GLENDALE, Ariz. -- The Arizona Cardinals found ways to win games last season, riding their close-it-out ability all the way to the NFC Championship game.An inability to come up with the big play at the right moment has them reeling and searching for answers this season.Plagued by turnovers and inopportune penalties, the Cardinals dropped to 1/3 after a 17-13 loss to the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday.We won a lot of close games and we have not won them this year, Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said. Weve made a living winning close games for a long time and this year, right now, we are not making the plays to win `em.The Cardinals won three of their four games decided by a touchdown or less last season on their way to earning a spot in the NFC title game against Carolina.They lost that game to miss a shot at playing in the Super Bowl, but were expected to build upon that experience this year.It hasnt worked out that way so far.Arizona opened the season with a home loss to the Tom Brady-less New England Patriots and followed a blowout win over Tampa Bay with a disheartening 15-point loss to previously winless Buffalo last week.Once known for rallying after a tough loss, the Cardinals came out flat against the Rams (3-1), often unable to get out of their own way.Arizona lost two fumbles -- one right after forcing one by the Rams -- and Carson Palmer threw an interception in the end zone in the second quarter, leading to a second round of boos from the hometown fans.Palmer went out late in the game with concussion-like symptoms after being sacked by Aaron Donald and was replaced by Drew Stanton, who threw a pair of interceptions with the Cardinals playing in desperation mode.Arizona also had a touchdown run by Chris Johnson nullified by a holding penalty in the second quarter, leading to a 25-yard field goal by Chandler Catanzaro instead of six points.Weve all just got to look in the mirror and check ourselves because were not the team we were last year, Cardinals safety Tyrann Mathieu said. That team was last year. Were 1/3 and were losing situational football.Arizonas defense was good much of the game -- the Rams had 288 total yards -- though had a couple of key breakdowns on the Rams first scoring drive.One came when the Cardinals appeared to have Los Angeles stopped, only to be hit with a defensive holding penalty against Patrick Peterson. Three plays later, multiple missed tackles turned a short pass from Case Keenum to Brian Quick into a 65-yard touchdown .There were definitely plays that the defense left out there that we could have made, Cardinals linebacker Chandler Jones said.Despite its struggles, Arizona was in position to pick up a much-needed win after Catanzaro hit a 21-yard field goal for a 13-10 lead at the end of the third quarter.This time, the Cardinals special teams had the breakdown, allowing Tavon Austin to return a punt 47 yards to their 34-yard line. Los Angeles took advantage of the short field, scoring five plays later on a 4-yard pass from Keenum to Quick .Obviously, the punt return at the end was huge, Arians said.It doesnt get any easier for the Cardinals. They have a short week with a road game against San Francisco on Thursday, leaving little time to prepare, much less go through the film of Sundays loss.The sky is not falling for us, Arians said. Im sure it is for a bunch of the fans -- were as disappointed as they are -- but weve got a game Thursday night.One they desperately need to win so the downward spiral does not continue.---AP NFL websites: http://pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFLAir Max 270 Flyknit 2021 . Emery skated the length of the ice and fought an unwilling Holtby during the third period of the Flyers 7-0 loss Friday night in Philadelphia. He was given 29 penalty minutes, including a game misconduct. But Emery did not face even a disciplinary hearing with NHL senior vice president of player safety Brendan Shanahan because rules 46. Air Max 270 Light Pink . -- Teemu Selanne scored the first goal of his 22nd NHL season, and the Anaheim Ducks extended the best start in franchise history with their fifth straight victory, 3-2 over the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night. http://www.cheapairmax270react.com/ . General manager Jarmo Kekalainen told Aaron Portzline of The Columbus Dispatch on Friday that he wants to see Gaboriks contributions go beyond the scoresheet before considering a long-term deal for the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent. Air Max 270 Bowfin . There are surprises among the Vezina candidates, but most of the others are standard top-tier performers, even if the two Hart Trophy runners-ups have never been quite as good as they have been through the first half of the season. Air Max 270 Future Swoosh .S District Court against Major League Baseball, the Office of the Commissioner and his own union, the MLBPA.The stakes were very different for the 24 players (singles and doubles) who earned a trip to London to compete in the World Tour Finals last week. So lets see how some of their ambitions played out in a tournament that, thanks to the round-robin format, gave each player multiple chances to prove his mettle.The winnersNo. 