Dein erstes Forum » rapid ascension to perhaps the best threat to Biles

CINCINNATI -- The defending champions have been eliminated. An AFC North title is now one victory away for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who are on their best regular-season surge in seven years.Chris Boswell tied the club record with six field goals, and Ben Roethlisberger threw a fourth-quarter touchdown pass for a 24-20 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday that left Pittsburgh in control of the division.The Steelers (9-5) can win the title by beating the Ravens (8-6) at Heinz Field next Sunday.A lot of guys are treating this like its the playoffs already, linebacker Ryan Shazier said.The Bengals (5-8-1) can start thinking about the offseason instead of the postseason. They tied their franchise record with 12 victories last season, lost to the Steelers in the first round of the playoffs at Paul Brown Stadium with a last-minute collapse, and never looked like the same team this time around.It is hard because I feel like Ive not found the right buttons to push to get us to where we need to be, said coach Marvin Lewis, who is under contract through 2017. Its my job to figure out why we dont get it to where it needs to be. Weve been short.Boswell had just enough to get his kicks through a gusting wind. He was good from 45, 49, 49, 40, 49 and 30 yards.He needs no endorsement from me, coach Mike Tomlin said. Shoot, I just gave him the game ball.Some takeaways from the Steelers latest win in Cincinnati:KICK-6: Gary Anderson (1988 vs. Denver) and Jeff Reed (2002 vs. Jacksonville) also kicked six field goals for the Steelers, who beat the Broncos 39-21 and the Jaguars 25-23 in those contests.They didnt look pretty, they didnt go over by much, but they went in, Boswell said.The kicker also dived and tripped Alex Erickson on a 72-yard kickoff return, preventing a touchdown.I just dove and hit something and he went down, Boswell said.5 STRAIGHT: The Steelers have won five consecutive regular-season games for the first time since 2009. In addition to a balanced offense and an accurate kicker, theyve gotten steely play out of their defense, which has held each of the last five opponents to 100 yards rushing or less, Pittsburghs best such streak in four years. The Bengals managed only 76 yards on the ground, including 18 in the second half.Its like we felt we wanted it more, Shazier said.TEMPERS, TEMPERS: Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict and cornerback Adam Pacman Jones were flagged on Sunday -- the linebacker for tackling Roethlisberger after he got rid of the ball, the cornerback for taunting. Cincinnati got three personal fouls, including one on tackle Pat Sims that aided Pittsburghs touchdown drive. Pittsburgh got one personal foul.DROUGHT CONTINUES: The Bengals lost in the opening round of the playoffs each of the last five seasons, a playoff record. Their elimination from playoff contention extends their futility. They havent won a postseason game since the 1990 season, the sixth-longest drought in NFL history.Were so used to the past five years of going to the playoffs every year, defensive tackle Domata Peko said. Its the first time we havent in a long time, and it hurts. It really hurts me.INJURIES: Steelers: DE Stephon Tuitt had a facemask penalty against Andy Dalton that extended Cincinnatis opening field goal drive. He also injured his right knee on the drive and didnt return. ... TE Ladarius Green caught a 28-yard pass on the final drive and then went to the locker room to be tested for a concussion. ... Bengals WR A.J. Green was inactive for the fourth straight game with a strained right hamstring. He returned to practice on a limited basis last week and hopes to play in one of the two final games.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFL Custom Luis Gonzalez Jersey . "Were just throwing s--- at the wall hoping something sticks," said Tortorella about the possible line combinations for Fridays game against Columbus. The Canucks have lost five straight games and six of their last seven, leaving them in a logjam in the Pacific Division, currently sitting fifth - good for ninth in the Western Conference. 