SEATTLE SEAHAWKS Reason for pessimism: Its kind of difficult to find much to be pessimistic about in Seattle in 2013. They were the second youngest team in football, so with all the success how will they react this season? Russell Wilson is no longer new to the NFL and teams have significant game film on him. He will have to elevate a new skill set to keep teams off balance. Percy Harvins absence is a concern as he would have been a game changer and a defence dictator. Still, there is very little pessimism with this team. Reason for optimism: The Seattle Seahawks won 11 games last year and in the six losses were by point totals of four, six, seven, four, and three. Seattle was within one converted touchdown of every game last year. Wilson is for real and Marshawn Lynch is the most physical runner in football; as much as Adrian Peterson. They won five regular season games in a row to end the season and in Week 16 beat San Francisco 42-13. The pass rush has improved in free as well. They are 59-29 at home since 2002, second only to Green Bay, and their defence leads the NFL in the most important statistic of all: fewest points allowed with (15.3 per game.) Not much to be pessimistic about; everything to be optimistic about. Prediction: First in NFC West. SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS Reason for pessimism: It is going to be tough to get back. In 2011, San Francisco won 13 games and made it to the NFC Championship game only to lose to the eventual Super Bowl-winning New York Giants in overtime. Then last season, they won an impressive 11 games, made it all the way to the Super Bowl in Louisiana, had the ball for four plays on the seven yard line with time left but lost 34-31 to the Baltimore Ravens. Now Jim Harbaugh is 24-7-1 as a two-year coach. He know the business. But, can the players regenerate the energy necessary to grind out another season, play their best in the regular season and handle the pressure of a New York Super Bowl? Seattle will be better, St. Louis will be better, will the 49ers be better? They did lose eight players in free agency (to be expected) including significant losses Dashon Goldson and Delanie Walker. It really is Super Bowl or bust for the 49ers this season. Reason for optimism: Colin Kaepernick is just going to get better and better. He had an amazing year last year, or to be more accurate, half year. He has a very strong arm and now has Anquan Boldin to work with. Both Patrick Willis and Frank Gore could go down as the greatest 49ers ever at their positions before they retire and Navarro Boman would be the top linebacker on any team except with the 49ers. The individual talent may be better than any other NFL team. Greg Roman and Vic Fangio are excellent coordinators and if the 49ers win the Super Bowl, probably new head coaches. 2013 is all about unfinished business for San Francisco and just about every piece of the puzzle fits. Reality: I can see the 49ers keeping the Rams at a distance but dont know about Seattle. Week 2 at Seattle and Week 14 at home against Seattle are critical games. Prediction: Second in NFC West. ST. LOUIS RAMS Reason for pessimism: The last five years of Rams football have been pretty tough. With two, one, seven, two, and another seven; that totals 19 wins in the last 80 games. And this year they dont have Steven Jackson at running back. Jackson reminds me of the great Curtis Martin: durable, explosive, and able to get the job done year after year. The Rams will miss Jacksons consistency. We will know a lot about the Rams by Week 4: after opening at Arizona, they are at Atlanta, at Dallas and San Francisco on Monday night. To progress and be a playoff team, the Rams still have to improve in the kicking game: 31st and 26th in punt and kick return is not playoff efficient. They also have to improve their takeaway/giveaway ratio as they finished - 1 by the end of the season. The Rams are on the rise and everyone in the NFL knows it; especially San Francisco and Seattle. Reason for optimism: They could finish in first place in NFC West. For the first time in his NFL career Sam Bradford will have the same offence to run. He will improve just because of that fact. Tavon Austin will not only help the offence but the return game as well. And the Rams have an excellent kicker in Greg Zuerlein who made seven 50-yard plus field goals last season, including a 60-yarder. Still, the biggest reason is Jeff Fisher as head coach. His overall record is 149 wins, 128 losses and one tie. You add all those games up you have 278 games of coaching experience. If any coach can correctly evaluate, adjust, improve and capitalize based on experience, its Fisher. Reality: Its not that the Rams arent good, it is that the other teams are good too. If the Rams can stay healthy going into December and progressively improve then yes, they can knock either San Francisco or Seattle into third place. In December they play at San Francisco and in Seattle. This is a good team on the verge of great, but not quite yet. Prediction: Third in NFC West. ARIZONA CARDINALS Reason for pessimism: Basically the Arizona Cardinals are starting all over again. There five-year win totals are nine, 10, five, eight, and five. It really showed how good Kurt Warner was. Nobody felt Warners departure more that Larry Fitzgerald as a wide receiver. Each team in their division is on the way up and in some ways so are the Cardinals. They certainly are not unwilling to make tough moves, with an example being not re-sighing Adrian Wilson who will eventually be in the Cardinals Ring of Honour. Another was drafting Tyrann Mattheiu out of LSU, who has baggage. No risk, no reward . Last year the Cardinals won four in a row and then lost 11 of 12. The all-time low was Week 14 when they lost to Seattle in Seattle 58-0. Many said the Cardinals players just quit trying; pretty heavy criticism. Reason for optimism: Bruce Arians did a remarkable job with Andrew Luck and the entire situation with the Colts. He now has a more experienced quarterback in Carson Palmer and control overall as the top influence over football in Arizona. The question is do they have enough good players? Fitzgerald and Patrick Peterson are two of the best at wide receiver and cornerback. The unknown is running back and the right side of the offensive line. Some teams can absorb injuries because they have winning seasons and have