METAIRIE, La. Roman Josi Jersey . -- Hardly two years removed from playing college football on a 12-man defence in western Canada, Akiem Hicks is primed to emerge as a full-time starter on an NFL defensive line. Just dont tell him that, because he wont even admit to being encouraged by the fact that he played with the starting unit in the New Orleans Saints preseason opener and is regularly practicing with the first team. "Not yet, because theres so much more to go," said Hicks said, referencing a metaphor defensive line coach Bill Johnson uses about each day of good work amounting to nothing more than a bean in a jar, which has to be full to represent a good season. "I dont have enough beans to be encouraged yet." Maybe not, but his effort in practice on Tuesday certainly seemed worthy of another bean. He was a force in 11-on-11 drills, registering what would have been a sack on Drew Brees if he were allowed to touch the quarterback. Later, during a 2-minute drill, he had two more standout moments. First he batted down one of Brees passes, then he perfectly read a screen pass to Darren Sproles, who Hicks wrapped up for a 4-yard loss in a 2-minute drill. The 6-foot-5 Hicks, who said he now weighs about 330 pounds, is currently playing the left defensive end in co-ordinator Rob Ryans new 3-4 defence (three linemen, four linebackers). Last year as a rookie, drafted in the third round out of the University of Regina (Saskatchewan), Hicks played reserve defensive tackle in a 4-3, then made the transition this year to what Johnson calls "the most physical position on our defence." It wasnt clear whether Hicks would emerge as a starter when 2013 training camp opened because the Saints had signed 11-year veteran defensive lineman Kenyon Coleman, who had played the past two seasons in Ryans 3-4 defence in Dallas. Last week, however, Coleman tore a pectoral muscle, which has likely ended his season. Third-year pro Tom Johnson also is in the mix to start at that spot, though he has missed more than a week of practice with a hip injury. Johnson conceded that Hicks is in position to win the starting job, but stressed that three weeks of evaluation remained. "Thing Ive said all along about Hicks is that hes raw but he has a lot of versatility," Johnson said. "I thought our scouting people did a great job watching him in Canada to know." Hicks, who grew up near Sacramento, was recruited by LSU out of the community college ranks, but an NCAA violation related to financial help provided by an assistant coach left him ineligible to play in the United States, hence his move to Canada, where he thrived as a stand-up defensive end. "What was hard was to evaluate him versus the people he was against," Johnson said. "It wasnt like if he had went to LSU and stayed. You could evaluate him against guys who would potentially be in this league. It was like guys that were just little kids and he was obviously dominating up there." Big NFL offensive tackles can find him tough to block as well. "Hes a good athlete that weighs (330 pounds) that moves like hes 300 or 290," said Saints right tackle Zach Strief, who has to block Hicks in practice. "Thats something pretty God-given thats pretty hard to find." NOTES: RB Pierre Thomas (left leg), OLB Martez Wilson (left elbow) and OLB Junior Galette (left leg) all returned to practice from injuries, participating to varying degrees. Thomas did the most, taking part in seven-on-seven drills. Wilson participated in a "walk-through" and Galette mostly watched. ... Courtney Roby, a veteran special teams leader and reserve receiver, needed help off the field after apparently hurting his left foot. Payton said Roby had a toe injury. He did not get more specific. ... Jerry Romig, who has been the public address announcer for Saints home games since 1969, and who also handled P.A. announcing for the first four Super Bowls in New Orleans, said his last game on the job will be this Fridays home preseason game against Oakland. Romig, 83, said his voice is fine but back problems have made it tough to get around. His 57-year-old son, Mark, who will take over, said his father wants him to show his own personality. But Mark Romig added, "My mother told me I have to do it just like my father." Pekka Rinne Jersey ." The tournament was set to be held Sept. 15-21 and would have been the first ATP tournament held in Israel since 1996. But amid Israels military campaign against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip, ATP President Chris Kermode said "we do not feel we can proceed as planned given the situation in the region. Ryan Ellis Jersey . - Dominika