Hodgsons head. Any thought of that, though, ha

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Matt Ryan is as surprised as anyone that the Atlanta Falcons are tied for first in the NFC South with a 4-6 record.Hes certainly not complaining.Its been a different year, for sure, Ryan said. You play to be relevant in November and December. As quirky as this seasons been, were relevant.Ryan threw for 268 yards and a touchdown, Matt Bryant added four field goals and the Falcons held off a late rally by the Carolina Panthers to win 19-17 on Sunday.Bryants 44-yard field goal with 2:08 left put Atlanta ahead for good. Cam Newton threw two fourth-quarter touchdown passes for Carolina, but Graham Gano missed a 46-yard field goal try with 1:27 remaining and had a 63-yarder blocked as time expired.The Falcons moved into a tie with New Orleans for the division lead after the Saints lost at home to Cincinnati 27-10.The way our season is going, were happy to have any win, Falcons defensive tackle Corey Peters said.Newton overcame two early interceptions and threw for 292 yards, but it wasnt enough for the Panthers, who have lost five straight and are 1-7-1 since starting the season 2-0. Itd be easy to say the Panthers are done, yet they still control their playoff destiny.Well, somebody is trying to give us a gift, Panthers cornerback Josh Norman said of the Saints loss. The craziest part about it all is were still in it.When asked if the Panthers still deserve to be in the playoff hunt, Norman replied, Does anybody in the NFC South deserve to be in it?The Panthers trailed 16-3 in the fourth quarter before a sluggish Newton started to heat up.Rookie Kelvin Benjamin made a juggling 22-yard touchdown catch in the left corner of the end zone to give the Panthers some life. Then another rookie receiver, Philly Brown, got behind cornerback Robert McClain and caught a 47-yard score as he fell back into the end zone to briefly give the Panthers a 17-16 lead.But Ryan moved the Falcons into field goal range, completing three passes for 29 yards to Harry Douglas to set up Bryants clutch kick.I try to simplify things as much as I can, Bryant said.He often jokes that its like the golf movie Happy Gilmore: I try to go to a happy place.Everythings working out, he added, so Ill keep doing what Im doing.Newton still had something left, moving Carolina to the Atlanta 29. Gano then hooked the potential game-winner from 46 yards out wide left.The Panthers forced a punt and moved into Atlanta territory behind a pair of hook-and-ladder plays to set up a desperation try for Gano. But his kick was low and blocked by rookie RaShede Hagemen as time expired.I have to pull through and make the kick, Gano said. Thats what it comes down to. No excuses. Im not going to sit here and explain why I missed the kick. My job is to put it through the uprights.Roddy White, who had eight catches for 75 yards, caught a 4-yard TD pass from Ryan to give the Falcons a 16-3 lead.Things got heated after that.Devin Hester was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct after knocking a Carolina player off the pile at the end of a play, igniting a lot of pushing and shoving. Two snaps later, Carolinas Thomas Davis stripped Hester and Luke Kuechly recovered, starting another brief altercation with Jacquizz Rodgers taking down Kuechly, although no flag was thrown.The day started off rough for Newton.After he was sacked nine times in Carolinas 45-21 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night, defensive Tyler Jackson raced in unblocked and delivered a helmet-to-helmet hit on the quarterback on Carolinas first play from scrimmage. Jackson was flagged for a 15-yard penalty, but Newton got up holding his chin.Newton didnt seem sharp until late in the game, but the two-time Pro Bowler said the hit didnt affect him.NOTES: Benjamin finished with 109 yards receiving for the Panthers. ... The Falcons are 4-0 in the division, beating Tampa Bay twice and Carolina and New Orleans once each.___AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL Earl Mitchell Jersey . This was one of them. Omar Infante homered and tied a career high with six RBIs to carry the Kansas City Royals over the Baltimore Orioles 9-3 on Sunday. Jerick McKinnon Jersey . Wiggins, a 6-foot-8, 200-pound forward who plays his first exhibition game on Wednesday against Pitt State, was the top prospect in the class of 2013. http://www.officialsanfrancisco49ersfootball.com/authentic-steve-young-jersey-womens . The Americans, skipped by John Shuster, seized the advantage in the eighth end by scoring five points for a 7-3 lead. The Czechs pulled two back in the ninth, but Shusters team of third Jeff Isaacson, second Jared Zezel and lead John Landsteiner ended with another point to secure the last Olympic berth on offer. Joe Montana Jersey . Last year, Islanders forward Colin Mcdonald released