Clanpartner » ext years draft to make it happen and not worry about payi

ALAMEDA, Calif. -- Free agent running back Maurice Jones-Drew is coming back home to Oakland after signing a three-year contract with the Raiders on Friday. Jones-Drew returns to his native Bay Area after spending his first eight seasons with Jacksonville and starring in college at UCLA. Jones-Drew joins quarterback Matt Schaub, defensive linemen Justin Tuck and LaMarr Woodley and receiver James Jones as successful veterans brought in by general manager Reggie McKenzie this off-season who are looking for a late career spark in Oakland. "Theres a ton of talent here," Jones-Drew said. "Reggie McKenzie and his staff have done a great job of piling on guys that are coming from programs that are winning and know what it takes. Granted, most of us have chips on our shoulders, at least I feel like I got (done) wrong. ... Its something thats going to drive us and push us to that next level." The Raiders also signed two defensive linemen, bringing back Pat Sims to a one-year deal and signing former Green Bay Packer C.J. Wilson. Sims played well in his first season in Oakland with two sacks and 41 tackles while starting all 16 games. He met with other teams before staying in Oakland, according to his agent Rick Smith. Wilson spent the past four seasons with Green Bay, recording 103 tackles and 3 1/2 sacks in 50 games with 11 starts. Jones-Drew had 8,071 yards rushing and 68 touchdowns for Jacksonville but was hampered by injuries the past two seasons. That led the Jaguars to let him test the market in free agency after his five-year, $31 million contract expired. The Jaguars thanked Jones-Drew for his work on the field and in the community. "Maurices toughness, determination and competitive spirit on the field served as a great example to all of his teammates," the team said in a statement. "Maurice has been one of the great Jaguars and he holds several team records for touchdowns that will remain for a long time. His place in Jaguars history is firmly established and we look forward to honouring him in Jacksonville at the appropriate time in the future." After more than two weeks on the open market, Jones-Drew finally found a new home in a familiar place. Jones-Drew grew up in the East Bay town of Antioch and starred at nearby De La Salle high school. Jones-Drew still spent his offseasons in the Bay Area and looked forward to being able to keep his family in one place and that his grandmother will now be able to see him play in person more often. Jones-Drew has gotten hurt the past two seasons when playing the Raiders in Oakland. He missed the final 10 games in 2012 after injuring his left foot at the Coliseum. He strained a tendon in the same foot when playing the Raiders this past season. After ranking second in the NFL with 4,321 yards rushing in a three-year span from 2009-11, Jones-Drew has been limited to 1,217 yards in 21 games the past two seasons. He averaged a career-low 3.4 yards per carry last season. That has led critics to argue that Jones-Drew has lost a step at age 29 and is on the downside of his career. The Raiders are hoping good health will help Jones-Drew return to the elite form he had before the injuries. "I have a ton left in my game," Jones-Drew said. "People tend to look at running backs and say, Oh, youre 29, you dont have anything left. ... I feel like I have a ton left in the tank and I get an opportunity to show that here in Oakland." The Raiders needed help at running back after allowing Jones-Drews former backup in Jacksonville, Rashad Jennings, leave through free agency to sign with the New York Giants. Oakland did bring back injury-prone starter Darren McFadden on a one-year deal but has no other proven tailbacks on the roster. The Raiders are hoping last years sixth-round pick, Latavius Murray, can contribute after spending his entire rookie year on injured reserve. McFadden has missed 29 games over his six-year career with injuries and has averaged 3.3 yards per carry the past two seasons. Jones-Drew said he was told there will be an open competition at running back between him and McFadden. "He kind of has a leg up on me because hes been in this offence already before," Jones-Drew said. "My job is to come in and to compete to play. We both have something to prove and that will