FOXBOROUGH, Mass. Womens Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 31 . -- Fumbles plagued Stevan Ridley even when the ball was dry. A steady rain presents another challenge to the New England Patriots running back. It wasnt a problem for him Thursday. The Patriots continued their organized team activities on a soggy day and Ridley gripped the ball as if his job depended on it. It might if he keeps fumbling. "I told one of the young guys today, thats the quickest way to get off the field," Ridley said. "You can ask me first." Hes speaks from experience. Ridley lost fumbles in three consecutive games last season. After the third, in the first quarter against the Denver Broncos on Nov. 24, he was benched for the rest of New Englands 34-31 comeback win in overtime. He lost a total of four fumbles last season leading to three touchdowns and a field goal. So hes been focusing on avoiding a repeat this year. "All you can do is really squeeze (the ball) high and tight," Ridley said. "I think that was a lesson I had to go through and, hopefully, I wont have to go through it again, but who knows? "A little bit of adversity never hurts anybody. ... You take your mistakes, you learn from them and you grow and you just keep on pushing." The third-round pick from LSU fumbled just once as a rookie in 2011, but the Patriots recovered it. He lost two of his four fumbles in 2012 before the problem escalated last year. And his rushing production dropped -- from 1,263 yards and 12 touchdowns on 290 carries in 2012 to 773 yards and seven touchdowns on 178 attempts. So hes concentrating on improving his overall focus on every play. "I think if I can do that I can become a better player," Ridley said. "When you lose focus on the small things -- whether its small assignments, whether its carrying the football, whether its running a route, whether its blitz pickup -- those are things that cost you your playing time." LeGarrette Blount emerged as the top back late in the season, rushing for 431 yards and eight touchdowns in three straight games before both runners were shut down in a 26-16 loss at Denver in the AFC championship game. Blount left for the Pittsburgh Steelers as a free agent, leaving Ridley, Shane Vereen and Brandon Bolden as coach Bill Belichicks veteran backs. "You can go out there and be a starter one game and the next game youre two or three guys behind," Ridley said. "Thats what Coach stresses to us every week. We have to go out there and be as competitive as we can be. Hes going to play the matchups game and we just have to be unselfish enough to capitalize on the plays that we get." Ridleys four fumbles last year came on dry days. It rained during the last regular-season game, a 34-20 win over the Buffalo Bills, and the first playoff games, a 43-22 win over the Indianapolis Colts. Both games were at Foxborough. On Thursday, three months before the regular season, rain fell throughout practice. "Theres no contact so you should be running your routes perfect. You should be catching every ball thats thrown to you. You shouldnt be dropping anything on the ground," Ridley said. "Rain, sleet, whatevers out there, whatever the conditions are, you have to find a way to fight through that." Some had trouble. One receiver fell while trying to cut. "When you have a wet surface, you have to stick to your fundamentals," wide receiver Julian Edelman said. Wet or dry, Ridley knows he must do that all the time. "Were practicing either way. Coach says he doesnt care about the conditions -- rain, sleet, snow -- were playing in them," he said. "You just never know, but whatever it is there are no excuses." Ridley is entering the final season of his contract and tries not to think much about it. "I have to go out there and play football and hit it hard and run the ball and get wide open," he said. "I just have to be the same player Ive been." Anything else? "Try to go out there and be mistake-free." Adidas ZX 700 Cheap . The result means Atletico Madrid now tops the table, with Madrid level on points in second and Barcelona a point behind in third with nine games remaining as the title race shapes up to be the closest in years. Adidas ZX Flux Print Black . He didnt need a whole lot of experience to know what was coming this time.CHICAGO -- Nick Markakis preserved the lead on defence and then enlarged it at the plate. The right fielder hit a two-run homer after preventing one with a leaping catch, sending the Baltimore Orioles to an 8-2 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Monday night. While offence usually is the focus, Markakis didnt hesitate when asked which moment felt better. "Robbing a two-run homer," he said, "especially in that situation." Nelson Cruz and J.J. Hardy each added a solo shot as the Orioles upped their AL East lead to 7 1/2 games over the idle New York Yankees. Cruz hit his 32nd homer, passing White Sox rookie Jose Abreu for the American League lead. Cruz is tied with Giancarlo Stanton of the Miami Marlins for most in the majors. Markakis was 3 for 5 with two RBIs and two runs, but everyone in the Baltimore locker room was talking about his clutch catch. "That was big," manager Buck Showalter said. "The score wont look like it, but obviously it was a big play." The Orioles entered the bottom of the seventh with a 3-0 lead after starter Bud Norris (11-7) retired 17 of his first 18 batters. But he quickly found himself in trouble in the seventh after hitting Alejandro De Aza with a pitch and giving up a double to Alexei Ramirez that put runners on second and third with the heart of the Chicago lineup coming up. Abreu flied out to shallow centre and Adam Dunn struck out. It appeared Norris might escape with his shutout intact, but Avisail Garcias two-run single made it 3-2. Conor Gillaspie followed with a drive to deep right field, where Markakis raced back to the fence and made a leaping grab. "I thought I had a shot at it all the way," he said. "I was going after it. I was doing everything I can to catch it, with the situation of the game and the way Bud was pitching. "It helped us out tremendously and kind of took the wind out of their sails a little bit." The Orioles then broke it open with a five-run eighth.. Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 31 Black. Jonathan Schoop doubled in three runs and Markakis hit a two-run homer to cap the rally. Chicago ace Chris Sale (10-3) took the loss, yielding three runs and eight hits in six innings. He has dropped two straight decisions. The Orioles are the only AL team he hasnt beaten in his career. "We were a great outfielder away from potentially winning that game," Sale said. TRAINERS ROOM Orioles: 3B Manny Machado will miss at least another week with a sprained right knee he sustained while taking a swing last Monday. Theres no timetable for his return. Machado didnt play this season until May 1 because of surgery on his left knee in the off-season. White Sox: CF Adam Eaton (strained right oblique) continues to make progress and the hope is hell be ready to return when hes eligible to be activated from the 15-day disabled list Sunday. Eaton, though, is likely to go to the minors for a rehab stint before then. UP NEXT In the second game of the series Tuesday night, Orioles RHP Chris Tillman (9-5, 3.68 ERA) faces LHP Jose Quintana (6-9, 3.14). ALL DUNN? Adam Dunns four-year, $40 million contract is up at the end of this season and the White Sox slugger hinted Monday there is a possibility he could retire. Dunn, who turns 35 in November, has 459 homers and could move way up the career list by sticking around a few more years (hes just three from tying Jose Canseco for 34th place). But he said numbers, even the possibility of hitting 500 homers, wont be a determining factor. "Its going to be a decision where Im going to sit down with the people who are important to me and make a quick decision," Dunn said. "Whether its tomorrow (or) whether its February, I dont know." WAITING GAME RHP Miguel Gonzalez, sent to the minors Aug. 9, is expected to be back with the Orioles this weekend to start against the Cubs. Gonzalez threw a simulated game in the minors Monday -- Double-A Bowie had the day off -- to prepare for the potential assignment. Cheap Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys ' ' '
