Wartezimmer » e Steelers will be without No. 2

Not all records are made to be broken. Baseball in its present form will not see a pitcher reach Cy Youngs 511 wins. Nor is it reasonable to anticipate a future college soccer coach matching the 21 NCAA titles thus far earned by North Carolinas Anson Dorrance.Sports evolve. The world they inhabit changes. Sometimes an unattainable record is its own sign of progress.So perhaps the best way to understand what U.S. womens national team coach Jill Ellis will do with her roster in the months ahead is to think in terms of a milestone she hopes will soon have its own place in history. Following Heather OReillys international retirement and Hope Solos suspension, co-captain Carli Lloyd is the only player on the roster with 200 career appearances. In a perfect world, Ellis contends, progress would be that no one joins her.Not even the most wondrous of current wunderkinds, 18-year-old Mallory Pugh.If she reaches 200 caps, I dont think were doing our job, Ellis said, using Pugh as the most extreme example of a larger point. When I used to recruit in college, my sole job was to out-recruit what I had. And if I did that, I knew we would grow and be successful. ...If were looking at the pure development of our game, the challenge is not to have a 200-cap player because that means there is something better that is coming along.It is a statement of philosophy, not action. Additional players, Pugh most definitely included, might reach 200 caps on Ellis or another coachs watch. There isnt any mandatory retirement looming once Tobin Heath, Alex Morgan or others on a similar trajectory reach 199 caps. But as the focus shifts from World Cup glory a year ago and more recent Olympic failings to the international interval that precedes the 2019 World Cup in France, Ellis made clear in a conversation with espnW a message she also expressed in a recent email to players.Ellis isnt committed to wholesale change or continuity. She is committed to competition.And competition isnt always comfortable.I think where we eventually get to is an environment much like the rest of the world, where players get selected based on their performance [in the moment], Ellis said. Right now, I think we are in the exploratory phase, looking at a number of players. Does that mean some of our current players wont be in? Yes. Does it mean they are eliminated? Of course not.There have been cuts, players Ellis doesnt envision as part of the picture for 2019. Whitney Engen was the first from the Olympic roster to be released from contract; others will follow. And there will be other Olympians who will not be on the roster for the upcoming games against Switzerland in Utah and Minnesota. The absences dont mean their place is lost. Even starting games in Canada or Brazil doesnt guarantee tenure.The outside back positions are often among the first topics Ellis talks about in the evolution of the team. She wants technical, playmaking outside backs who can connect passes and break down defenses that sit back against the United States. Its why she turned to Meghan Klingenberg as a starter in the build-up to the World Cup, and moved Kelley OHara ahead of Ali Krieger for the Olympics.Players dont change drastically, Ellis said of the senior international level. Maybe they get more in form if theyre a goal scorer, or they get healthier if theyve been injured. But in terms of what they can bring -- I know what [the outside backs] top end looks like. So now I can look for someone else and make a comparison.Thats the place were in, where we owe it to the team and the program to see what else is out there. Not just see what else is out there, but give them a shot in this environment.The same process will play out in other positions. Familiar names will be absent as others get auditions, those successful then able to compete head-to-head with the veterans.The collective bargaining agreement that still governs proceedings through the end of the year allows Ellis to bring in eight non-contract professional players for a given camp (as well as an unlimited number of college or youth players). There are obvious candidates for the remaining camps in 2016, starting with NWSL Golden Boot winner Lynn Williams and Houston Dashs Kealia Ohai, a former U-20 World Cup winner who tied Williams for the league lead in goals and closed this season playing the best soccer of her brief pro career.FC Kansas Citys Shea Groom, Western New Yorks Abby Dahlkemper and the Chicago trio of midfielder Danielle Colaprico and fullbacks Arin Gilliland and Casey Short are likewise all young players coming off impressive league seasons who appear to match up with specific national team needs.NWSL players will have opportunities.I think that is important messaging, in terms of to the rest of the players in the league that maybe arent in here, Ellis said. That we do value performances in there.It is also easy to pick out collegians likely to merit attention, including Florida forward Savannah Jordan, Wisconsin midfielder Rose Lavelle and Stanford goalkeeper Jane Campbell and midfielder Andi Sullivan. Come January, if not sooner, there will also be representation from the U-20 and even U-17 World Cup squads (U-17 standout Ashley Sanchez has already trained with the senior team).Ellis pointed to Pugh not so much as an anomaly, although her rise from high schooler to Olympic star was meteoric, but an example of how the environment can accelerate growth.When Ellis wrote that embracing the tactics, style and expectations of your role is a necessity, that extends all the way from the fringes of the roster to the player with the captains armband, the most recent FIFA World Player of the Year.Where weve made strides is our positional play, Ellis said. Meaning back in the day, if someone was on the ball, five people would be checking to the ball. Now were to the point where were keeping our spacing, were trusting each other, were connecting passes. Thats where Carli has learned to be patient in the No. 10 role. Weve asked her to occupy the space in front of their back line instead of coming lower. In that space, shes one of the best in the world.More important, it is a role in which the 36-year-old version of Lloyd still could be among the best three years from now, which is what everything that goes on right now is about.Ellis inherited a veteran team when she took over from Tom Sermanni, one she managed well to a World Cup title. Retirements and pregnancies played a role in many of the personnel moves between Canada and Rio. So in some ways, she is only now beginning the process she told U.S. Soccer president Sunil Gulati was necessary when she interviewed for the job. The United States must get younger. It must change amid a changing world.Theres already some that I have a clear vision of not seeing them as part of our 2019, Ellis said. For some, its a message of I want and need to look at other players. But to all of them, even the ones who sit out a camp, the paradigm has shifted. Its not you play because of experience. Its now you play because youve got to be good enough. ...The only way we find that out is to have a look at them in our environment. Now is the time.Kristine Lillys record of 354 caps is safe for now. Roster spots for France? Not so much. Air Max 95 Sale Canada . As the crowd erupted, Davis knocked the ball off the glass and back into his hands. With 1:14 to go in overtime, Davis sixth block also became his 17th rebound. That, along with his 32 points -- which tied a career high -- proved too much for Denver to overcome, and the Pelicans held on for their third straight victory, 111-107 on Sunday night. 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Andrew Bogut had 10 points and 15 rebounds for Golden State, which rebounded from a loss a night earlier in Oklahoma City and snapped a two-game skid. PITTSBURGH -- The Steelers will be without No. 2 receiver Markus Wheaton for their Monday Night Football opener at Washington.Wheaton told ESPN after Saturdays practice that he will miss the game with a shoulder injury, and the team confirmed he was out Saturday afternoon.The fourth-year receiver had said earlier in the week that he intended to play after missing significant time in the preseason with various injuries.The Steelers will roll into Washington with four receivers: Antonio Brown, Sammie Coates, Eli Rogers and Darrius Heyward-Bey. Rogers is the starting slot receiver, while Coates and Heyward-Bey will liikely share time on the outside.ddddddddddddCoates, a second-year player who showed drastic improvement in the offseason but was erratic in preseason play, said he is ready for the challenge.Im feeling good, Coates said. Gotta be prepared. Weve got a great group of wide receivers, some of the best in the country. Anybody can go in at any time.The Steelers are without some of their top offensive playmakers, including LeVeon Bell (suspension) and tight end Ladarius Green (PUP list, ankle). ' ' '