help us all out in the long run, competing and being able to push each other." The Raiders also re-signed defensive tackle Pat Sims for one year according to the players agent, and signed former Green Bay Packers defensive lineman C.J. Wilson on Friday. AP Sports Writer Mark Long in Jacksonville, Fla., contributed to this report Marc-Andre ter Stegen Jersey .com) - One point guard will return, while another will sit when the Minnesota Timberwolves visit American Airlines Center to take on the Dallas Mavericks. Sebastian Rudy Germany Jersey . Harrison Barnes had 15 points and Reggie Bullock scored 11 for the Tar Heels (17-3, 4-1 ACC), who took the court for the first time without starter Dexter Strickland. The junior guard tore his right ACL last Thursday at Virginia Tech and will miss the rest of the season. http://www.germanysoccerpro.com/Timo-Werner-Germany-Jersey/ . A lovely summer day in England with abundant sunshine and minimal wind allowed him to attack Royal Liverpool. Marco Reus Germany Jersey . Goldeyes third baseman Ryan Pineda drove in three runs and the pitching staff didnt allow an earned run, as Winnipeg downed Kansas City 6-3 in American Association exhibition action at CommunityAmerica Ballpark in Kansas. Julian Brandt Germany Jersey .ca. Hi Kerry, Love reading your column and loved watching your analysis on the TSN broadcasts!And were now in Round 2! Bruins! Canadiens! We know all about the great games of the past from the players, the broadcasters and the writers.Sam Gagner had heard his name in trade talk for quite some time, but even he couldnt have expected this. Gagner was traded twice Sunday, first from the Edmonton Oilers to Tampa Bay and then from the Lightning to the Arizona Coyotes. Edmonton got Teddy Purcell, the Lightning got a sixth-round pick and salary-cap space and the 24-year-old centre got to experience a "roller-coaster of emotions." "I was talking to my agent, and he had said when Tampa traded for me that there might be something else going on," Gagner said. "So it was something I was prepared for. I wasnt really expecting to be traded (again) today. But its one of those things that happens in sports, and I guess youve got to be ready for it at all times." Trading Gagner, who has two years left on his contract at a cap hit of $4.8 million, now was important to Edmonton because his no-trade clause was set to kick in July 1. Coyotes general manager Don Maloney said he got a call from Oilers counterpart Craig MacTavish early Sunday, but by the time he called back to discuss Gagner there was already a verbal agreement with Steve Yzerman on a trade to Tampa Bay. By sending Purcell, a 28-year-old winger, to the Oilers, the Lightning shed themselves of his $4.5 million cap hit over the next two seasons. The St. Johns, N.L., native has 228 points in 401 regular-season games and 18 in 22 playoff games. The Lightning were prepared to buy out Gagners contract, but that plan was put on hold when Maloney expressed interest in the London, Ont., native whom the Coyotes coveted for some time but saw his salary as a bit too rich for their blood. Still, they wanted to get something done. "(The Lightning) were trying to free up some cap space to do some other things, which obviously they did when they traded Teddy Purcell," Maloney said on a conference call late Sunday night. "Basically we hung up the phone, I said (to Yzerman), Im going to have a beer, you go have a glass of wine and if you can come up with an idea, call me back." Maloney and his staff came up with the idea of putting gritty winger B.J. Crombeen and his $1.15-million cap hit in the trade, and it got done once Tampa Bay agreed to retain one-third of Gagners salary and cap hit, which would have been the price had he been bought out. The Coyotes could have waited for Tuesdays start of the free-agent signing period to take a run at Gagner, but that wasnt a risk Maloney was willing to take. "That concerned me," he said. "As were looking and exploring how we help our centre ice and whats happening right now, it scared me to death." So the Coyotes paid a small price in the form of a sixth-rounder in next years draft to make it happen and not worry about paying a free-agent premium or losing Gagner to another team. "It came together in a hurry," Maloney said. "I think theres three of us that feel pretty