SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Aldon Smith wore a big grin beneath his facemask, even when linebackers coach Jim Leavitt good-naturedly let him have it after the ball didnt wind up in his hands during one drill.Aldon! You wont be able to sleep tonight! Leavitt hollered as Aaron Lynch patted his teammate on the helmet.At his best, Smith is one of the NFLs most menacing sack masters who instil fear into opposing quarterbacks.After nine games on the sideline and 14 missed the past two seasons, its unclear how long it might take for the San Francisco star to regain his fearsome top form on one of the leagues stingiest defences.Smith believes he will be back doing his thing in a hurry following a nine-game suspension by the league for violations of the NFLs substance-abuse and personal-conduct policies.You keep hearing your name, youre like Oh, man, obviously Im missed out there, Smith said. It just put that much more in my drive when I was preparing, whether if it was with my working out or whatever I was doing to mentally be prepared to come back. Its just something I put in the back of my head.Smith is set to make his 2014 debut Sunday at the New York Giants in some capacity, though even coach Jim Harbaugh is unsure exactly what the linebacker will bring.Thats a good question. He did participate in training camp 11 weeks ago, Harbaugh said Wednesday. I would refer back to last year, he missed five weeks and was able to come back and play snaps his first week back. So, good question. Well see, take it day by day.The addition of Smith means a lot during a tough week when linebacker Patrick Willis was lost for the season to an injured left toe that will require surgery.Smith has been attending meetings and working out at team headquarters, but wasnt allowed to practice during his suspension.The Giants are preparing for Smith to make plays.We know that he has been in the building and worked in the conditioning area. I would expect hes a player who has been in on all the meetings and conditioned himself very, very well, Giants coach Tom Coughlin said.Im sure that theyre just not going to throw him out there in his first game back, but I would imagine that he would have a fixed amount of plays and he may very well be in there as part of the third-down package.Smith is enjoying all of the little things about being part of a team again — including his high-energy position coach, Leavitt.Geez, you guys look good! Our numbers are growing, Leavitt cheered. Quick feet, Aldon!Quarterback Colin Kaepernick looked forward to seeing No. 99 across the way on the practice field, and in uniform come Sunday.A big lift. Hes a freak of nature on the field, Kaepernick said. Hes a huge component to our defence, so very happy to have him back.The 25-year-old Smith, one of the NFLs top pass rushers, last fall underwent treatment at an inpatient facility following his DUI arrest on Sept. 20, 2013. Last November, he pleaded not guilty to three felony counts of illegal possession of an assault weapon, stemming from a June 2012 party at his home.In the spring, the 49ers picked up his 2015 contract option despite his legal troubles. Smith was arrested April 13 at Los Angeles International Airport. Police said Smith was randomly selected for a secondary screening and became unco-operative with the process, telling a TSA agent that he had a bomb. No charges were filed.Theres the joy of being around the team and training and meeting and you miss the joy of practice, Harbaugh said.Linebacker Michael Wilhoite figures Smith is ready to wreak havoc.Hes been here but hes been quiet. Hes done what he needs to do and goes home, Wilhoite said. When you take nine games away from a guy, thats like taking away your job for nine of the 12 months.Smith has enjoyed doing community service and spending time with family and his young son.For those wondering whether he can stay on the right path now, Smith plans to do his part to earn back the trust of his teammates, coaches and fans.Im not going to sit here and give you some crazy answer, Smith said. Time will show.Notes: LB NaVorro Bowman was scheduled for an MRI on his surgically repaired left knee to better determine whether he will soon return to practice and perhaps play down the stretch this season.___AP freelance writer Rick Eymer contributed to this report.___AP NFL websites:
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www.twitter.com/AP_NFL . He even addressed his group of relievers Sunday morning. Dustin McGowan made those worries a nonfactor, at least for a day. McGowan pitched three-hit ball for seven innings, Colby Rasmus hit a grand slam and Melky Cabrera added a two-run homer as the Blue Jays beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-2. . -- Each time the Utah Jazz threatened Memphis lead, the Grizzlies responded with defensive stops.
