SPORTS
Saturday, November 28, 2015
East Oregonian
Page 3B
NFL
Backups running wild for Steelers, Seahawks
Football
Rawls, Williams
making most of
opportunities
Seatle
Pittsburgh
Seahawks
Steelers
(5-5)
(6-4)
Sunday, 1:25 p.m.
at Century Link Field
By TIM BOOTH
AP Sports Writer
SEATTLE — Just as everyone
expected before the season began,
two of the NFL’s most productive
running backs will be on display
when Pittsburgh makes a rare visit
to the Paci¿c Northwest to face
Seattle.
Marshawn Lynch and Le’Veon
Bell, right? Nope. Hopefully
they’re somewhere comfortable
while watching their backups —
the Seahawks’ Thomas Rawls and
the Steelers’ DeAngelo Williams
— on Sunday.
The Steelers will visit Seattle for
the ¿rst time since 200 and both
teams could use a victory to help
their playoff standing. Pittsburgh
(6-4) currently holds one of the two
wild-card spots in the AFC, while
Seattle (5-5) is one game behind
struggling Atlanta for a wild-card
spot.
Bell and Lynch will be specta-
tors due to injury, leaving Williams
and Rawls as the workhorses for
both teams. Bell was lost for the
season on Nov. 1 to a knee injury,
while Lynch underwent abdominal
surgery earlier this week and is out
at least three or four weeks and
possibly longer.
Rawls has rushed for 604 yards
· TV: FOX
while stepping in at various times
with Lynch slowed by injuries.
Rawls ran for 209 yards last
week against San Francisco, the
second-most in Seahawks history.
Williams has run for 54 yards and
scored ¿ve touchdowns, ¿lling in
when Bell was suspended at the
start of the season and taking over
following Bell’s injury.
Rawls is averaging 5.98 yards
per carry, leading all running backs;
Williams is eighth at 4.99 yards per
carry.
“He certainly gives us a chance
to run the ball like we like to and
our hopes are very high that he’s
going to do very well,” Seattle
coach Pete Carroll said of Rawls.
Unlike two weeks ago against
Cleveland, the Steelers will have
Ben Roethlisberger under center
from the start. Roethlisberger got
a week of rest thanks to the bye
to let a foot sprain heal, but he’ll
continue to wear a brace on his left
knee due to an MCL sprain earlier
in the season.
The fact Roethlisberger will
start should give plenty of opportu-
nity for Seahawks fans to continue
expressing their displeasure over
(AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Seattle Seahawks running back Thomas Rawls, right, rushes
against the San Francisco 49ers during the irst half of an NFL
football game, Sunday, Nov. 22, 2015, in Seattle.
the outcome of the Super Bowl 10
years ago.
“Since (the Seahawks) won
their Super Bowl and went back
to back, I think I haven’t heard
nearly as much as I did early on,”
Roethlisberger said.
Here’s what else to watch as the
Seahawks and Steelers meet for
just the 18th time:
TRAILING AROUND: Seattle
cornerback Richard Sherman has
followed the likes of A.J. Green,
Torrey Smith and Dez Bryant this
season.
The Seahawks may not be able
to do that against the Steelers
because Pittsburgh’s passing attack
is more than just Antonio Brown.
Martavis Bryant is coming off the
best game of his career with 178
yards receiving two weeks ago
against Cleveland. Brown is going
to get his catches — he has 27 in
the past two games — but limiting
Bryant and others such as tight end
Heath Miller will be the challenge
for Seattle’s secondary.
“They like to take their shots,
so it’s going to be a fun game,”
Sherman said.
EYES FRONT: The AFC North
race appeared to be over when the
Bengals rallied for a 16-10 win in
Pittsburgh on Nov. 1. Heading into
Thanksgiving, however, Cincinna-
ti’s lead over the Steelers is down
to two games, with a rematch set in
The Jungle on Dec. 1. Just don’t
expect Pittsburgh to get caught
looking ahead.
