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CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The bye week has provided the struggling Carolina Panthers with a new sense of hope -- and a few more healthy bodies on the field as well.Coach Ron Rivera expressed confidence Monday the Panthers (1-5) can rebound from a sloppy, mistake-filled start to the season and make the playoffs despite the odds being stacked against them. Since the NFL went to a 12-game season in 1990, 90 of 91 teams that have started 1-5 failed to qualify for the postseason.Oh yeah, absolutely, Rivera said when asked if he still feels good about his teams chances of making the playoffs for a fourth straight season. Why not? We have 10 games to go and you never know. If we can take care of our business and do our job. ...Rivera said he was pleased with the energy level at practice as the players returned from a five-day break and began preparing for Sundays game against the Arizona Cardinals -- a rematch of last years NFC championship game.The two-time NFL Coach of the Year told his players before they left last week he wanted them to get away from football and come back with a renewed focus. Quarterback Cam Newton danced on the field before drills and players hammed it up in the locker room after practice.A lot of guys talking, joking around and talking (stuff) to each other, Pro Bowl defensive tackle Kawann Short said. Thats what we need -- keep each other fired up to bring out the best in each other.Even Rivera heeded some of his own advice, taking a break to attend a chili cook-off and a Carrie Underwood concert on Sunday.We have some work to do but if we approach it with that kind of attitude (we had today), I think things can start to go the direction we think we can, Rivera said.The good news for the struggling Panthers is they seem to be getting healthier.Starting cornerbacks James Bradberry and Robert McClain and defensive tackles Vernon Butler and Paul Soliai all returned to practice after missing a combined seven games. Bradberry said he feels good, but needs to work on his conditioning following a three-week hiatus.Also, cornerback Leonard Johnson appears ready to return from the non-football injury list -- more good news for a flailing secondary .But starting left tackle Michael Oher remains in the concussion protocol and did not practice. Oher has missed the four weeks of practice and three games, causing the Panthers to move right tackle Mike Remmers to the left side and use young Daryl Williams at right tackle.Oher was the only player who didnt practice due to an injury.Riveras staff spent the last week self-scouting, working on areas the team needs to improve upon.Rivera wasnt giving away any competitive secrets, but McClain said one of the biggest points of emphasis Monday was on creating turnovers on defense and protecting the ball on offense. The Panthers led the league in the takeaway-giveaway category last year, but are a minus-8 this year.We are trying to get back to that way of attacking the ball, whether it is punching the ball out, stripping it or intercepting it, McClain said. Just being around the ball and being a factor on the field.The Panthers know better than to quit on a season.Two years ago they started 3-8-1 and still won the NFC South after closing the season with four victories. They even won a playoff game.Rivera said the losses by Atlanta and New Orleans this past weekend only helps serve as a reminder to his players theyre not out of it.Short agrees.The fight our guys have in them and the desire not to quit, you see it, so its just a matter of time before things turn around, Short said.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and http://twitter.com/AP-NFLJachai Polite Womens Jersey . Vaives lawyer Trevor Whiffen claims the former 50-goal man wasnt provided with a copy of the claim beforehand and that he would not have agreed to the allegations made against the NHL had he been asked to review its contents. Quinnen Williams Jets Jersey . -- Canadian Andrew Wiggins got the ball on the wing, made a nifty spin move and then let go with a soft floater from about 10 feet that swished through the net in Allen Fieldhouse. http://www.authenticnyjetspro.com/Wayne-chrebet-jets-jersey/ . "Theyve both been real good," said Babcock. "Havent changed our minds." A decision has seemingly been made - Sundays Group B-deciding tilt against Finland ahead - but it could not have been an easy one. Price opened the tournament with a sturdy 19-save performance against the Norwegians, yielding just one goal. Dennis Byrd Jets Jersey . 