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d to create chances and Conan brilliantly bu

28.07.2019 13:17

ALLEN PARK, Mich. -- Jim Caldwell could see the Detroit Lions latest win coming last week, well before they beat the New Orleans Saints.In practice, they were embracing productive paranoia, a concept Caldwell has read about in Jim Collins books and apparently passed along to his players.It was just one of those weeks where things were clicking along pretty well for us, Caldwell said Monday. The key is now weve got to do it again.The Lions beat New Orleans 28-13, their seventh win in an eight-game stretch that has dramatically changed the possibilities for this season.Detroit (8-4) has a two-game lead in the NFC North with four games to go, putting the traditionally floundering franchise in a favorable position to win a division title for the first time since 1993. Detroit has a potential tiebreaker over the second-place Minnesota Vikings and hosts the second-place Green Bay Packers in the last game of the regular season.Were not worrying about first place or second place, safety Glover Quin said. Were just focusing in on the next challenge. We came in all week and our focus was clearly on the New Orleans Saints.The Lions seem set up to at least maintain their cushion in the NFC North with a matchup against the last-place Chicago Bears (3-9) on Sunday at Ford Field. Chicago, though, did beat the Lions 17-14 to drop them to 1/3 back when Matthew Stafford was averaging one interception per game.Stafford isnt making many mistakes these days, throwing only one interception over eight games. He set a team record by connecting on 13 straight passes against the Saints.Detroits stingy defense has held four straight teams to 19 or fewer points, including keeping New Orleans more than 17 points below its scoring average. The Lions also became the first team to hold Drew Brees without a touchdown pass on his home turf in 60 games with the Saints. Special teams have been solid, too.Detroit hasnt had a run like this since 1995 when it closed the regular season 7-1 to make the playoffs for the third straight year and the fourth time in a five-year stretch. From 1996 to 2015, the Lions have earned a spot in the postseason just four times.Caldwells steady leadership has helped the Lions bounce back from adversity from within games and season. And now that times are good, he is certainly not going to get caught up in the excitement among a fan base desperate for a winning NFL team to root for in the Motor City. He noted hearing and seeing a lot of Lions fans in New Orleans at his weekly news conference, but insisted he doesnt run into them in or around Detroit simply because of the hours he keeps.When I come in in the morning, there are very few fans that are up, he said. When I go home late at night, there are very few people that are around and most often its only one gas station open in my area. I dont encounter very many people at that time.For the first time, Detroit didnt have to rally from a fourth-quarter deficit to win a game this season, leading the Saints from start to finish. The Lions ended up with their most lopsided road win in four years.Normally, were in different situations in the fourth quarter so we kind of went out there with the same mentality like, `Hey, weve got to stop them, said Quin, who picked off one of three passes against Brees.Caldwell cuts up the regular season into quarters, and acknowledged the final four games present a unique opportunity and challenge.During that time of the year, youve got to be playing your best football, he said.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow Larry Lage at http://www.twitter.com/larrylage and follow his work at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/larry-lage Joc Pederson Jersey . Rinne played two periods in his first game since left hip surgery in early May. Gabriel Bourque scored 3:07 into the second period and Austin Watson tallied 5:15 later for Nashville. Rich Hill Jersey . The 25-year-old Japanese star has officially been posted by his club team, the Rakuten Golden Eagles. http://www.dodgerssale.com/dodgers-mike-piazza-jersey/ . Deulofeu injured a muscle in his right leg in Evertons 4-1 win over Fulham in the English Premier League on Saturday. Barcelona says that its team doctors will "co-ordinate" with Evertons medical staff as Deulofeu recovers. Julio Urias Jersey . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. Rich Hill Dodgers Jersey . -- Golden State Warriors coach Mark Jackson asked his players a simple question during Fridays morning shootaround: How many of them had ever been on a team 14 games over . Leinster completed a clean sweep of Guinness PRO12 wins for the Irish provinces this weekend with a 28-15 bonus-point victory over Newport.It took 41 minutes for Leo Cullens men to register the bonus point, but a sloppy final half an hour will have frustrated the Leinster management as the men of Gwent closed out the scoring with tries from Pat Howard and replacement Sarel Pretorius.Peter Dooley and Ross Molony both crossed for their first Leinster tries in the first half, with man-of-the-match Jack Conans effort on the half-hour making it 21-3 for half-time.Joey Carberys withdrawal after his 41st-minute try may be a sign as to who will fill the fly-half position in next Fridays Champions Cup clash with Northampton. There are ongoing concerns over Jonathan Sextons hamstring strain.Leinster captain Isa Nacewa landed all four conversions and they were needed in the end as the Dragons outplayed the home side for the remainder of the game. However, the visitors challenge for a losing bonus point fell short.The lineout was an early concern for Leinster, with five balls lost by the break, but they opened the scoring with Dooleys 11th-minute score which saw him wriggle free of two defenders and stretch over near the left corner.Nacewa converted and also added the extras to Molonys try barely three minutes later. Luke McGrath and Hayden Triggs sparked a lively attack and with Rhys Ruddock straightening up from a half-blocked pass, he linked with Noel Reid whose offload sent Molony over.Angus OBrien responded with a penalty but the Dragons efforts to hang on to Leinsters coattails were not helped by an injury to full-back Carl Meyer in aan accidental knee-to-head collision with Adam Byrne.ddddddddddddhe Leinster pack lost possession at a third successive maul opportunity just as they were poised to strike for another try, while Byrne also threatened from a couple of kick chases.The hosts continued to create chances and Conan brilliantly burst onto McGraths flat pass to break two attempted tackles and charge in under the posts, with Nacewa converting.What would have been a classy team try, finished by Rory OLoughlin, was ruled out for a forward pass from Byrne.However, there was nothing wrong with Carberys almost immediate try on the resumption, the young number 10 trailing a powerful break by OLoughlin from halfway to gather the scoring pass.Lewis Evans did just enough to prevent Nacewa from collecting Dan Leavys offload for a probable fifth try for Leinster.Whereas the hosts allowed their intensity to drop, the Dragons bench had the desired impact, particularly Pretorius and Cory Hill.Another of the replacements Geraint Rhys Jones floated an excellent one-handed pass behind him for the onrushing Howard to cross the whitewash in the 54th minute.The deficit was down to 13 points after Pretorius threw a smart dummy from a 69th-minute close-in ruck and reached over wide on the left, giving his side a deserved seven points following a prolonged bout of pressure.For all the Dragons energy and momentum, Leinster held them at arms length during the closing 10 minutes as the Welsh region fell to their 17th straight away defeat in the PRO12. 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