a "Do It For Colin" campaign to promote his teammate and friend John Tavares for the EA sports honour:The most popular sports voting video ever has to go to Chris Bosh who showcased his comedic abilities in his effort to get fans to vote him into the 2008 All Star Game:You can vote for TJ and other star players for the NHL 15 cover vote here. Ahkello Witherspoon Jersey . PETERSBURG, Fla.Put your socks back on, turn off your calculators and no need to study up on the law of probability after Costa Rica followed up their demolition of Uruguay with a thoroughly well-deserved victory over Italy, the 1966 World Cup winners can pack their bags for home. You have to go all the way back to Sweden 1958 for the last time England was knocked out of a World Cup at the Group Stage. At least then England went into their third and final group game against the Soviet Union knowing even a draw may have been enough to reach the knockout stage. Outside of other World Cups where England were either not permitted to enter, or were eliminated in qualifying, Brazil 2014 now ranks as their worst ever showing at a World Cup. This for the nation that sowed Planet Futbols roots. They may have performed admirably against Brazil last spring when they drew the hosts 2-2 to launch the renovated Maracana but England and Brazilian World Cups make strange bedfellows. Humbled by the US, they also failed to advance from the group when Brazil last hosted in 1950. The tabloid daggers will be calling for Roy Hodgsons head. Any thought of that, though, has been dismissed by the FA chairman, Greg Dyke who throws his full support behind the beleaguered manager and stated Hodgson would lead England through EURO 2016. From technical deficiencies, an inability to maintain possession or tactical naivety right on through the plethora of theories which abound, the plain fact of the matter is England dont do international football tournaments. Their 14th appearance at a World Cup, and outside of the lone triumph on home soil in 1966, Italia 90 was the only other time England have got past the quarterfinal stage Underprepared was the excuse trotted out for SA2010, what was it this time? An excuse which will get trotted out is the abundance of overseas players in the Barclays Premier League which limits the prospects and options of English players at the top level. When I was a kid, England failed to qualify for the 1974 and 1978 World Cups at a time a significant majority of the players in the top flight were English. It will take more than regular appointments with globally renowned Sports Psychologist, Dr. Steve Peters who joined Hodgsons backroom staff back in March, to understand why failure stalks and hounds England.dddddddddddd Having worked marvels with the London 2012 GB Cycling Team, Peters was tasked with ensuring England played with an absence of fear. Hardly. Level heads dont aimlessly hoof balls away, as we often saw when Uruguay threatened. As all good dramas need a villain, so who better than Englands Tormentor in Chief on Thursday, Luis Suarez. David Beckham filled that role in 1998 after he was sent off in the Round of 16 match against Argentina. Such was the outcry still months later, an effigy of Beckham was hung up outside a pub near West Hams ground on the day Manchester United were playing at Upton Park. Anything like that occurs; Suarez could use it as reason not to return to Liverpool. Earlier on Friday the Spanish newspaper, El Mundo Deportivo reported there is a €80m ($110m) release clause in the Uruguayans contract that Barcelona are close to striking. The post-match comments from Suarez where he rebuked the English public and took to task Roy Hodgson could be taken as an indicator of an Anfield exit strategy. In the mould of the French Football Federations Clairefontaine, or the FIGCs Coverciano facility the opening in late 2012 of St Georges Park which is home to all levels for both the England men and womens national teams will certainly be of benefit to the next generation. However, for the more senior members of the squad this was their last shot at World Cup glory. Following one of his worst performances in an England shirt Thursday, where his mistakes led to both of Uruguays goals, it was not the way Steven Gerrard would have wanted to exit the international arena. The Liverpool captain is expected to announce his international retirement following the World Cup. This may come even as early as following the final whistle next Tuesday when Costa Rica will be looking for the scalp of a previous World Cup champ for a third straight time game. Not bad for an island nation. Noel.Butler@BellMedia.ca @TheSoccerNoel on Twitter TSN Radio is an official licensed radio broadcaster of the 2014 FIFA World Cup™ Brazil. Check www.tsn.ca/radio for the broadcast schedule in your home town. 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