“We can’t really worry about
what (the Bengals) doing,” defen-
sive end Cam Heyward said. “It’s
a little bit like whatever is going on
over there doesn’t apply to us. We
have to take care of our business to
even have that apply to us.”
TOUCHDOWN
JIMMY:
In his last 11 games against AFC
opponents, Seattle tight end Jimmy
Graham has 12 touchdown catches.
That might just be a statistical quirk,
but Graham may have something to
prove against the Steelers. The last
time Graham faced the Steelers,
he was the most important decoy
on the ¿eld. He had zero catches
against the Steelers last season
while still with New Orleans. It’s
one of three games since 2011
where Graham didn’t have a catch.
BRACING FOR THE 12TH
MAN: The Steelers have played
in Seattle just once since 1994 and
haven’t won in the Northwest since
198. Roethlisberger isn’t exactly
worried about the environment,
even though Pittsburgh is just 5-9
in games played in the Mountain
and Paci¿c time zones over the last
decade.
“Every place we go is hostile,”
Roethlisberger said. “So we’re
going to treat this like it’s a great
football team, which it is, and go in
there to a great environment and try
to play our best.”
NFL
Romo done for year following 2nd collarbone injury
Associated Press
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) —
Tony Romo knew he was risking
another left collarbone injury by
coming back eight weeks after
breaking it.
The Dallas quarterback won’t
have to worry about another return.
He’s out for the season this time.
Cowboys owner and general
manager Jerry Jones said on his
radio show Friday that Romo
would sit out the remaining ¿ve
games with a small fracture in the
same collarbone that had already
sidelined him for seven games.
Romo will not need surgery after
getting hurt in the third quarter of
Thursday’s -14 loss to Carolina.
He didn’t need surgery after
breaking the collarbone in Week 2
at Philadelphia, either.
It’s the third fracture in Romo’s
non-throwing shoulder in his nine-
year career as the Dallas starter. He
missed most of 2010 after getting
hurt against the New York Giants.
“The hard part is playing when
you’re trying not to get hurt,
which is silly,” Romo said after
he threw three interceptions and
Carolina returned two of them
for touchdowns before the injury.
“I’m disappointed in costing our
team a good chance to stay in the
game early. Then on top of it, who
knows how long after that. It’s just
a disappointing day.”
Romo was in his second game
back after the Cowboys (-8) lost
seven straight without him. The
career. He’s had two back surgeries
since 201, and a third back injury
that sidelined him for a game last
year. He also played through
broken ribs and a punctured lung
earlier in his career. He missed two
games in 2008 with a broken ¿nger.
“We wouldn’t let Tony play if
he wasn’t ready to play physically,”
coach Jason Garrett said after the
game. “There is no evidence we
brought him back too soon.”
Eagles stand by
coordinator
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Phil-
adelphia Eagles head coach Chip
Kelly didn’t have any answers,
(AP Photo/Brandon Wade)
except for one.
Team staff escort Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo (9) off
“Yes,” Kelly said simply when
the ield after Romo suffered a shoulder injury on a sack by Caro- asked if defensive coordinator
lina Panthers outside linebacker Thomas Davis during the second
Billy Davis would stay put after
half of Thursday’s game in Arlington.
the Eagles were blown out for the
second time in less than a week.
skid ended in his return at Miami, will be the starter as long as he’s
Philadelphia lost 45-14 at Detroit
and the Carolina loss was his ¿rst of healthy. He lost all four of his starts on Thursday after losing 45-17 to
the season.
after Brandon Weeden was 0- Tampa Bay on Sunday.
“We felt that the risk was worth ¿lling in for Romo. The Cowboys
That’s 90 points in ¿ve days. Ten
the potential of having him be the released Weeden the week Romo touchdown passes allowed and no
impact he can be and he is on our was activated, and he signed with interceptions in ¿ve days.
team,” Jones said on his radio show. Houston.
