wear and tear on those guys

PITTSFORD, N.Y. -- As the Buffalo Bills await word on the severity of a knee injury to rookie linebacker Reggie Ragland, the team signed veteran linebacker Brandon Spikes on Sunday.The Bills also signed veteran linebacker David Hawthorne.Spikes reflected on his return to the Bills in a tweet Sunday.Spikes, 28, last played in the NFL for the Bills in 2014. He signed with the New England Patriots last year but was released in June 2015 as police investigated his role in a hit-and-run crash in Massachusetts. Spikes later pleaded guilty to multiple motor vehicle charges and received probation. The NFL suspended Spikes for the first four games of the 2015 regular season, which he spent out of football.Hawthorne, 31, played the past four seasons for the New Orleans Saints. Bills assistant head coach/defense Rob Ryan coached Hawthorne from 2013 until the Saints fired him as defensive coordinator during the 2015 season.The additions of Spikes and Hawthorne come after Ragland, the Bills second-round pick in April, injured his left knee in Fridays practice. Coach Rex Ryan initially said Ragland avoided ligament damage to his knee, but he?struck a less optimistic tone Saturday when speaking about the injury.Initial MRI on Raglands knee revealed what appears to be a partial ACL tear, but the team is confident it is not fully torn, a team source told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter. The team is scheduled to get a second opinion of Raglands MRI on Monday, and that will determine how much time the rookie second-round pick will miss. The Bills first-round pick?Shaq Lawson?is out after undergoing shoulder surgery.Im not real sure, Ryan said. I guess I was just so hopeful theres not going to be ligament things. My understanding is that as you get going, your leg is so tight, theyll fight it. You dont really get a true look of that. So as we mentioned, we got to wait for that swelling to go down.I know every Bills fan out there is hoping for the best, and thats certainly what were doing, but there is concern.After spending his first four seasons with the Patriots, Spikes signed with the Bills in 2014 and started 10 games that season. Limited to mostly an early-down run-stopping role, Spikes tallied 54 tackles, one sack, one forced fumble and three passes defensed for Buffalo while serving as a team captain.Information from ESPNs Adam Schefter was used in this report. Sergio Romero Argentina Jersey . Uniteds eighth defeat of a wretched campaign means Liverpool, which currently occupies the fourth and final Champions League place, could go nine points clear of its fierce rival by beating West Bromwich Albion on Sunday. Charlie Adam scored both of Stokes goals at Britannia Stadium either side of Robin van Persies equalizer, with a miserable day for seventh-place United capped by first-half injuries to centre halves Jonny Evans and Phil Jones that forced them off. Lionel Messi Argentina Jersey .7 million, one-year contract, a raise of $2.2 million. Wieters had asked for $8.75 million and the Orioles had offered $6. http://www.argentinasoccerauthentic.com/ . It was the second consecutive win for the Pacers (2-5), who lost their first five preseason games. Jeff Teague led the Hawks (1-5) with 17 points and eight assists and Al Horford had 12 points and seven rebounds. Mike Scott scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half. Javier Mascherano Argentina Jersey . Nathan MacKinnon, Jamie McGinn and Jan Hejda also scored for the Avalanche, who won despite being outshot 38-23. MacKinnons goal, also on the power play, came with just over a minute remaining. Ezequiel Garay Jersey . Schenn scored the game-winning goal and added two assists to lead the Philadelphia Flyers to a 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Tuesday. Iowa and Penn State both have the same goal as they enter Saturday nights Big Ten contest at Beaver Stadium.Both schools want it to be a November to remember.No. 12 Penn State (6-2, 4-1 Big Ten) has won four straight games, including a benchmark 24-21 upset of mighty Ohio State, and is still in the hunt for the East Division title. The Nittany Lions trail Michigan (8-0, 5-0), which still has difficult games at Iowa and Ohio State remaining.Iowa (5-3, 3-2), which has won a school-record nine straight road games, needs a strong finish just to become bowl-eligible after a disappointing October that saw the Hawkeyes lose at home to Northwestern, 38-31, and Wisconsin, 17-9.Projected as the favorite to win the Big Ten West Division before the season, the Hawkeyes trail Nebraska and Wisconsin by one game in the standings. But they face a challenging schedule down the stretch, starting Saturday with the trip to Penn State. They return home to take on No. 2 Michigan, then go to Illinois before finishing against Nebraska.At this point, Iowas bigger concern might be securing bowl eligibility. The only game the Hawkeyes likely will be favored to win during the final month is at Illinois. A win there would leave them with a 6-6 record -- a far cry from last seasons 12-0 season.Our goal is going to win these next four games, Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said. It may not be realistic. Well know that at the end of the season. But thats going to be our goal. Just like last year, our goal is to win every game.A win at Penn State on Saturday would certainly change Iowas outlook. That wont be easy, but its not unprecedented.Iowa is 7-5 at Penn State and knocked off the third-ranked Nittany Lions in 2008 in Iowa City and the No. 5 Lions in 2009 in State College.These Hawkeyes are not that far away from being undefeated. Their three losses are by two, seven and eight points -- and they had their chances to win all three.Last year, Iowa won the close ones. This year, the tight games have gone the other way.Its a fine line, Ferentz said. Typically, I believe that.Ferentz pointed out that Iowa scored 10 points last year at Wisconsin and beat the Badgers. This season, the Hawkeyes scored one fewer point and lost. Thats the razors edge between winning and losing.ddddddddddddAs we move forward, our goal is pretty simple, Ferentz said. We need to come up with a better plan. Weve got to play better. Those are the two things that are paramount which gets down to improvement.More than anything, the offense appears to be whats holding the Hawkeyes back. In three of their five Big Ten games, they have scored 14 points twice and nine points once.Quarterback C.J. Beathard is not putting up the numbers he did a year ago in his first season as the starter, but thats more a function of inexperienced receivers and injuries. The senior is completing 59.7 percent of his passes but is averaging only 172.5 yards per game.Penn State comes in off a 62-24 blowout of Purdue, which enabled coach James Franklin to empty his bench early in the fourth quarter for the first time in recent memory.I thought that was significant, Franklin said. To have that type of game where youre able to get some guys experience, especially when we were at 65 scholarships, 75 scholarships, with a lot of wear and tear on those guys.It was a luxury the Nittany Lions didnt have when Franklin took over a team lacking depth that was forced to play its starters throughout as the team clawed for wins. Now, the team is riding its longest wave of momentum since the 2011 season and will try to win its fifth straight conference game for the first time since Joe Paterno last coached.Running back Saquon Barkley played a key role in the blowout, shredding Purdues defense with 207 rushing yards and added 70 more receiving yards. Quarterback Trace McSorley threw three touchdowns in the win; he causes defenses fits with his scrambling and hasnt thrown an interception in 106 passes.But Franklin believes the game will be decided in the trenches.Its going to be our D-line against their O-line, Franklin said. I think its going to be our O-line against their front seven. Thats an area that weve been improving on since the beginning of the season. Theyre a veteran developmental program that does a great job year in and year out. ' ' '