good about our day so far." None of the three general managers involved in Gagners moves Sunday are finished. MacTavish shipping Gagner out of Edmonton, though, was no small step forward in his retooling effort. Gagner, the sixth overall pick in 2007, seemed to be just outside the Oilers core, which includes Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkiins and Jordan Eberle.dddddddddddd. He has 295 points in 481 games, all with the Oilers, including 10 goals and 27 assists last season. That kind of production isnt something Gagner is proud of and is hoping for a bounce-back season. The setting for that will now be the Arizona desert. Edmonton moving on from Gagner wasnt terribly surprising to him, given the franchises playoff drought that pre-dates his entering the league. "You have to expect things to happen when the team hasnt done well," Gagner said on a conference call. "Theres going to be change when things dont go well. I expected that at some point I might be part of it." Drafting big German centre Leon Draisaitl third overall Friday night might have been enough to convince MacTavish it was time to move Gagner. "I think (Draisaitl) helps us fill a need, gives us an opportunity to have a strong centreman with some size that can play ahead of or behind the Nuge, whatever way it works, and well give him that opportunity," director of amateur scouting Stu MacGregor said Saturday in Philadelphia. In Arizona, Gagner will get the opportunity to replace Mike Ribeiro, who was bought out of the final four seasons of his contract for what Maloney called "behavioural issues." Gagner should get power-play time and a chance to provide the hard-working, well-coached Coyotes with an offensive spark. "We got him for his offensive instincts and creativity," Maloney said. "Players can learn to play better defence. Its very difficult to learn to be more intelligent and more creative." At 24, Gagner could still have room to grow. Maloney hopes he can become more than just a 40-to-50-point player along the way. Thats what Gagner was with the Oilers, who did not make the playoffs in any of his seven NHL seasons. He would have liked things to work out in Edmonton but understood something had to give when they didnt. "We didnt have much success as a team and theres going to be a lot of changes that comes from that," he said. "It doesnt work out everywhere all the time." It wasnt going to work out in Tampa, where the Lightning were manoeuvring for free agency with a series of moves Sunday. In addition to sending Purcell to Edmonton and Gagner and Crombeen to Arizona, they traded forward Nate Thompson and his $1.6-million cap hit to the Anaheim Ducks for fourth- and seventh-round picks in next years draft. All told and including retaining a portion of Gagners salary, Tampa Bay cleared $5.65 million in cap space. Its believed that Yzerman is looking for a right-handed-shooting defenceman and could also be targeting a winger to play alongside Steven Stamkos. That will have to wait until Tuesday when teams are able to sign free agents. By the time Sunday was over, three teams got to be satisfied with their respective hauls. "Obviously Edmonton got what they needed, what they wanted and a real talented player in Teddy Purcell," Maloney said. "Tampa received what they needed to free up a lot of cap space, they get a draft asset and we got what we wanted, and were searching for is a young, skilled centre-iceman in Sam Gagner and really a guy weve coveted for a while in B.J. Crombeen." Authentic Steelers Jerseys Authentic Cowboys Jerseys Authentic Raiders Jerseys Authentic Chiefs Jerseys Authentic Eagles Jerseys Authentic Redskins Jerseys Authentic Falcons Jerseys Authentic Ravens Jerseys Authentic Browns Jerseys Authentic Cardinals Jerseys Authentic Bills Jerseys Authentic Panthers Jerseys Authentic Bears Jerseys Authentic Bengals Jerseys Authentic Texans Jerseys Authentic Broncos Jerseys Authentic Lions Jerseys Authentic Packers Jerseys Authentic Jets Jerseys Authentic Dolphins Jerseys Authentic Patriots Jerseys Authentic Jaguars Jerseys Authentic Titans Jerseys Authentic Chargers Jerseys Authentic Giants Jerseys Authentic Saints Jerseys Authentic Buccaneers Jerseys Authentic 49ers Jerseys Authentic Seahawks Jerseys Authentic Rams Jerseys Authentic Vikings Jerseys Authentic Colts Jerseys ' ' '