been able to draft and sign players to enhance depth and special teams. Not Arizona, as they are still looking for 22 quality starters for both sides of the ball. With Arians, they have a chance to reach that goal, given time. Reality: They open at St. Louis , they end at San Francisco, and are at Seattle about mid-season. They also travel to New Orleans, Tampa Bay, Houston, and Indianapolis. Their schedule is real tough. Prediction: Fourth in the NFC West. Russell Canouse Jersey . Jacob Jacques, Andrew Ryan and Jonathan Drouin also scored for Halifax (37-18-3), who outshot the Islanders 40-26. Kevin Darveau stopped 25 shots. Bradley Kennedy had the lone goal for Charlottetown (18-33-5), which has nine losses in its last 10 games. Cobi Jones Jersey . JOHNS, N. https://www.cheapusasoccer.com/101j-auston-trusty-jersey-usa.html .9 million deal Thursday. The 25-year McGinn had 19 goals and 19 assists in 79 games last season in helping the Avalanche tie a franchise record with 52 wins. Stitched USA Soccer Jerseys . 5 Trade Deadline isnt that far away and teams will be making decisions on whether to buy, sell and decide which players can make the biggest difference and hold the greatest value. Darlington Nagbe Jersey . Next week, hell try to add to the list. A Stanley Cup champion as a rookie, Seguin followed that up by becoming the youngest player to lead the Boston Bruins in scoring.SAN ANTONIO -- Tony Parker was nursing a sprained left ankle and playing a critical playoff game on no sleep only hours after the birth of his first child. It was the perfect formula for a resurgent performance from the San Antonio Spurs point guard. Parker had 23 points and five assists and San Antonio never trailed in a 109-103 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night, taking a 3-2 lead in the first-round series. "Coming into the game I told him this is perfect for you," Spurs forward Tim Duncan said. "This is what he does in situations like this where he doesnt get a lot of sleep or is in a stressful situation. He always seems to play better. I somewhat expected it from him. "He was really excited before the game. Obviously, he was really excited to have his son here and wanted to get this game really badly not only for his son but for the situation and the timing of it. He was really focused and it was good for us." Parkers rebirth put San Antonio on the verge of closing out a tense series against its intrastate rival with Game 6 set for Friday in Dallas. Vince Carter scored 28 points on 10-for-16 shooting for the Mavericks. Carters 3-pointer with 3 minutes left pulled Dallas within 98-94 but Parker followed a minute later with his only 3-pointer of the game for a 101-94 advantage, punctuating the shot with a loud scream. His son Josh was born early in the morning to his fiancee Axelle Francine. "It was crazy, cause it happened last night, late," Parker said. "I didnt sleep. I basically didnt sleep the whole night and just played on adrenaline today. "Im a happy man right now." After shooting 5 for 14 in scoring just 10 points in San Antonios Game 4 victory, Parker responded with a frantic start. He mixed in three driving layups and two mid-range jumpers to start the game making 5 of his first 7 shots. Parkers drives helped the Spurs struggling offence maintain a consistent rhythm for the first time in the series. Manu Ginobili had 19 points and Tiago Splitter added 17 points and 12 rebounds as San Antonio regained home-court advantage. Duncan added 16 points and 12 rebounds and Kawhi Leonard had 15 points for the Spurs. After averaging 16 points in the series first four games, Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki found the stroke in scoring 26 points on 10-for-20 shooting. But it wasnt enough to overcome Parker and the Spurs returning to form. "Vince shot the ball incredibly, Dirk found his rhythm and really made some tough shots," Duncan ssaid.dddddddddddd"But we were able to counter that offensively by moving the ball, hitting the glass, getting into the paint and getting some easy stuff for ourselves and loosen it up." San Antonio took its largest lead of the game at 24-11 6 minutes into the first quarter as Ginobili hit a 3-pointer seconds after entering the game. The Spurs rediscovered the aggressive defence, long-range shooting and fluid ball movement that fueled them to the leagues best record. San Antonio was 8 for 16 from 3-point range and had 24 assists while committing just six turnovers. The Spurs finished with 54 points in the paint while shooting 47 per cent overall from the field. "I think they moved the ball well and, of course, they got a lot of layups, so thats most of it," Carter said. "They did a great job of just moving the ball and making the right decisions, keeping us on our heels. I think we just have to go back to the drawing board and let it all hang out." Danny Green hit a 3-pointer to give San Antonio a 67-57 lead with 7:22 remaining in the third quarter after starting a fast break by tipping the ball from behind on a driving Ellis. Splitter threw a bounce pass into the lane to feed a cutting Parker for a layup with 7 minutes remaining in the game for a 91-81 lead. Splitter had nine points, six rebounds and four assists in the fourth quarter. The Mavericks were within four points with 3 minutes remaining. Nowitzki had an opportunity to pull Dallas closer but upfaked Splitter and dribbled out of a clean look at a 3-point attempt only to miss a 17-foot jumper with 2:35 remaining. "I would obviously like to have that one back there on the wing when I faked Splitter, to make it a two-point game," Nowitzki said. "That was a big shot. I have to make that one." NOTES: After initially stating that an ouster of Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling was a "slippery slope," Dallas Mark Cuban refused to comment after NBA commissioner Adam Silver did just that Tuesday. "Im going to tell you exactly what I did," Cuban said. "I went and looked at a picture of my house since Im on the road and I saw that it was made out of a whole lot of glass, so I decided I dont have anything more to say on the whole topic. Thats my statement."... Dallas Samuel Dalembert had to be helped off the court after twisting his left ankle while getting tied up with Green on a rebound. Dalembert returned in the second quarter and finished with two points and nine rebounds in 23 minutes. ' ' '