are planned.Its really scary when you hear you have an issue w

PITTSBURGH -- The cartilage in Ben Roethlisbergers aching left knee is repaired.And while the Pittsburgh Steelers are optimistic their franchise quarterback will return sooner rather than later after tweaking the knee in the second quarter of a miserable loss in Miami on Sunday, the odds of Roethlisberger being ready for a visit from Tom Brady and the New England Patriots six days removed from the operating table is remote.Roethlisberger rested at home Monday after undergoing arthroscopic surgery and Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said the team is confident Roethlisberger wont be out long term.But Roethlisbergers teammates began rallying around their backup now facing the most daunting task of his uneven career.Your turn, Landry Jones. Again.Im going to prepare like Ive done in the past and well see what happens, Jones said.Any chance Pittsburgh (4-2) has of hanging in there against the surging Patriots (5-1) depends on it. Taken in the fourth round of the 2013 draft, the former Oklahoma star has made two career starts, both last season.The Steelers went 1-1 in those games, though the victory comes with an asterisk because he left early with an ankle injury and Roethlisberger came on to guide a blowout of Cleveland.Jones was more effective in relief, leading Pittsburgh by Arizona and Oakland when injuries forced Roethlisberger and Michael Vick out of the lineup.Given a full week to prepare for the Patriots, Jones believes offensive coordinator Todd Haley doesnt have to make portions of the playbook off limits to thrive.I felt like I had it last year, Jones said. We didnt change much as all of what we were doing. I expect it to be kind of the same this year.Jones has taken just a handful of snaps this season and threw one incompletion while briefly spelling Roethlisberger in Miami.Hes completed 32 of 56 for 513 yards with three touchdowns and four interceptions in 11 appearances and played extensively with the first team during a preseason in which Roethlisberger made just a token appearance.Practice is so different from games, you never know what youre going to get from a guy until you go into the game, Jones said. Last year I performed pretty well in most of the situations so I feel like I have the confidence of the guys.If the Steelers want to have any hope of keeping up with the Patriots, they dont really have a choice. Several times over the past three years, Jones has seemingly found his roster spot in jeopardy only to survive and -- in very limited instances -- thrive.This guy is a really good college player and now he has the tools around to get the job done, guard Ramon Foster said. Me knowing him, hes going to be a guy that makes sure his success is on the front page.The start also comes at a critical time for Jones, who will be an unrestricted free agent after the season.With Roethlisberger locked up for the rest of the decade, any chance to be in the mix as a legitimate starter will have to come elsewhere. Not that Jones is concerned with his future at the moment. Figuring out the Patriots is hard enough.Jones teammates understand asking Jones to do his best Roethlisberger impersonation is unfair.Hes not as capable as Ben is, running back LeVeon Bell said. Bens been a longtime starter, been in the league for a long time at a high level. Weve got to get (Jones) to the point where hes confident and he feels like he can do no wrong. Thats when he can be striking.Not that its all on Jones. Pittsburghs ugly trip to South Florida included allowing a running back to go over 200 yards rushing for the first time in 16 years and failing to put much pressure on quarterback Ryan Tannehill.Weve just got to be better period, Foster said. Weve got to be the same team every week.Game notes Tight end Ladarius Green, who has spent the season on the physically unable to perform list while recovering from ankle surgery and other health issues, hopes to return to practice this week. ... DE Cam Heyward is unsure if hell be able to return after missing the first game of his career against Miami with a hamstring injury. Heyward said any decision wont be made until much later in the week.