Tampa Bay quarterback Jameis
“You shouldn’t ever quit trying to
“You have to step in and try to Winston set at rookie record with
do something that is extraordinary. ful¿ll that role,” Cassel said after ¿ve touchdown passes the same day
The dream was if Tony could have leading Dallas’ only touchdown Bucs running back Doug Martin
come in, been the catalyst, played drive against the Panthers. “Hope- ran for 25 yards. Detroit quarter-
similarly and had results we had the fully the guys rally around you. You back Matthew Stafford fed Calvin
week before against Miami ... that have to move forward. I have con¿- Johnson three TDs, continuing a
it would’ve been the beginning of dence in myself and con¿dence in turnaround with the Lions winning
maybe something special.”
this team.”
their third straight game.
Matt Cassel, who started four
The 5-year-old Romo is
The Eagles had gone a league-
games during Romo’s ¿rst absence, becoming injury-prone late in his high 14 games with a forced
turnover but hasn’t had one in three
games.
Davis is taking the heat for a
unit that has crumbled over the
past month after showing marked
improvement from the 2014 season
earlier this year..
“I blitzed a lot more than I have
in the last couple of weeks. We
had doubles, we had brackets, we
moved in and out of coverages,”
Davis said. “Everything, every-
body, we’ll look at all of it. There’s
not much to say here. I do believe in
the group of men we have.”
Davis said he has to get his
players in better position.
“All of us got into the hole, all of
us will get out of the hole. We just
have to keep ¿ghting,” he said.
It doesn’t get any easier for
Davis and the Eagles defense. After
making Winston and Stafford look
like Tom Brady, they get the real
Brady next week in New England
when they take on the undefeated
Patriots.
“The answer is there is no other
option,” Kelly said of what can be
done. “We have ¿ve games left. We
have to go and play. We have to get
better.”
NOTES: The Eagles lost
cornerback Nolan Carroll for the
rest of the season with a broken
ankle suffered in the ¿rst half of
Thursday’s loss. Rookie Eric Rowe
replaced him and struggled against
Johnson. ... Left tackle Jason Peters,
plagued by injuries all season, left
the game with an ankle injury. It is
not believed to be serious.
SCOREBOARD
Local slate
PREP FOOTBALL
Today
Heppner vs. Kennedy (at Hermiston),
6 p.m.
COLLEGE MEN’S BASKETBALL
Today
Eastern Oregon at Northwest Nazarene,
6 p.m.
Blue Mountain vs. Portland CC (at Mt.
Vernon, Wash.), 6 p.m.
Saturday
Blue Mountain vs. TBD (at Mt. Vernon,
Wash.), TBD
Sunday
Blue Mountain vs. TBD (at Mt. Vernon,
Wash.), TBD
COLLEGE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Friday
Eastern Oregon vs. Montana Western (at
Caldwell, Idaho), 4 p.m.
Saturday
Eastern Oregon vs. Montana Tech (at
Caldwell, Idaho), 4 p.m.
Football
OSAA
Today’s Games
Class 6A
Semiinals
West Linn vs. Sherwood (at Providence
Park), Noon
Sheldon vs. Jesuit (at Providence Park),
4 p.m.
Class 5A
Final
Summit vs. Ashland (at Hillsboro), 4 p.m.
Class 4A
Final
Cascade vs. Scappoose (at Hillsboro),
Noon
Class 3A
Final
Vale vs. Santiam Christian (at Hermiston),
2:30 p.m.
Class 2A
Final
Heppner vs. Kennedy (at Hermiston),
6 p.m.
Class 1A
Final
Crane vs. Dufur (at Hermiston), 11 a.m.
