Dein erstes Forum » The defense was great last season but is a year old

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum took a bit of a gamble when he struck out on his own to put on the Manny Pacquiao-Jessie Vargas pay-per-view card Nov. 5 without the support of HBO, Pacquiaos longtime broadcaster, which declined to be involved because of its commitment to Saturdays Sergey Kovalev-Andre Ward light heavyweight title bout.The network did not want to put on two HBO PPV events in the same month, but Arum said he had little choice but go on Nov. 5 to work around Pacquiaos time off from his responsibilities as a senator in the Philippines, a post he was elected to in May.This week, Arum told ESPN that his decision to have Top Rank produce and distribute the event on its own was successful. The Pacquiao-Vargas fight sold around 300,000, probably a little more pay-per-view buys, he said.It did about the same as Pacquiao-[Timothy] Bradley, Arum said of the third fight between the rivals that took place in April and was produced and distributed by HBO.So if it did about the same as that fight, why do I need HBO to be involved? Why do I have to pay them a percentage when we can do the same thing on our own?In the immediate aftermath of Pacquiao-Bradley III, Arum said the fight generated between 400,000 and 500,000 buys, but it will be closer to 400,000 than 500,000. Arum deemed the Pacquiao-Bradley III number disappointing, and it wound up doing considerably less.Arum said he did not have precise numbers yet for the Pacquiao-Vargas pay-per-view sales because one thing we cant do is get a handle on all the numbers as quickly as HBO can. They have that down pat, but well learn. That said, the numbers are still coming in and were pleased. We had a good show, we put on some entertaining fights, and we made money, the fighters made money, so thats good.During the lead-up to the fight, which took place at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Arum said they needed to do about 180,000 pay-per-view buys to break even.Although Vargas was not a well-known opponent and nobody expected Pacquiao to generate the seven-figure pay-per-view sales he did during his heyday a few years ago, Arum said he thought one reason the fight would wind up doing about 300,000 sales is because consumers knew that without HBOs involvement that there would be no delayed broadcast on the network a week later. Arum also said he was aware that because fans can easily find live streams on social media, it likely robbed the event of hundreds of thousands of buys.Its always been a problem, but its gotten worse, Arum said. Its stealing, and its not just a Pacquiao fight. Its Canelo [Alvarez] fights. Its UFC pay-per-views. We have our attorneys working on things.Pacquiao came out of a brief retirement after the third Bradley fight and the Senate election to easily outpoint Vargas to regain the welterweight belt he lost to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in their May 2015 blockbuster that broke all boxing box-office records, including a record 4.6 million pay-per-view buys for the joint HBO/Showtime event. Balenciaga Speed Trainer Black Cheap . Takahashi, who had a 10-point lead after the short program, received 268.31 points after the free skate to finish 15 points ahead of second-place Nobunari Oda. Balenciaga Triple S Clearance . -- Ryan Blaney provided more evidence that Penske Racings No. http://www.balenciagacheapshoes.com/balenciaga-triple-s-sale.html . The Cincinnati Reds remain perfect with their speedy rookie outfielder in the starting lineup. Balenciaga Speed Trainer Black Sale . The 18-year-old American had five birdies in her bogey-free round for a 17-under total of 196. Lee held the overnight lead but mixed three birdies with two bogeys for a 70. Balenciaga Wholesale . Louis Cardinals. Victorino is batting sixth and playing right field after missing two games because of back tightness. DENVER -- A dazzling defense rendered the Denver Broncos quarterback question a moot point last year. The Super Bowl champs are counting on that being the case again this season.The six-month saga over who will guide Denvers title defense came down to Mark Sanchez losing his grip on both the ball and the job when he fumbled twice inside the San Francisco 15-yard line on Aug. 20. Rookie Paxton Lynch might be the franchises future, but the present belongs to Trevor Siemian.The seventh-round pick out of Northwestern in 2015 has made the startling jump from No. 3 QB to starter thanks to a confluence of events, including a retirement, a