1 Andy Murray (5-0, def. Novak Djokovic in final)Murray won it all with an amazing display of sustained excellence that also vaulted him over Djokovic in the battle for the year-end No. 1 ranking. Given Murrays spotty record at previous World Tour Finals, this was a remarkable feat unsullied by the disappointing quality of Djokovics game.In fact, the final demonstrated just how deeply Murray had gotten into Djokovics head during the 29-year-old Scots relentless drive to the top. This was a magical final, akin to the 2000 year-ender in which Gustavo Kuerten stunned Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi in back-to-back matches to win the title and, like Murray, finish the year on top.No. 3 Milos Raonic (2-1, loss to Murray in semifinals)There were moments near the very end of Raonics dramatic battle with Andy Murray when the 25-year-old Canadians visage was almost scary -- thats how intent and focused he was. Murray won that match, but not before Raonic forced him to stare down a match point. The runner-up at Wimbledon, Raonic is the player most likely to win a Grand Slam among the contenders who havent yet won one. It isnt just that smoking hot serve and vastly improved ground game. Its his attitude.No. 8 Dominic Thiem (1-2, eliminated in round robin)Thiem thought he had blown his chance to qualify when he lost early at the Paris Masters. But his rivals for the final opening failed to capitalize, and Thiem punched his ticket to London.Although the Austrian youth won only one match (a three-setter versus Gael Monfils), he was the only player to take a set off Djokovic. Thiem also acquitted himself well against Raonic in his final, do-or-die round-robin match. Thiem, still just 23, picked up a lot of experience. He may have come in the back way, but he left London through the front door.?No. 4 doubles Henri Kontinen and John Peers (5-0, def.?Raven Klaasen?and Rajeev Ram in final)The Finnish (Kontinen) and Australian combo were torrid at the end of the year. They ended the season with a 10-match winning streak. Kontinen is bringing well-earned attention to a nation that is developing a modest but real tennis tradition, while Peers was the lone Australian player, singles or doubles, in the field.Kontinen and Peers defeated the all-French former No. 1 team of?Pierre-Hugues Herbert?and Nicolas Mahut in round-robin play, as well as the all-American, all-everything, hall-of-fame doubles team of Bob and Mike Bryan in the semifinals. It just doesnt get any better in doubles, unless you want to count the $455,000 prize money the winners split.The losersNo. 2 Novak Djokovic (4-1, loss in final to Murray) Djokovic might be one of the few ATP players to welcome the brevity of tenniis so-called offseason of roughly six weeks.dddddddddddd Thats because he has a lot to ponder following his repeated collapses at critical moments in the second half of 2016. They were unexpected implosions that made his remarkable first six months seem like a distant memory.But still, all Djokovic had to do last week to retain his No. 1 year-end ranking and restore his reputation as the dominant player on the tour was keep the hard-charging Murray at bay. The O2 arena was Djokovics house (he was striving for a remarkable fifth consecutive year-end title), but Murray took a wrecking ball to it. Djokovic offered shockingly little resistance. What a costly loss.No. 5 Kei Nishikori (1-2, loss to Djokovic in semifinals) Theres no shame in having lost to Djokovic, especially not when you consider how good Djokovic looked until the title match. And finishing in the top five in the world is a great achievement. Although Nishikori can win ATP 250s and 500s until the cows come home, for some reason, he almost always shrinks back when he has a chance to make a truly resonant statement.Nishikori admitted he just wasnt ready to play Djokovic in the semis, which helps explain the 6-1, 6-1 pounding he absorbed. After lasting barely an hour against Djokovic, the 26-year-old Japanese star said he had a successful, but long and tiring, year. Guess what? So did Andy Murray. And look what he did. The surprising thing is that on a day-to-day basis, Nishikori is a skilled, tough, relentless competitor. Time to see a sports psychologist?No. 7 Gael Monfils (0-2, withdrew from round robin with injury)Monfils had the best year of his career in 2016, at age 30. Qualifying for the year-enders was a highlight, but his trip to London was a bummer from the get-go. That was partly because Monfils sustained a rib injury back during the Stockholm tournament, and it continued to trouble him in his first two round-robin pairings against Raonic and Thiem.In his final round-robin match, Monfils was scheduled to play Djokovic. But the idea of meeting Djokovic, who had won all 13 of their matches, while carrying an injury persuaded the Frenchman to withdraw from the tournament. He told reporters: You know, you work so hard for this moment, then not be able play your best, is a huge deception for me.No. 2?Pierre-Hugues Herbert?and Nicolas Mahut (0-3 in round robin)There were two battles for the year-end No. 1 ranking in London this year. In the doubles draw, Andy Murrays brother,?Jamie, and Brazils Bruno Soares were locked in a battle for the top position with the No. 1 team of Herbert and Mahut.Turns out the French guys never really showed up, going winless in London. That enabled Murray and Soares to clinch the No. 1 ranking without having to win the tournament. They got the job done when they swept their three round-robin matches, a run that included a win against the Bryan brothers. ' ' '