NFL
AMERICAN CONFERENCE
EAST
W L
T Pct PF PA
New England 10 0
0 1.000 323 182
Buffalo
5 5
0 .500 244 227
N.Y. Jets
5 5
0 .500 234 208
Miami
4 6
0 .400 205 249
SOUTH
Indianapolis
Houston
Jacksonville
Tennessee
NORTH
Cincinnati
Pittsburgh
Baltimore
Cleveland
WEST
Denver
Kansas City
Oakland
San Diego
W
5
5
4
2
L
5
5
6
8
T Pct PF
0 .500 224
0 .500 208
0 .400 211
0 .200 182
PA
248
228
268
233
W
8
6
3
2
L
2
4
7
8
T Pct PF
0 .800 266
0 .600 236
0 .300 226
0 .200 186
PA
186
191
249
277
W
8
5
4
2
L
2
5
6
8
T Pct PF
0 .800 222
0 .500 257
0 .400 240
0 .200 213
PA
183
198
259
282
NATIONAL CONFERENCE
EAST
W L
T Pct PF PA
N.Y. Giants 5 5
0 .500 273 253
Washington 4 6
0 .400 221 253
Philadelphia 4 7
0 .364 243 274
Dallas
3 8
0 .273 204 261
SOUTH
W L
T Pct PF PA
Carolina
11 0
0 1.000 332 205
Atlanta
6 4
0 .600 250 214
Tampa Bay 5 5
0 .500 236 254
New Orleans 4 6
0 .400 255 315
NORTH
W L
T Pct PF PA
Minnesota
7 3
0 .700 211 184
Green Bay
7 4
0 .636 262 215
Chicago
5 6
0 .455 231 264
Detroit
4 7
0 .364 230 288
WEST
W L
T Pct PF PA
Arizona
8 2
0 .800 336 216
Seattle
5 5
0 .500 228 192
St. Louis
4 6
0 .400 179 199
San Francisco 3 7
0 .300 139 252
———
Thursday’s Games
Detroit 45, Philadelphia 14
Carolina 33, Dallas 14
Chicago 17, Green Bay 13
Sunday’s Games
New Orleans (+3) at Houston, 10 a.m.
Buffalo (+6) at Kansas City, 10 a.m.
Oakland (-1) at Tennessee, 10 a.m.
St. Louis (+9) at Cincinnati, 10 a.m.
Minnesota (+1) at Atlanta, 10 a.m.
N.Y. Giants (-2.5) at Washington, 10 a.m.
Tampa Bay (+3) at Indianapolis, 10 a.m.
San Diego (+4) at Jacksonville, 10 a.m.
Miami (+3.5) at N.Y. Jets, 10 a.m.
Arizona (-10) at San Francisco, 1:05 p.m.
Pittsburgh (+3.5) at Seattle, 1:25 p.m.
New England (-3) at Denver, 5:30 p.m.
Monday’s Game
Baltimore (+3) at Cleveland, 5:30 p.m.
NCAA TOP 25
No. 1 Clemson (11-0) at South Carolina,
Saturday.
No. 2 Alabama (10-1) at Auburn, Saturday.
No. 3 Iowa (12-0) beat Nebraska 28-20.
Next: vs. TBD, Big Ten championship,
Saturday.
No. 4 Notre Dame (10-1) at No. 13 Stan-
ford, Saturday.
No. 5 Oklahoma (10-1) at No. 9 Oklahoma
State, Saturday.
No. 6 Michigan State (10-1) vs. Penn
State, Saturday.
No. 7 Baylor (9-2) lost to No. 15 TCU 28-
21, 2OT. Next: vs. Texas, Saturday.
No. 8 Ohio State (10-1) at No. 12 Michi-
gan, Saturday.
No. 9 Oklahoma State (10-1) vs. No. 5
Oklahoma, Saturday.
No. 10 Florida (10-1) vs. No. 14 Florida
State, Saturday.
No. 11 North Carolina (10-1) at N.C. State,
Saturday.
No. 12 Michigan (9-2) vs. No. 8 Ohio
State, Saturday.
No. 13 Stanford (9-2) vs. No. 4 Notre
Dame, Saturday.
No. 14 Florida State (9-2) at No. 10
Florida, Saturday.
No. 15 TCU (10-2) beat No. 7 Baylor 28-12,
2OT. Next: TBD.
No. 16 Navy (9-2) lost to No. 21 Houston
52-31. Next: vs. Army at Philadelphia,
Dec. 12.
