Unlike most of last season, officials hadnt been the focal point of NFL games until Sunday. Then, Jeff Triplettes crew got in the way of the Ravens-Giants thriller.A few hours later, Richard Sherman got away with grabbing Julio Jones in the closing minutes of the showdown in Seattle where the non-call shifted the power in the NFC.The Seahawks survived 26-24 when Sherman grabbed Jones right arm on Matt Ryans fourth-down heave to the Seattle 25-yard line with about 90 seconds remaining. Falcons coach Dan Quinn was hot on the sideline, but refused to criticize Tony Correntes crew afterward.We certainly had other opportunities in the game to go capitalize and finish, so we wont let it come down to one time for us, or at least comment on that, Quinn said.The Falcons (4-2) failed to follow up their signature win at Denver with another in Seattle that would have stamped them as an early Super Bowl favorite, along with the Seahawks and unbeaten Minnesota Vikings. But the Seahawks have to feel like they got away with one.No, Sherman said. I felt like we won the ballgame.The Giants beat the Ravens 27-23 , but were still furious that their victory was imperiled by Triplette and his crew twice in the final minutes.The Giants lost the lead with 2:04 to play and regained it 40 seconds later on the 66-yard catch and run by Odell Beckham Jr. They then held off a last-ditch Ravens drive that reached the 24-yard line thanks, in part, to a debatable roughing- the-passer call on a fourth-down incompletion that should have sealed New Yorks win.Baltimore took the lead after cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie was called for pass interference at the 8-yard line. On the play, both he and receiver Breshad Perriman were looking back for the ball. If anything, Perriman seemed to interfere with the defender .The call went the other way, and Terrance West scored from 2 yards three plays later to give the Ravens a 23-20 lead. Beckham quickly restored New Yorks lead, but then he ripped off his helmet and was assessed a 15-yard penalty.On fourth-and-5 from the New York 39, Joe Flacco threw an incompletion and drew a late-hit call on Owa Odighizuwa, giving Baltimore a first down at the Giants 24 with 15 seconds to play.Unlike the Falcons, the Giants withstood the questionable calls to emerge with the win.Brad Allens crew lost track of Dallas timeouts in Green Bay and that cost Aaron Rodgers a chance at a free play. Rodgers, the master at catching defenses subbing too slowly, caught the Cowboys with 12 men on the field, but the officials granted linebacker Justin Durants timeout call and blew the play dead.The Cowboys were out of timeouts, so the Packers got 5 yards instead of a free play downfield, much to Rodgers chagrin.As far as calls that worked out, Chiefs coach Andy Reid sent in 346-pound Dontari Poe as an eligible receiver on third-and-goal from the 1 at Oakland and Poe caught Alex Smiths touchdown pass.That was, Reid said, was for all the chubby guys out there .Dolphins first-year coach Adam Gase tried to snatch running back C.J. Anderson from Denver in the offseason, signing him to a four-year, $18 million offer sheet that Broncos GM John Elway matched. Gase seems to have settled on Jay Ajayi , who rushed for 204 yards in Miamis 30-15 win over Pittsburgh.Anderson, meanwhile, is averaging 55 yards a game and still hasnt had a 100-yard performance before Halloween in his career. Rookie Devontae Booker looks ready for a bigger role in Denver.Texans quarterback Brock Osweiler probably made a good call when he heaped praise on his former team Sunday night.He left Denver on bad terms after he skipped Peyton Mannings retirement news conference and spurned the teams invitation to attend the White House and ring ceremonies that other free agents returned for. He also took what many Broncos saw as a shot at his former teammates when he said at his introductory news conference that the Texans gave him the best shot at winning.Osweiler leads the Texans into Denver next Monday night.I have nothing but love and respect for the entire city of Denver, the organization, all my old teammates, Osweiler said after leading Houstons comeback over the Colts. So, its purely take the emotions out and have a normal work week and just prepare for a great team.Along with some razzing from the fans and some pressure from Von Miller.---AP Sports Writers Tom Canavan, Josh Dubow and Steve Wine contributed.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: www.twitter.com/AP-NFL---Follow AP Pro Football Writer Arnie Melendrez Stapleton on Twitter: http://twitter.com/arniestapletonReggie White Super Bowl Jersey .2 billion agreement with Rogers Communications for the leagues broadcast and multimedia rights. Montravius Adams Super Bowl Jersey . 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.shoptheofficialpackers.com/Elite-Oren-Burks-Packers-Jersey/ . Clarkson had been dealing with an elbow injury in early January and will be out of action for at least one week. He has three goals and five assists through 36 games with the Leafs this season. Paul Hornung Super Bowl Jersey .ca! Hi Kerry, Its another day and here we are looking at another dubious hit to the head. In this case Blue Jackets forward Brandon Dubinsky elbowed Saku Koivu in the head about a second after he dished off the puck to a teammate, knocking him unconscious. Aaron Jones Super Bowl Jersey .C. -- After a listless first half, the Washington Wizards used a big third quarter run to beat the Charlotte Bobcats Bradley Beal scored 21 points and the Wizards used a 17-0 run in the third quarter to take control of what had been a close game and beat the Bobcats 97-83 on Tuesday night.The magnitude of Tim Duncans contributions over his 19-year career are every bit as remarkable as the announcement of his retirement on Monday was understated: Duncan collected five titles with the San Antonio Spurs and 1,001 regular-season victories, all with the same team in a small basketball outpost held over from the ABA-NBA merger.In an era defined by athleticism, Duncan was a master of mechanics. While contemporaries built careers on defying gravity, Timmy deked opponents with jab steps, shoulder fakes and line-drive bank shots, with both feet on the ground. He