ping give USA-1 a huge push in the second heat.CHICAGO -- The Chicago Wh

PITTSBURGH -- Cam Heyward knows better than to get ahead of himself. Sure, the Pittsburgh Steelers run defense was better last week against Baltimore, when the Ravens needed 29 carries to manage 50 yards.Then again, considering how ineffective it was in losses to Miami and New England -- losses Heyward missed due to a hamstring injury -- its a backhanded compliment at best. And Pittsburghs defensive captain knows it.Its a start, Heyward said Thursday. We know weve got a bigger challenge.Maybe the biggest in the NFL.The guy in the backfield on Sunday wont be any nameless, faceless, starless Ravens but Dallas rookie Ezekiel Elliott, who leads the league in rushing at the halfway point and has established veterans such as Heyward grasping for superlatives.Hes had a lot of success, Heyward said. He can cut when he needs to. He can jump when he needs to. If a play doesnt work out his way, hes not afraid to jump out and challenge your corners.And just about anything else that gets in his way. The 21-year-old is averaging 5.0 yards per carry and hardly seems ready to hit the wall halfway through the 16-game slog that is the regular season. Some of his production is due to playing behind one of the NFLs best offensive lines. Not all of it, though. Theres more than a hint of tenacity to go with Elliotts natural speed and power.His feet dont go dead, Steelers defensive coordinator Keith Butler said.Meaning they keep churning even as Elliott finds himself enveloped by tacklers. On an 8-yard touchdown sprint last week against Cleveland, he stepped out of a tackle at the 10 and darted to the end zone. Later on, he caught a pass in the flat and was stood up almost immediately by Browns defensive back Tramon Williams, only to bounce off the slip through the arms of Brian Boddy-Calhoun to turn a short loss into a 5-yard gain in a 35-10 romp that pushed the Cowboys to an NFC-best 7-1.Pittsburgh linebacker Ryan Shazier, a former teammate of Elliotts at Ohio State, likened Elliott to NBA star Dwyane Wade.Hes like a slasher runner, Shazier said. When he needs to hit the hole, he hits the hole. When he needs to make three (yards), he makes three.Though typically he springs for considerably more than that. Elliott already has seven runs of 20 yards or more, tops in the league. And the player who routinely turns to the sideline and mimics a kid frantically scarfing down a bowl of Lucky Charms (Elliotts sign language for keep feeding me) hardly seems winded despite being on pace for more than 350 carries.Its kind of weird just to feel that were only halfway through, coming from college where the season starts earlier and its shorter, so it feels a little bit different, Elliott said. But its important to maintain that routine so your body doesnt break down so you can stay fresh and finish out the season strong.Thats something the Steelers (4-4) are hoping to do, too. The defensive line looked lost at times with Heyward out, letting Jay Ajayi and LeGarrette Blount gash them repeatedly in double-digit losses. Things were far more stable when Heyward returned against the Ravens: Baltimores longest run of the day came on a 14-yard scramble by quarterback Joe Flacco.In the games Heyward played, the opponents averaged 3.5 yards per carry. In the games Heyward missed, that average jumped to 5.6. Heyward, as is typical, downplayed his importance. Hes just one cog in a machine thats searching for consistency, particularly when it comes to tackling.Backup running backs Daryl Richardson and Karlos Williams have taken turns this week trying to do their best Elliott impersonations on the scout team, hoping to give the defensive starters a taste of what theyll see Sunday. Practice can only go so far. The Steelers dont take opponents to the ground in practice, preferring instead to thud up, meaning getting a player wrapped before the whistle blows. That wont be an option Sunday.It cant just be arm tackles, Heyward said. Its got to be body tackles where youre putting your weight on him, and if its not one guy its two guys. Youve got to rally to the ball.Game notesSteelers center Maurkice Pouncey missed practice against Thursday, but said he will 100 percent play against the Cowboys. Pouncey underwent a surgical procedure on Monday to fix a dislocated thumb. ... QB Ben Roethlisberger (knee) and WR Sammie Coates (finger) were full participants Thursday. ... WR Markus Wheaton (shoulder) was limited.---AP Sports Writer Schuyler Dixon in Dallas contributed to this report.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFLCarl Banks Giants Jersey . U.S. District Judge Lorna G. Schofield in Manhattan agreed that lawyers on both sides could make their formal requests by Nov. 8. A hearing is scheduled for a day earlier. Jordan Siev, a lawyer for Rodriguez, wrote in a joint letter to the judge from lawyers on both sides that MLB lawyers planned to ask that the lawsuit be dismissed. Phil McConkey Youth Jersey . -- PGA TOUR Canada member Steve Saunders took a three-stroke lead Saturday in the Web. http://www.authenticnygiantspro.com/Dexter-lawrence-giants-jersey/ . Speaking to the Chicago Tribune at baseballs Winter Meetings in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, Boras called the former home of the Expos a "tremendous environment" for baseball. Odell Beckham Jr Womens Jersey . Jason Zucker and Matt Cooke also scored for Minnesota, which has won five of six. Kuemper made five saves in the first, nine in the second, and nine in the third. The rookies best save came with 2:17 left in the third period when he denied former Wild forward Matt Cullen from just outside of the crease on the right side. Evan Engram Youth Jersey . Kiriasis and brakeman Franziska Fritz finished two runs in one minute 55.41 seconds -- a mere 0.01 seconds ahead of Meyers and Lolo Jones, who likely bolstered her Olympic hopes by helping give USA-1 a huge push in the second heat.CHICAGO -- The Chicago White Sox declined a $3 million club option on reliever Matt Albers and exercised a $250,000 buyout, making the right-hander a free agent.The club also released right-hander Daniel Webb, reinstated third baseman Matt Davidson and reliever Jake Petricka from the 60-day disabled list, and outrighted outfielder J.B. Shuck to Triple-A Charlotte on Thursday.Albers was 2-6 with a 6.31 ERA over 58 appearances (one start) last season, his seccond with the White Sox.ddddddddddddWebb pitched in one game before season-ending surgery on his right elbow in June. Davidson broke his right foot running the bases against Minnesota on June 30 in his lone appearance for the White Sox. Petricka, who had a right hip impingement, appeared in nine games.Shuck hit .205 in 80 games. ' ' '