No. 17 Northwestern (9-2) vs. Illinois at
Chicago, Saturday.
No. 18 Oregon (9-3) beat Oregon State
52-42. Next: TBD.
No. 19 Mississippi (8-3) at No. 23 Missis-
sippi State, Saturday.
No. 20 Washington State (8-4) lost to
Washington 45-10. Next: TBD.
No. 21 Houston (11-1) beat No. 16 Navy
52-31. Next: vs. Temple or South Florida,
AAC Championship, Saturday.
No. 22 UCLA (8-3) at Southern Cal,
Saturday.
No. 23 Mississippi State (8-3) vs. No. 19
Mississippi, Saturday.
No. 24 Toledo (9-2) lost to Western Michi-
gan 35-30. Next: TBD
No. 25 Temple (9-2) vs. UConn, Saturday.
Basketball
NBA
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
W
L
Toronto
10
6
Boston
9
7
New York
8
9
Brooklyn
3 12
Philadelphia
0 17
Southeast Division
Pct
.625
.563
.471
.200
.000
GB
—
1
2½
6½
10½
W
Miami
10
Atlanta
11
Charlotte
9
Orlando
8
Washington
6
Central Division
W
Cleveland
12
Indiana
10
Chicago
9
Detroit
8
Milwaukee
6
L
5
7
7
8
7
Pct GB
.667 —
.611
½
.563 1½
.500 2½
.462
3
L
4
5
5
8
10
Pct GB
.750 —
.667 1½
.643
2
.500
4
.375
6
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Southwest Division
W
L Pct GB
San Antonio
13
3 .813 —
Dallas
9
7 .563
4
Memphis
9
8 .529 4½
Houston
6 10 .375
7
New Orleans
4 12 .250
9
Northwest Division
W
L Pct GB
Oklahoma City
11
6 .647 —
Minnesota
8
8 .500 2½
Utah
7
7 .500 2½
Denver
6 10 .375 4½
Portland
6 10 .375 4½
Paciic Division
W
L Pct GB
Golden State
17
0 1.000 —
L.A. Clippers
8
8 .500 8½
Phoenix
7
9 .438 9½
Sacramento
6 11 .353 11
L.A. Lakers
2 12 .143 13½
———
Friday’s Games
Orlando 114, Milwaukee 90
Cleveland 95, Charlotte 90
Boston 111, Washington 78
Miami 97, New York 78
Atlanta 116, Memphis 101
Oklahoma City 103, Detroit 87
Houston 116, Philadelphia 114
Indiana 104, Chicago 92
San Antonio 91, Denver 80
Golden State 135, Phoenix 116
Minnesota 101, Sacramento 91
L.A. Clippers 111, New Orleans 90
Today’s Games
Toronto at Washington, 4 p.m.
Brooklyn at Cleveland, 4:30 p.m.
Atlanta at San Antonio, 5:30 p.m.
Denver at Dallas, 5:30 p.m.
New Orleans at Utah, 6 p.m.
L.A. Lakers at Portland, 7 p.m.
Sacramento at Golden State, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday’s Games
Milwaukee at Charlotte, 11 a.m.
Minnesota at L.A. Clippers, 12:30 p.m.
Philadelphia at Memphis, 3 p.m.
Phoenix at Toronto, 3 p.m.
Detroit at Brooklyn, 3 p.m.
Boston at Orlando, 3 p.m.
Houston at New York, 4:30 p.m.
Indiana at L.A. Lakers, 6:30 p.m.