rebuff and a reboot.While Lynch was showing more promise than proficiency, Siemian displayed poise, power and precision.Thats not surprising given that Siemian had a birds-eye view of the Broncos quarterback conundrum last year when coach Gary Kubiak began every Monday meeting after mid-November with an announcement whether Peyton Manning or Brock Osweiler would start.The Broncos made it work thanks to a spectacular supporting cast that also makes them the favorite to win their sixth straight AFC West crown, although Oakland and Kansas City are closing that gap.The Raiders and Chiefs both beat the Broncos in Denver last year, and it took Mannings Willis Reed moment to keep the San Diego Chargers from doing the same.Manning retired a month after Denvers parade and Osweiler bolted 48 hours later to the Houston Texans. GM John Elway was rebuffed in his attempt to get Colin Kaepernick, so it came down to a three-way QB competition. Now, the Broncos go into the NFL kickoff game against Carolina on Sept. 8 with two quarterbacks who have never thrown a pass that counts in the NFL.Thats not exactly a recipe for another run, but the Broncos always seem to navigate their way through adversity.DOMINANT DENVER: The Broncos lost DE Malik Jackson and MLB Danny Trevathan to free agency, not really lamentable departures. Theyve had injury issues along the line, but theyre still loaded with pass rushers Von Miller, DeMarcus Ware, Shane Ray and Shaq Barrett, plus MLB Brandon Marshall and DBs Chris Harris Jr., Bradley Roby, Aqib Talib, Kayvon Webster, T.J. Ward and Darrian Stewart.Miller parlayed his Super Bowl MVP performance into a jet-lagged offseason that included 61 flights and 47 television appearances. Oh, and a record six-year, $114.5 million deal with $70 million in guarantees. Hes looked terrific in limited action this summer.The retooled offense features four new starters on the line, a bona fide fullback and a new tight end group. Denver has co-stars at wide receiver in Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryyius Thomas, who is bent on putting last years drops and drama behind him.ddddddddddddRISING RAIDERS: The future of the team in Oakland remains as foggy as an autumn morning in the Bay Area. Still, the Raiders have legitimate hopes of contending for the playoffs for the first time in years.They rebuilt the defense, signing CB Sean Smith, LB Bruce Irvin and S Reggie Nelson, drafting S Karl Joseph and DL Jihad Ward. Those five team with All-Pro Khalil Mack on what should be a much-improved unit.Offense all comes down to whether Derek Carr takes another step forward. After playing very well in the first half last season, Carr struggled in the second half, in part because of injuries to WR Amari Cooper and C Rodney Hudson. Oakland hopes signing G Kelechi Osemele fortifies the line and leads to a more consistent running game.CHAMPING CHIEFS: Kansas City LB Justin Houston is out for now after surgery to repair a non-functioning ACL in February. The Chiefs also took a cautious approach with LB Tamba Hali after surgery on his balky knees, and RB Jamaal Charles, who had his right ACL repaired last season.With injury issues a concern, the Chiefs also feel they have more talent across the board than at any point under GM John Dorsey and coach Andy Reid. Charles and RBs Charcandrick West and Spencer Ware form a potent three-headed monster, and Jeremy Maclin and TE Travis Kelce give Alex Smith decent pass catchers.The defense was great last season but is a year older, with concerns about the pass rush and in the secondary, where SS Eric Berry didnt report until Sunday.RECHARGED CHARGERS: Joey Bosa went public with his contract dispute. While the front office ripped Bosa, coach Mike McCoy seemed to support the former Ohio State defensive end selected third overall in the draft. He said whenever Bosa shows up, he is one of us. Bosa finally signed on Monday.The Chargers, 4-12 last season, missed the playoffs for the fifth time in six years, and could really use Bosa at full strength. Their D-line lost Sean Lissemore to a season-ending shoulder injury in training camp and Damion Square to a four-game suspension to start the season.On offense, Melvin Gordon is trying to bounce back from his nightmarish season.PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH: Broncos, Raiders, Chiefs, Chargers.---AP Sports Writers Dave Skretta, Josh Dubow and Bernie Wilson contributed.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow AP Pro Football Writer Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapleton ' ' '