Pirate Galaxy » rikorian said. I think Id be shocked if

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The bend-but-dont-break defense of the Kansas City Chiefs has so far done an exceptional job of making coach Andy Reid rip out whatever red-tinted fuzz is left of his hair.You see, the Chiefs are masters of giving up yards when it doesnt matter.Theyll give up passes under their coverage, long runs between the tackles, quick crossing routes as opponents drive downfield.When they get close to the end zone? Its a whole different story.The Chiefs have become one of the best teams in the NFL when it comes to red zone defense, a big reason why theyre off to a 2-1 start .Not only do they usually hold opponents to field goals rather than touchdowns, they also have forced a slew of turnovers.We do a good job with that. I dont know why, Reid said. You always talk about the 12th man there, the end zone. Our guys know how to space it out. We worked hard on it at training camp.There was reason for the emphasis. The Chiefs gave up a touchdown on three of every five trips opponents made inside their 20-yard line last season, putting them in the bottom third of the league.Through three games this season? Just three touchdowns on 13 trips.The Chiefs red-zone touchdown rate of 23.1 percent is best in the NFL, just ahead of the New York Giants -- a crucial mark considering only New Orleans and Oakland have allowed more red-zone scoring opportunities.Thats not just bend-but-dont-break. Thats Gumby doing yoga.Reid may not know exactly why Kansas City has become so adept at defending the end zone, but he is willing to hazard a guess. And for a guy who made his bones in the NFL on inventive schemes, studying trends and dissecting film, it only makes sense that he offered an Xs and Os solution.So much of that is just eliminating the seams in there, he said, because theyll just try to pull you apart. You only need a small area to deliver on. Teams will try to pull you apart and test your discipline. Everything is going a little faster down there. Your weaknesses are going to be exploited; your strengths are going to show up.So far, the Chiefs biggest weakness is getting pressure on the quarterback, a problem that could be alleviated later this season if star pass rusher Justin Houston returns from knee surgery.Otherwise, there are a whole bunch of strengths.The defensive front of Dontari Poe, Jaye Howard, Allen Bailey and Chris Jones has been able to plug up the run near the goal line, forcing teams to the air.And when they put it up, one of the most opportunistic secondary groups in the NFL has had a penchant for picking off passes.Three of the six interceptions thrown by the Jets Ryan Fitzpatrick last week were in the end zone.It was all about executing the game plan to a `T, said cornerback Marcus Peters, who had two picks and one of those in the end zone . We dotted our Is and crossed our Ts. We let our pass rush get there, we played underneath, we let our safeties play over the top and we made plays.As a result, the Chiefs have not allowed a touchdown in more than seven quarters.Building on that impressive streak should be a challenge Sunday night, when the Chiefs visit Pittsburgh and a prolific offense led by Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown and recently returned LeVeon Bell.The Steelers are fifth in the NFL in percentage of touchdowns scored in the red zone.Our guys, Ill tell you right now, are staying disciplined, Reid said. This will be a good challenge for them because they are good in the red zone. You have to know how to space the field, particularly in the pass game, and then you have to trust it.Game notesCB Marcus Peters, the AFC defensive player of the week, missed practice for the second straight day. He has the flu. ... CB Phillip Gaines was held out of practice because of a knee injury. He was limited in Wednesdays workout. ... OL Jah Reid (knee) and RB Charcandrick West (ankle) also did not practice.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/AP-NFLAdidas NMD R1 Japan Black . Detroit and Boston are deadlocked, 1-1, and Tigers manager Jim Leyland could be forgiven if he was caught rationalizing instead of dissecting how his club could blow a 5-1 lead late in Game 2. Fake NMD For Sale . Scott Kazmir allowed four hits in seven shutout innings, Michael Brantley hit a two-run homer in a three-run first inning and the Indians maintained their hold on an AL wild-card spot with a 4-1 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday night. http://www.cheapnmdonline.com/wholesale-adidas-nmd-human-race-china.html .Y. -- Buffalo Bills coach Doug Marrone has drawn on his Syracuse connections once again by hiring Rob Moore to take over as receivers coach. Pharrell x adidas NMD Human Race Black .S. -- Nikolaj Ehlers registered a hat trick for the third straight game and Jonathan Drouin had a goal and five assists as the Halifax Mooseheads hammered the host Cape Breton Screaming Eagles 10-1 on Tuesday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. Adidas NMD Clearance .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again.RIO DE JANEIRO -- Each quarter begins with pure, unbridled speed, a furious dash from the mouth of the goal to the middle of the pool while your opponent comes barreling at you from the opposite direction. At stake is the most valuable commodity in water polo: possession of the ball.While players have all sorts of tricks for winning the sprints, they all agree on one thing: Practice makes perfect.Pushing off the wall is way better, U.S. driver Rachael Fattal said. But (you) try to get momentum, so if you can get momentum its not too bad. Its definitely something you have to work on.U.S. coach Adam Krikorian lets his players decide who takes the sprints -- They know better than I do, he said -- and it worked out quite well in an 11-6 victory over Hungary on Saturday, concluding a 3-0 run through group play for the defending Olympic champions. The Americans had the ball at the beginning of each quarter, with Fattal taking two sprints, Hungary jumping early on one and the U.S. winning a jump ball after a tie-up in the fourth.Fattal said captain Maggie Steffens lines up next to her for the sprints and helps her watch the referees.I only look at one. Maggies telling me what the other ref behind me is doing, Fattal said. So when she puts her hand up I know that my persons going to put their hand up and get ready to go, but I just go as fast as I can. I put my head down and hold my breath and I go.Standing nearby, Steffens pointed right back to Fattal.Shes a competitor, Steffens said.Timing the starting whistle is a big key -- If you start little bit later, you dont have a chance, said Zivko Gocic, the captain of Serbias mens team -- but you also have to get up to full speed as quickly as possible -- without the benefit of starting blocks or a wall.Its pretty tough, Australia driver Keesja Gofers said. Its always nice to do sprints off the wall, when you get a nice push-off. But we do work a lot on our breaststtroke and egg beater (kicks), so were used to starting from nothing and like changing speeds.dddddddddddd.Gofers and Rowie Webster scored two goals apiece to help Australia beat Brazil 10-3 to finish second in Group A behind unbeaten Italy. Australia will face Hungary in Mondays first quarterfinal when the tournament shifts to the Olympic Aquatics Stadium for the next round.Also Saturday, Laura Lopez Ventosa scored four times as Spain pulled away from China for a 12-8 victory, and Roberta Bianconi had three goals in Italys 10-5 win against Russia. Spain and Russia meet in Mondays quarters, and Italy takes on China.Next up for the United States is Brazil, which has dropped each of the three meetings between the countries this year by a combined score of 55-7.The U.S. got a preview of what it likely will see more and more the rest of the way when Hungary tried a physical approach against the speedy Americans. But Steffens scored four times and Maddie Musselman had three goals to send the U.S. to its 19th straight victory.Thats what we need to be ready for, Krikorian said. I think Id be shocked if teams dont come out and play real more physical with us. Everyones looking for an edge and trying to find a way to gain an advantage and obviously thats one way to play.Steffens leads the tournament with 10 goals after scoring 21 times during the United States march to its first Olympic gold. The Stanford star seems to have picked up right where she left off in London.Shes a captain for a reason, Krikorian said. Obviously an excellent player, but Id say an even better leader, and someone that we can kind of count on to play with intelligence and play with intensity all the time. Thats exactly what you want out of your leader.---Jay Cohen can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jcohenap ' ' '