Hockey
NHL
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Atlantic Division
GP W
L OT
Montreal
24 18
4
2
Ottawa
22 12
5
5
Boston
22 13
8
1
Detroit
23 12
8
3
Tampa Bay 24 11 10
3
Florida
22 9
9
4
Buffalo
23 9 12
2
Toronto
22 7 10
5
Metropolitan Division
GP W
L OT
N.Y. Rangers 23 16
5
2
Washington 22 16
5
1
Pittsburgh 22 13
8
1
N.Y. Islanders 23 11
8
4
New Jersey 22 11
9
2
Philadelphia 23 8 10
5
Carolina
23 8 11
4
Columbus 24 10 14
0
Pts
38
29
27
27
25
22
20
19
GF
86
73
73
55
57
58
50
51
GA
53
64
64
58
55
58
61
62
Pts
34
33
27
26
24
21
20
20
GF
70
71
50
64
53
42
47
59
GA
47
49
51
57
55
65
66
73
WESTERN CONFERENCE
Central Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
Dallas
23 18
5
0 36 81 59
St. Louis
23 14
6
3 31 62 57
Nashville
22 12
6
4 28 58 56
Chicago
23 13
8
2 28 65 59
Minnesota 21 11
7
3 25 60 57
Winnipeg 24 11 11
2 24 64 75
Colorado
22 8 13
1 17 63 67
Paciic Division
GP W
L OT Pts GF GA
Los Angeles 22 13
8
1 27 55 48
San Jose
22 13
9
0 26 61 56
Arizona
22 12
9
1 25 61 62
Vancouver 24 9
8
7 25 69 65
Anaheim
24 8 11
5 21 47 65
Calgary
23 8 13
2 18 54 82
Edmonton 23 7 14
2 16 59 72
NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for
overtime loss.
————
Friday’s Games
Montreal 3, New Jersey 2, SO
Florida 3, N.Y. Islanders 2, SO
Dallas 3, Vancouver 2, SO
Boston 4, N.Y. Rangers 3
Philadelphia 3, Nashville 2, OT
Winnipeg 3, Minnesota 1
Chicago 3, Anaheim 2, OT
Washington 4, Tampa Bay 2
Buffalo 4, Carolina 1
Columbus 2, Pittsburgh 1, OT
Detroit 4, Edmonton 3, OT
Arizona 2, Calgary 1, OT
Today’s Games
Philadelphia at N.Y. Rangers, 10:30 a.m.
Washington at Toronto, 4 p.m.
New Jersey at Montreal, 4 p.m.
N.Y. Islanders at Tampa Bay, 4 p.m.
Edmonton at Pittsburgh, 4 p.m.
Columbus at St. Louis, 5 p.m.
Buffalo at Nashville, 5 p.m.
Dallas at Minnesota, 5 p.m.
Winnipeg at Colorado, 7 p.m.
Ottawa at Arizona, 7 p.m.
Calgary at San Jose, 7 p.m.
Chicago at Los Angeles, 7:30 p.m.
Soccer
MLS Playoffs
CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP
Eastern Conference
New York vs. Columbus
Leg 1 — Sunday, Nov. 22: New York 0,
Columbus 2
Leg 2 — Sunday, Nov. 29: Columbus at
New York, 4:30 p.m.
Western Conference
FC Dallas vs. Portland
Leg 1 — Sunday, Nov. 22: Portland 3, FC
Dallas 1
Leg 2 — Sunday, Nov. 29: Portland at FC
Dallas, 2 p.m.
MLS CUP
Sunday, Dec. 6: TBD, 1 p.m.
Transactions
BASEBALL
American League
TORONTO BLUE JAYS — Agreed to
terms with LHP J.A. Happ on a three-year
contract.
BASKETBALL
National Basketball Association
NBA — Suspended Milwaukee coach
Jason Kidd one game for aggressively
pursuing and confronting a game oficial,
slapping the ball out of his hands, and not
leaving the court in a timely manner upon
his ejection during a Nov. 25 game.
FOOTBALL
National Football League
CINCINNATI BENGALS — Activated
OT Cedric Ogbuehi from the reserve/
non-football injury list. Placed CB Darqueze
Dennard on injured reserve.
WASHINGTON REDSKINS — Signed CB
Dashaun Phillips. Placed CB Chris Culliver
on injured reserve.
COLLEGE
HAWAII — Named Nick Rolovich football
coach.
UNLV — Announced sophomore F Good-
luck Okonoboh is leaving the basketball
program and will be granted his release.