the season-ending knee injury to Teddy Bridgewater, probably wont play against his former team.NO SIEMIAN OR SANCHEZDenver at Arizona, 9:30 p.m.Newly elevated starting QB Trevor Siemian isnt going to play. Rookie Paxton Lynch, who acknowledges hes had trouble digesting large chunks of the playbook, is scheduled to play the entire game with Mark Sanchez available in a pinch.Matt Barkley is expected to play the entire game because coach Bruce Arians has no other option if he plans to sit QBs Carson Palmer and Drew Stanton. All-Pro S Tyrann Mathieu (knee surgery) and WR John Brown (concussion) are cleared to play but probably wont.HOLE IN THE MIDDLESeattle at Oakland, 10 p.m.The Raiders have few remaining questions this preseason although coach Jack Del Rio said he would like to get another look at rookie middle linebacker Cory James before deciding whether James or second-year player Ben Heeney will start the season.Expect to see Seahawks No. 1 RB Thomas Rawls for a few plays. It would be Rawls first game action since breaking his ankle last December against Baltimore.INJURY PLAGUEDIndianapolis at Cincinnati, 7:30 p.m.The Colts are trying to avoid getting anyone else hurt. Four offensive linemen are out: Joe Reitz, Hugh Thornton, Joe Haeg and Jack Mewhort.One of the most competitive spots for the Bengals is punt returner. Alex Erickson, an undrafted rookie who started his career at Wisconsin as a walk-on, has an 80-yard touchdown return. Second-round pick Tyler Boyd also had a pair of returns, including a 24-yarder.BRADY? NOT LIKELYNew England at New York Giants, 7 p.m.Tom Bradys final opportunity to play before his four-game Deflategate suspension kicks in, and he said he would like to be on the field. Not likely.The Giants brought back veteran tackle Will Beatty, but he has not practiced and isnt likely to play.JACKING IT UPJacksonville at Atlanta, 7 p.m.Jaguars second-round draft pick Myles Jack moved from middle to outside linebacker this week and will play extensively against Atlanta. Jacksonville also expects to get a lengthy look at QB Brandon Allen and rookie DT Sheldon Day, who missed the first three preseason games (back injury).Matt Ryan will play against Jacksonville after throwing an interception and completing only 12 of 22 passes last week. Kicker Matt Bryant returns after missing two games with tightness in his leg.CAN WE WIN ONE?Baltimore at New Orleans, 8 p.m.Saints coach Sean Payton has said its important to win preseason games to cultivate a competitive edge. His team has lost all three so far -- and looked anemic doing so. So Payton said starters will play through the first quarter.Theres a chance TE Dennis Pitta and WR Breshad Perriman will see action for the first time this preseason. Pitta is trying to rebound from missing 2015 (hip injury); Perriman, the teams top draft pick in 2015, has yet to play in a game because of injuries.ONE SERIES, GUYSTennessee at Miami, 7 p.m.Mike Mularkey plans to play his Titans starters for one series, regardless if that series is a three-and-out or lasts double-digit plays. He should get his first real look at his starting cornerbacks with the return of Perrish Cox (ankle). The other starter, Jason McCourty, missed every game after Mularkey took over as interim head coach last season.Miami first-round draft pick Laremy Tunsil will play left guard. Rookie receivers Leonte Carroo and Jakeem Grant and rookie running back Kenyan Drake are expected to see significant action.WITHOUT WENTZNew York Jets at Philadelphia, 7 p.m.Carson Wentz (ribs) isnt ready to return, so the No. 2 overall pick will miss his third straight game. Linebacker Mychal Kendricks is the only starter expected to see action -- he hasnt played much this preseason -- and veteran linebacker Stephen Tulloch, signed last week, also is supposed to play.Both second-year QB Bryce Petty and rookie Christian Hackenberg will play. New York has not yet determined if both Petty, a fourth-rounder last year, and Hackenberg, a second-rounder this year, will each play a half.BURNS DEBUTPittsburgh at Carolina, 7:30 p.m.Pittsburgh first-round pick Artie Burns will finally make his debut. The cornerback has been hampered by a quadriceps injury.The Steelers will get a full dose of Joe Webb at quarterback with Cam Newton resting and backup Derek Anderson still sore from the beating he took from New England last Friday night.GETTING TIGHTBuffalo at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.The Lions will start the season without veteran TEs Brandon