http://www.cheapseahawksjerseysonline.c ... sey-online. Brassard and Coyotes defenceman Derek Morris were battling for position in the crease when a nudge from Morris sent Brassard on top of Smith late in the third period. . He made that dream a reality Wednesday night. Olt, who grew up in Branford, Connecticut, attended UConn and made a nearly 2 1-2 hour trek to Boston a handful of times to watch the Red Sox, belted a two-run homer, one of four hit by Cubs in a 16-9 rout that completed a three-game interleague series sweep. .C., won gold in the womens 200-metre backstroke, and Dominique Bouchard of North Bay, Ont. AVONDALE, La. -- As Seung-Yul Noh exhaled and tilted his head back in a skyward gaze on the 18th green, fellow South Korean players Y.E. Yang and Charlie Wi charged toward him, spraying him with bottled beer. Noh smiled, removed his hat, held both arms out and soaked it all in. The 22-year-old overcame windy conditions and the pressure that goes with attempting to secure a maiden PGA Tour triumph, shooting a 1-under 71 on Sunday to win the Zurich Classic by two shots. He also knew he achieved another goal of providing some joy to a nation that has been reeling since a passenger ship capsized April 16, leaving 300 missing or dead. "Hopefully, theyll be happy," said Noh, who wore black and yellow ribbons on his white golf hat to honour victims of the ferry accident. While Noh, the leader through three rounds, never fell out of first, he did make his first three bogeys of the tournament and briefly fell into a tie with Keegan Bradley, the 2011 PGA Championship winner who had the gallery behind him. But Bradley did himself in with a bogey on the fifth hole and a triple bogey on the sixth. "I actually played pretty well," Bradley said. "Just made one bad swing on 6 and had a bunch of lip-outs." Noh remained steady enough-- even with wind gusting up to 30 mph -- to hold off the remaining challengers. "Very challenging today out there, especially playing with Keegan, a major champion, and heavy wind," Noh said. Noh needed a few clutch shots on the back nine, including a chip out of a grassy downhill lie on the edge of a bunker on 13, which hit the flag on a bounce, setting up a routine birdie putt. On 16, with wind in his face, Noh landed his approach 3 feet from the hole to set up his last birdie, then made a 14-foot par putt on 17 to assure a two-shot cushion on the final hole, uncharacteristically pumping his first afterward. "Yeah, that was a clutch putt," Noh said, explaining that it left him "very comfortable" on 18. Noh had made 77 previous PGA Tour starts, never finishing better than tied for fourth at the 2012 AT&T National. He took the third-round lead in New Orleans while becoming the first to play 54 holes at TPC Louisiana without a bogey. The seventh first-time PGA Tour winner in the last 10 years in the New Orleans event, Noh finished at 19-under 269 and earned $1,224,000. He was playing for the first time with caddie Scott Sajjtinac, who seemed awe struck by Nohs combination of talent, wisdom and sense of calm for a player so young.dddddddddddd "Hes going to be good," Sajtinac said. "He was unflappable. You need to be unflappable to win on the PGA Tour." Andrew Svoboda and Robert Streb tied for second. Svoboda had a 69. Streb shot 70, including an eagle on the second hole, and was one shot off the lead after a birdie on 8, but his tee shot was pushed into water by a crosswind on the par-3 ninth hole, and he made double-bogey. Jeff Overton, who briefly pulled within a stroke of Noh on the back nine, had a 70 to finish fourth at 16 under. Bradley wound up with a 75 to tie for eighth at 13 under. On Saturday, Bradley worked his way into the final group, two strokes behind Noh, with a 65. Bradley was within a stroke after the first hole Sunday, which saw Noh hit his drive into mulch right of the fairway en route to his first bogey. Bradley then birdied the par-5 second hole to tie Noh. But just a few holes later, Bradley missed a par putt from less than 2 feet, and followed that up by hitting his drive into the water on No. 6. Then, he three-putted to complete a pivotal two-hole stretch in which he dropped four strokes. While Bradley never recovered from his front-nine falter, Noh still had to ward off a challenge from Overton, who was one stroke back after his 20-foot birdie putt on 10. Overton, however, bogeyed 11 when he hit his drive into a bunker left of the fairway and his second shot over the fairway and right of the cart path. Noh, meanwhile, has the victory he needed to get into The Players Championship next month, and his first Masters next spring. "Dreams come true," Noh said. "When I started at 7 playing golf, I dreamed of always playing (on the) PGA Tour ... or playing any major, especially the Masters." Divots: Robert Garrigus, who narrowly made the cut Friday, had the best score Sunday with a 64. The round included a 374-yard drive with a tail wind on 18, which he birdied to tie for fifth at 14 under, along with two-time heart transplant recipient Erik Compton. Garrigus, who would have earned nothing had he been one stroke worse during the first two rounds, took home $248,200. ... Ben Martin, who shot a course-record 62 in the first round and was 14 under through 22 holes, was 3 over on the last 50 holes. He tied for 15th with David Toms. ' ' '