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Not until she heard from national team coordinator Martha Karolyi, even if the Olympic dream she had been chasing for most of her life was locked down long ago.So the three-time world champion waited for Karolyi to call her name late Sunday night at the end of an emotionally draining Olympic Gymnastics Trials.It didnt matter that Biles spot was already secure after capturing the all-around, extending a long streak that shows no signs of abating. Biles needed to hear Karolyi say the words.Its very unreal, Biles said. Im sure it will hit me.The 19-year-old pegged as the next It Girl when the Rio Games begin next month has about three weeks to deal. It shouldnt be a problem. Modesty aside, she has been preparing for this moment since she turned her first back handspring.Besides, after what she and the rest of the five-woman team endured over the weekend, what awaits in Rio doesnt seem so tough.A lot of athletes say the Olympic trials is the hardest part and once you get to the Olympics its autopilot, Biles said. You turn on a switch and you go.Thats something Karolyi is counting on. She relied on equal parts experience and potential while putting together a squad expected to come home with copious amounts of hardware.Biles will be joined by defending Olympic champion Gabby Douglas, three-time Olympic medalist Aly Raisman and newcomers Madison Kocian and Laurie Hernandez to form a team that will arrive in Brazil as the gymnastics equivalent of the Dream Team that Michael Jordan led to basketball gold 24 years ago, long before any members of this Team USA were born.Ashton Locklear, Ragan Smith and MyKayla Skinner will be the alternates after getting through what Karolyi called one of the most difficult selection processes of her remarkable career.Karolyi jotted down a list when the process began months ago, the same one she presented Sunday night. While there was temptation to change it -- particularly as Douglas struggled to regain the form that made her a champion in London -- she never did.When you really put everything, you put down what lineup you have for the team and what will be [in the finals], we still felt, all of us on the selection committee, that this is the best combination, Karolyi said.A combination that includes Douglas, who hopped off the beam during both rounds at trials and has openly talked about her sagging confidence. The 20-year-old adjusted her coaching staff between last months national championships and the trials, a move Karolyi said caused confusion in Douglas training.There will be no confusion when Douglas arrives to work out with the national team in Texas later this week. Karolyi will be in charge, and she will expect Douglas to respond as she did last fall, when she shook off sluggish preparations to ccapture silver at the 2015 world championships behind Biles.ddddddddddddIf we put Gabby in regimented training with daily planning and daily assignments and training plans, shell see improvement just like we did last year, Karolyi said. Thats why she made the team even with the mistakes she had in the competition.Ultimately it was the event that helped Douglas first catch Karolyis eye years ago -- the uneven bars -- that made her the first Olympic champion to return for the next Games since Romanias Nadia Comaneci in 1980. Douglas was seventh in the all-around, but her two-day total of 30.350 on bars was third-best at the trials behind Kocian and Locklear and her ability on other events gives Karolyi flexibility.Its heady territory to be sure, though it didnt always feel like it for Douglas. She took a moment to compose herself at the end of a nomadic quadrennium that saw her become a star and bounce across the country from Iowa to Los Angeles, back to Iowa and then Ohio in search of a gym.It was close, definitely, and thats always going to be in the back of my mind, Douglas said. I feel like thats really going to motivate me to push in the gym and really work hard, and no matter what Im not giving up.The Americans havent lost a major international competition in six years, the gap between themselves and the rest of the world hardening along the way. Anything less than sending Karolyi into retirement with gold would be a Miracle On Ice-level upset.The only real drama heading into the final night of trials centered on who would join Biles. The precocious 16-year-old Hernandez, who admits shes too naive to know any better, continued her rapid ascension to perhaps the best threat to Biles long run at the top. Her best event is the balance beam, a 45-second test of nerves that she treats like a workout on the beach. Her score of 15.7 is gold-medal worthy if she can repeat it in Rio.Raismans spot ended a remarkable resurgence in recent months. She had a forgettable performance at the world championships last fall -- failing to make an individual event final -- and seemed to be in the middle of the pack as recently as March.Not anymore. The 22-year-old -- nicknamed Grandma as the oldest member of the team -- stormed her way through two run-up events to trials and kept it going Sunday night.Kocian, a world champion on uneven bars, rode the strength of a 15.9 on Sunday night to give herself just enough breathing room over Locklear.There were tears in the aftermath as the team celebrated in a sea of confetti. They did their best to enjoy the moment, but they are aware the real test awaits.I think we can all get better, Biles said. I know I can get better. Im saving it for Rio. ' ' '