didnt captivate fans or sponsors with his exploits or charm them with charisma. He was wholly uninterested in the salesmanship required to build a personal brand and didnt give the NBA and its marketers much to work with as the league harnessed its star power to expand its global reach.For Duncan, the postgame podium wasnt a platform, but a sentence.Yet something improbable happened while he was slinking out of the Spurs locker room and dodging the spotlight:Inside the league, Tim Duncan became the most influential player of his generation. Though he had little public appeal outside central Texas over his two decades in the league, Duncan ushered in cultural change in NBA practice facilities, locker rooms and executive suites.The present-day NBA has become singularly consumed with the adoption and implementation of organizational culture. Forever looking for competitive advantages, franchises have turned to workplace culture as a bulwark. We might not be able to attract a top-line free agent, or hit the jackpot in the draft, but there are 44 games in an NBA season that can be won if we value the right things.This is the leagues guiding principle in 2016, from Atlanta and Salt Lake City to Oklahoma City and Brooklyn, where disciples of the Tim Duncan era learned the art and science of team-building in San Antonio. Theyve applied the findings and sculpted them to suit a particular roster or market. Some have enjoyed modest success while others are just getting started. But try as they might to replicate the Spurs recipe, all of them are forced to concede at a certain juncture that theyre missing one essential ingredient:They dont have Tim Duncan.We walk into our houses and thank Tim Duncan, Atlanta Hawks head coach and longtime Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer says. You think about all the coaches and all the GMs and even the assistant video guys who are now assistant coaches, all the people who have climbed the NBA ladder -- we all owe our success, our place in the league to Timmy.The magnitude of that, the number of people in this league who have enjoyed opportunity or found fortunate spots in the league, you can trace it back to this one guy -- to the way Timmy played ball and the conducted himself. The culture is Timmy.Kevin Durant was a credible leader during his tenure with the Thunder -- a founding father of the program, in the words of general manager Sam Presti. Begrudging a first-rate star like Durant the opportunity to forge his own professional path is unwarranted, but his departure from Oklahoma City underscores a truth that owners and execs learn sooner or later. An organizations culture can shield it from disaster, but that culture is only as strong as its leading player.Thats why more measured voices in the Golden State Warriors wince when they read about their owner taking a victory lap for an organizational structure thats light yyears ahead.dddddddddddd Its why every Spurs alum now in a senior managerial role elsewhere understands theres a limit to what infrastructure can do for a team absent a transcendent leader on the roster.And its why Gregg Popovich said a couple of years ago, Before you start handing out applause and credit to anyone else in this organization for anything thats been accomplished, remember it all starts with and goes through Timmy. As soon as he [retires], Ill be 10 steps behind. Because Im not stupid.Theres an ethic of reticence in San Antonio, where Duncan managed to shroud himself in mystery for 19 years. I dont feel comfortable putting myself out there, he told me in 2013. Im just a basketball player. I play the game. I go home. Confidants describe the public relations part of the job as torture for Duncan, an affront to the game. The periphery of the NBA life, everything outside the practice facility, is nonsense.Trying to be something that youre not gets you out of your comfort zone, Duncan said then. Im not that guy. I did a little bit of that. Ive done my share of it, but Im just not that guy. I dont think of myself in that respect. I love playing basketball and thats what I want to do. I dont need the extra stuff.But in the Spurs day-to-day operations, Duncans emotional intelligence was the connective tissue that held together Popovichs disciplined structure. Duncan would readily pass the mantle to Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili, then celebrate their success as if it was his own.The thing that amazed me about how Timmy built relationships was how subtle it was -- the touch, the arm around the shoulder, the thing that would look like little or nothing to outsiders, Budenholzer says. It affected people, maybe because it was subtle and under-the-radar.Blake Griffin, who has admired the way Duncan carries himself, sought out Duncans counsel a few years back. Griffin was part of a Los Angeles Clippers team that now had several loud voices and wanted to glean how quiet leadership could make a difference. The thing I took away the most was this idea that a leader isnt the guy whos pounding the chest, or huddles or giving motivational speech, Griffin says. It was really reassuring to me as a younger guy, that you dont have to be something youre not. Of many things you can say about him, thats the thing that sets him apart -- he never tried to see who wasnt. And it works.At any time, theres always the one guy theyll use as an example. Maybe its Russell Wilson for a year or two. Then they move on to Tom Brady or [Kevin Garnett]. But [Duncan] has been the guy you constantly hear about whos constantly doing it right. Hes the guy who deserved the shine, but was riding underneath it.For a man who was so inaccessible to those looking in from the outside, Tim Duncan was an everyman. Most of our lives and careers emulate Duncans: We do the work quietly and diligently and dont have much cause to glory-hound. The job is the job, and if youre lucky, you do it because you love it, but not for any external affirmation, other than you want your partner, family and friends to be proud because its nice to be admired by the people in the world you care most about.Tim Duncan invented the NBAs modern vision of team culture. Now the rest of basketball is trying to imitate the guy nobody found fashionable. ' ' '