4 Villanova with a 96-68 drubbing on Monday. Wragge hit 9-of-14 from behind the arc, matching Kyle Korvers school record for 3-pointers in a game set in 2003, as Creighton (16-3, 6-1 Big East broke a conference record with 21 treys in the rout. Keyshawn Johnson Jets Jersey . Giroud, who wasnt in the starting lineup for two matches after allegations about his private life and a decline in form, scored twice in the first half. Tomas Rosickys chip made it 3-0 before half time at Emirates Stadium, while defender Laurent Koscielny scored an unmarked header in the second half.Concerns surrounding the salary cap, a global calendar and the theft of Italian fast food will be forgotten momentarily on Friday when Gloucester run out at Kingsholm to kick off the new Aviva Premiership season against Leicester Tigers.It is just over three months since Alex Goodes try put the seal on Saracens second successive championship win, but an influx of talent has ensured the new campaign is keenly anticipated.Leicester could line up in the west country with Rugby World Cup winner, JP Pietersen, on their right wing and are awaiting the arrival of Australia playmaker Matt Toomua.Others preparing to make their Premiership bows this term include Kurtley Beale, Taulupe Faletau, Louis Picamoles and Ben Teo, as clubs this side of the English channel attempt to keep pace with those in the Top 14.But on the domestic front, it is the champions -- bolstered by the headline acquisition of Schalk Burger -- who remain the team to beat.Its hard to look beyond Sarries, Wasps director of rugby Dai Young admitted. What theyve built over the last couple of seasons is phenomenal. Were on a journey and theyre a good blueprint for us to follow.Wasps have taken advantage of the continued softening of rules governing how much a club can spend on their squad to bolster their back line. Beale, Danny Cipriani, Kyle Eastmond and Willie Le Roux -- when he arrives from Japan -- will add spice to a side not exactly lacking try-scoring expertise already.If the Coventry club have reached for the cheque book in a bid to slug it out with Saracens, then it has been another summer of studied recruitment from their opponents this Sunday, Exeter. Last seasons beaten Premiership finalists have added quality rather than quantity, with four acquisitions compared to Wasps 13.Chiefs boss Rob Baxter is not the type to waste money, and this summers arrivals -- Dave Dennis, Ollie Devoto, Greg Holmes and Lachie Turner -- will be expected to buy into the clubs ethos and ensure a side that has improved steadily since winning promotion in 2010, does so again.The important thing for us is not to over focus on the loss to Saracens, Baxter said. If you look at what theyve done over the last few seasons, theyve gotten to some finals or knockout games and lost but theyve built on it and gotten stronger.He added: Weve recruited well, theyre a great group of players but we need to keep the core group of players last year too and drive them through another good year. Hopefully we can achieve the same level of consistency we did last season.Finding the right characters for us is the same challenge it was six or seven years ago. We spend a lot of time on it, personally I think its the most important part of my job. Theres no magic answer to it but we spend a lot of time analysing players on the rugby fielld because you can pick up their characteristics doing that.ddddddddddddExeters transformation from provincial pretender to continental contender was rubber-stamped last season as they made the Champions Cup quarterfinals as well as the Premiership final. Wasps ended the Chiefs European run in the last eight, but as Baxter plots his clubs path this campaign, he is keen to prove that success can be achieved in a sustainable manner.Rugby shouldnt be a business that is boom or bust. I would say we dont want to create a situation where clubs are going bankrupt left, right and centre because that would be bad for the game and would portray the game in a bad light, he said.However we decide to do these things, if its raising or lowering the salary cap year on year or abolishing it all together, the one fundamental thing that should remain is that we want to be competitive in Europe and that we want all Premiership clubs to be sustainable, competitive and quality businesses.It is not just on the pitch where incoming names and faces are set to excite, with Bath and Harlequins preparing for the new season under the guidance of new directors of rugby.Both clubs are keen to improve on disappointing seasons last time out, and while Quins took the decision to promote John Kingston from within, Bath looked slightly further afield, to New Zealand and Todd Blackadder.And when the former Crusaders coach says it feels like Ive been here six months rather than a few weeks, it is because he has been made to feel at home, not due to the size of the task at hand.What really hooked me to Bath was the vision of the club, he said. Theyve got a great history and legacy, really good training pitches but they really want to build on their culture. I think thats really important because the rugby is a by-product of that. The timing feels really right.Blackadder admits he is looking forward to mixing it with some of Baths more heated rivals and in that sense, he could not have timed his arrival any better.Bristol are back in the big time following seven years in the wilderness, and will be led by Andy Robinson, a former Bath boss himself, who last coached in the Premiership 16 years ago.Both Robinson and his men are now ready to make their mark in the top flight -- starting with a date against Quins at Twickenham on Saturday afternoon.Weve been desperate to get back into the Premiership and now its about putting a stamp there, the former England and Scotland coach said.The key to us is the belief that we can be successful. You have to love what you do, theres pressure in the games but you have to thrive on it or you might as well be back in the Championship. ' ' '