---Online:AP NFL website: http://www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL coverage on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Clearance College Basketball Jerseys . It was Kerbers third final of the year after losing to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova of Russia in Monterrey in April and to Petra Kvitova of Czech Republic in Tokyo two weeks ago. The 10th-ranked German improved her record in finals to 3-5. Cheap Jerseys From China . Irving scored 23 points, Tristan Thompson had 20 points and 10 rebounds and the Cavaliers beat the Denver Nuggets 117-109 on Friday night. http://www.cheapcollegejerseys.net/ . It was the kind of score that might make everyone else wonder which course he was playing. Except that Graeme McDowell saw the whole thing. Crouched behind the 10th green at Sheshan International, McDowell looked over at the powerful American and said, "Ive probably seen 18 of the best drives Ive seen all year in the last two days. Stitched NCAA Jerseys .Y. -- Paul Byron and Matt Stajan scored as the Calgary Flames started a five-game road trip with a 2-1 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday afternoon. College Jerseys Outlet .2 billion agreement with Rogers Communications for the leagues broadcast and multimedia rights. OAKLAND, Calif. -- After ruling the Bay Bridge Series for three days against the big-spending Giants, the Oakland Athletics ran right into Madison Bumgarner.On the mound, and at the plate.Bumgarner pitched into the seventh to snap a two-start skid and also batted in an AL ballpark, and the Giants avoided a four-game sweep by beating the As 12-6 on Thursday night.Buster Posey hit a towering three-run homer to center in the third and Brandon Crawford followed with a solo shot before adding an RBI single two innings later.Brandon Belt had four RBI and hit a go-ahead two-run double in the third ahead of Poseys ninth home run. Bumgarner helped start the rally with a leadoff double.As lefty Dillon Overton (1-1) was done after three innings in his second major league start after he won his debut last Saturday at Los Angeles. This time, he surrendered eight runs and eight hits with a strikeout and three walks.He said he wasnt able to make the adjustments he usually does -- and Overton knew Bumgarner had the ability to make him pay with the bat.Ive watched him on TV for years now. I knew he could hit, Overton said. I left that one up and Bum made me pay for it.Marcus Semien hit his career-best 16th home run in the first as the As took a quick lead against Bumgarner, then Yonder Alonso added a two-run drive in the seventh to chase Bumgarner. Oakland has homered in a season-best nine games in a row.Bumgarner (9-4) was given the option by manager Bruce Bochy to bat himself rather than the Giants using a designated hitter, and of course the big lefty chose to swing the bat. He had lost two straight starts following seven consecutive winning decisions.Im not trying to prove anything to anybody. Were trying to win ballgames, Bumgarner said. Thats all I care about. I dont care what anybody says or thinks about it. I care about these guys, I care about our fans. ... I want to be as good a baseball player as I can be, not just a pitcher. In this league youve got to hit. You can change the outcome of the game sometimes.Bumgarner allowed four runs and seven hits, struck out four and didnt walk a batter in 6 1/3 innings. The two home runs allowed matched his most for the season, also done opening day at Milwaukee on April 4.dddddddddddd. He hasnt lost three straight starts since June 27-July 8, 2014, during his spectacular World Series MVP season.While San Francisco had given up seven or more runs in four straight games, the Giants helped Oakland score at least six runs in a seventh straight contest when Coco Crisp hit a two-out, two-run double in the ninth.San Francisco added on late, getting Belts two-run single. Fernando Rodriguez also walked in a pair of runs among his five free passes in the inning, and the As had their three-game winning streak snapped with only a second defeat in the last eight games.DOOLITTLES SHOULDERLefty reliever Sean Doolittle is on the disabled list with further shoulder issues. He had an MRI exam that showed some labrum inflammation in his strained throwing shoulder. He tried to play catch Wednesday but struggled. The hope is he will be ready to return after the All-Star break.Doolittle said no injections or procedures are planned.Its really scary when you hear you have an issue with you shoulder, your labrum particularly, but the trainers are optimistic once we get it calmed down, get the swelling out, that well be back in business, he said. Im incredibly frustrated because my shoulder was feeling good throughout the whole season. I felt like we found a maintenance program that was keeping me in a really good spot.TRAINERS ROOMAthletics: OF Khris Davis was out of the lineup a day after being scratched with a bruised left shoulder injured running into the wall Tuesday. He batted in the cage and felt better than a day earlier. ... The As agreed to terms with No. 6 overall draft pick LHP A.J. Puk out of Florida. He threw a bullpen session for the Oakland brass.UP NEXTGiants: RHP Johnny Cueto (11-1) takes the ball on the road looking to improve on his 7-2 record and 2.69 ERA in 10 career starts against Arizona.Athletics: RHP Sonny Gray (3-6) tries to snap a career-high five-game skid. He is 0-1 with a 3.23 ERA in five starts since coming off the DL on June 5 and he is 0-5 with a 6.19 ERA over his last 10 outings. ' ' '