Pettigrew and Tim Wright, and possibly another, Eric Ebron, because of injuries. That opens opportunities for undrafted rookies Cole Wick and Adam Fuehne.Competition for Buffalos final few receiver spots is down to Walt Powell, Greg Salas, Jarrett Boykin and Dezmin Lewis after Greg Little was cut.STRUGGLING BROWNSChicago at Cleveland, 8 p.m.Browns coach Hue Jackson will play his starters. Cleveland has issues on both sides of the ball, but particularly on defense. The Browns gave up 259 yards passing in the first half last week as communication breakdowns in the secondary resulted in easy throws for Jameis Winston.The Bears still must decide on backups to WRs Alshon Jeffery and Kevin White. Veterans Eddie Royal and Marc Mariani are in the mix along with Josh Bellamy, Cameron Meredith and Daniel Braverman.NO DAK ATTACKHouston at Dallas, 8 p.m.After Tony Romos back injury last week, the Cowboys will take no chances with his replacement, rookie Dak Prescott. Jameill Showers likely will get the whole game.Houston coach Bill OBrien says Tom Savage will be QB Brock Osweilers backup and start Thursdays game. But hell also play third-stringer Brandon Weeden, a former Cowboy.BACKUP BATTLESGreen Bay at Kansas City, 8 p.m.Get out your roster sheets. Green Bay is not expected to play any starters, or even backup QB Brett Hundley, hobbled by an ankle injury. Kansas City will start third-string quarterback Tyler Bray.The Packers will be debuting a new punter, Jacob Schum, claimed off waivers from the Buccaneers. Veteran Tim Masthay was released.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFLAir Max 720 Weiß . Batiste, who briefly signed with the Eskimos in 2006, has spent time with several NFL teams including the Pittsburgh Steelers and Washington Redskins. Air Max 97 Kaufen Schweiz . After dropping their final six games of December, the Wild opened the new calendar year with four consecutive wins. Following a loss to Colorado on Saturday, Minnesota rebounded the following night to blank Nashville 4-0, but then had the tables turned on them Tuesday. http://www.schuheairmaxschweiz.com/air-max-270-outlet-schweiz.html . The phone hearing is scheduled for 4:30pm et/1:30pm pt. Winchester, who was not penalized for the hit, appeared to make contact with Kellys head early in the first period of Thursdays game in Boston. Air Max 97 Schweiz . Their 38th instalment is arguably their biggest fight card to date, including three-title fights and a main event which was selected by the fans. The promotion boasts 14-straight years of business and is operated by MFC president Mark Pavelich, who is often overlooked in this country for the foundation hes established for MMA in Canada. Günstige Nike Schuhe Schweiz . Brad Jacobs and his Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., team took control of the game early.As the 2016 World Cup winds down, we wondered: Was the eight-team, best-on-best tournament a triumph for the sport? ?Our writers offered their thoughts.Well, first off define success. Did it make money for the National Hockey League and the players who organized the tournament? If its true that every ticket was sold then yes, that part of it was a success. Was the hockey good? Yes. I thought the World Cup featured more, better hockey than we saw at the Sochi Olympics, but nothing that compared to the hockey on display four years earlier in Vancouver at the 2010 Games.If success is measured in part by pure enjoyment of the product, then having Team North America dazzle us for three tournament games qualifies this World Cup as a rousing success. Europe, the other team that was made up just for this tournament, also far exceeded expectations if you want to add that to the success quotient.If success is also measured by sustained interest and buzz, then the tournament fell short. As the best-of-three finals opened between dominating Team Canada and upstart Team Europe, it appeared as though fans were weary as opposed to energized. The bottom line is you dont get to pick who succeeds at these tournaments (even though organizers did their best to pave a way deep into the tournament for Team USA). So the final matchup between Team Europe and Canada has seen the air slowly go out of the event at its pinnacle -- even though Team Europe provided a stern test for Canada in Game 1 of the best-of-three finals. Does that mean the tournament is a failure? Hardly. Its just less of a success than it otherwise might have been.