Cibulkova erased three match points in the second set Wednesday and beat Agnieszka Radwanska 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-3 in the quarterfinals of the Sony Open. http://www.authenticpredatorsshopnhl.com/ryan-johansen-jersey/ . - Even with a new coach, the Denver Nuggets still love to push the basketball.PHILADELPHIA -- LeSean McCoy and DeSean Jackson are quite the dynamic duo. Both players are thriving in Chip Kellys offence, helping the Philadelphia Eagles put up prolific numbers through two games. McCoy leads the NFL with 237 yards rushing and Jackson is first with 297 yards receiving. Together, theyve combined for more yards (653) than nine different teams. "With the type of offence we have I dont think moving the ball is an issue," McCoy said. McCoy, a 2011 All-Pro, ran for 184 yards in a win over Washington in Week 1. He was held to 53 in a loss to the Chargers on Sunday, but he caught five passes for a career-best 114 yards. Jackson, a two-time Pro Bowl pick, followed up a 104-yard performance in the opener with 197 yards receiving vs. San Diego. The Chargers focused on stopping the run, so the Eagles turned to their air attack. Michael Vick threw for a career-high 428 yards in a 33-30 loss. "Teams have to pick and choose their poison," Jackson said Tuesday. "We have great balance. If they want to take something from us, we always have another option. Coming into each game, we really dont know how any team is going to play us. We watch film and things like that, but the majority of the time when we go into a game, things kind of change up. Teams like to do different things to us because of McCoy, myself and Vick. Were prepared, we watch film, and we know what their tendencies are." McCoy showed off his versatility by coming out of the backfield to make big catches, giving defences more to worry about. McCoy creates matchup problems as a receiver, so thats just another option for Kelly to use in his fast-paced offence. "I think when you try to take me out of the game, you think of running, but I can be effective in the passing game," McCoy said. "We try to give me a one-on-one matchup with anybody from a safety to a linebacker. I think thhis offence is amazing, so many different ways to get playmakers in space so we are going to see a lot of different things this year. Predators Jerseys For Sale. " After a dismal season last year when the Eagles finished 4-12, McCoy and Jackson seem rejuvenated in Kellys system. Theres no telling what theyll do if they stay healthy and get more experience in Kellys offence. After all, its only two games in and theres room for improvement. "I think we can go a little faster," McCoy said. "I think we can convert a little better. I think sometimes we get those phases in the game no matter if its earlier or late, where we kind of move the ball but then dont get any points. Once we get past that, I think well be fine." Jackson had a 61-yard touchdown catch against the Chargers, but was open on three other deep balls. Vick overthrew one, Jackson let one bounce off his fingers and caught one out of bounds. If they connected on any of those three, the Eagles could be 2-0 instead of 1-1. "You miss one, you hit one," Vick said. "We had one that was close, but you just have to keep firing until you get one. You are not going to hit them all. We wish we could. Next week you may hit them all. It all depends." The Eagles face former coach Andy Reid and the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs (2-0) on Thursday night. The Chiefs already have matched their win total from 2012 and will be looking to win a game thats significant to their new coach. Defensive co-ordinator Bob Sutton obviously has to devise a plan to stop Philadelphias high-powered offence. Will he try San Diegos approach? "How do you stop the Eagles offence?" McCoy said. "What do you want to do? Do you want to try to stack the box and completely take away the running game out of the game? That happens and (we) wind up with 400 yards passing." Itll be a conundrum for opponents all year. Cheap Saints Jerseys Cheap Ravens Super Bowl Jerseys Cheap Chiefs Super Bowl Jerseys Cheap Panthers Super Bowl Jerseys Cheap Falcons Super Bowl Jerseys Cheap Redskins Jerseys Cheap Chargers Jerseys Cheap Browns Jerseys Cheap Texans Jerseys Cheap Ravens Jerseys Cheap Panthers Jerseys Cheap Jets Jerseys Cheap Titans Jerseys Cheap Chiefs Jerseys Cheap Bills Jerseys Cheap Rams Jerseys Cheap Jaguars Jerseys Cheap Falcons Jerseys Cheap Bills Super Bowl Jerseys Cheap Colts Jerseys Cheap Bengals Jerseys Cheap Cardinals Jerseys Cheap Buccaneers Jerseys ' ' '