--Scott BurnsideCanada needs competitionWhat qualifies this World Cup as a success or not? The NHL and NHLPA, I think, will make money. So theres that. Staging an entire tournament in one city over two weeks takes a whole lot of manpower, and for that I tip my hat the folks at the NHL Players Association and the NHL who worked tirelessly over the past 18 months to bring this thing together. A lot of them havent had a day off in months.The empty (although were told they were sold) seats for Game 1 of the World Cup finals, not to mention the tepid atmosphere, left a sour taste for me. A clip of Mario Lemieuxs winning goal from the 1987 Canada Cup played on the big screen during the game Tuesday night and you couldnt help but be struck by the juxtaposition of it all, the scenes of those delirious fans going out of their minds at Copps Coliseum almost 30 years ago compared with the lifeless crowd on hand at Air Canada Centre.Im not blaming the fans -- there simply is no rivalry or history between juggernaut Team Canada and the made-up Team Europe. Maybe thats just it. This tournament will be great again once we get a team to rival Canada, which I suspect will be Team USA next time around given the rising young American star talent. The NHL and NHLPA did a nice job of bringing this event back. A rousing success it was not. Ill give it a solid B-plus. -- Pierre LeBrunThe players clearly caredI look at this tournament and I see unrealized potential. I cant help but wonder what a USA-Canada final might have looked like. I also cant help but wonder if Team North America could have beaten Canada.dddddddddddd Maybe not in a series, but man, would I have liked their chances in a one-game, semifinal-knockout opportunity. We would have seen fewer empty seats if one of those scenarios had materialized. What this tournament showed us is that there is real potential for a great World Cup for the ages, even if we didnt get that here. The players clearly cared. You saw it in the effort turned in by Sidney Crosby and his teammates. You saw it when the veterans on Team Europe buckled down and got serious at just the right time. You saw it in the red eyes of the Americans when they were eliminated. Ill leave this tournament thinking about what might have been and what might still yet to be at the next one. --Craig CustanceNorth America-Sweden was worth every pennyIve loved the World Cup. I think, from a hockey standpoint, that it was worth holding the entire tournament just to see that 3-on-3 overtime between Team North America and Sweden. Holy crap, that was amazing. Id be lying, however, if I said the air has felt so electric all the way through. I think thats a function of the artificiality of the event -- unlike those other non-invented sporting events found in nature -- and the fact that the World Cup isnt yet entrenched in the collective hockey mind.Time will improve its stature. I just hoped for more from Toronto. The surprise success of Team Europe changed the dynamic of the finals (and blame the Americans, not Europe, for being absolutely terrible and blowing the chance for a more compelling matchup), but Canada remains one of the great hockey teams ever assembled, even a perfect one. For that team to play in front of empty seats in a hockey capital is inexcusable to me. -- Chris JonesIt was great for the game -- at every levelI will watch hockey anywhere, anytime and at any level. It could be a youth, high school, college, junior, minor league or NHL game and I will pay attention. I love the game. For an entire month -- which included trips to Gothenburg, Sweden; Helsinki, Finland; Washington, D.C.; and Toronto -- Ive been spoiled by the best talent in the world during this tournament.The World Cup of Hockey is a good thing. Sure, it has some wrinkles, but this event needs to have a future no matter whether NHLers participate in the Olympics or not. I picked Sweden to win the World Cup championship and that obviously did not come to fruition. Being an American, I was hoping for a better outcome by Team USA. Team North America was like watching a bunch of kids play on the pond. It was exciting and actually brought me out of my seat once or twice. You have to love how Team Europe literally surprised the world and reached the finals against Team Canada. Speaking of the Canadians, this roster has to be one of the greatest collections of talent -- ever. After you take time to digest the entire process you will realize this tournament was great for the game of hockey at every level and it needs to happen again. -- Joe McDonald ' ' '