Offtopic/fun » and 14 touchdowns last season --

Kent 346 for 4 (Stevens 121*, Billings 86*) lead Gloucestershire 221 by 125 runsScorecard For the professional, this is the most stressful time of the year. With every other press release a thanks but no thanks to a player deemed unworthy of further employment, the reminder to observers is a stark one. For all the love in the game, this is when careers and dreams are taken out the back and laid to rest. So today at Bristol, as Gloucestershire toiled amid the weight of Kents middle order, who finished day two with a 125-run first innings lead, with six wickets still in hand, some light shone through the August darkness.Darren Stevens, at 40 years of age, secured his first hundred of a demanding season which could well be his last for Kent. His deal is set to expire at the end of the year and, as of yet, Stevens has yet to see anything resembling a new contract and is keen to sort something soon. Perhaps the most surprising element in this period is that he has had to speak openly about his situation. Usually his performances do the brunt of the negotiations for him.But this year, things have not come as easy. Going into this match, he had scored only 365 runs and taken 26 wickets in the Championship. As ever with a player being in the latter years of his career, he now has to convince the powers-that-be that this is simply a dip in form rather than a terminal decline. In an interview with BBC Radio Kent, he spoke of his belief that he still has the physical capacity to cope at this level. He even relayed a conversation he had with physios at the club who assured him that, if he looked after himself, he could eke out another two years. All he wants is one more.There is a nobleness to Stevens and the 12 seasons he has spent at Kent so far. Even then, theres a savagery that underpins it all, allowing him to fall neatly in the intersection of the venn diagram of stalwart and cult hero. Rarely do the two intertwine as neatly as they do when discussing Stevens. He is the senior pro and the thrill giver; the wily old head and the untameable showstopper. He lives long in the memories of his enemies. Essex fans are sick of the sight of him, convinced he saves his best work for their derby clashes with Kent. His previous championship hundred came against them in June 2014.Perhaps the only regret he may have is that his spectacular feats have come solely within the confines of county cricket. Much of his batting has played out in front of sparse crowds unable the muster the ovation and awe that he deserves. It can at times feel like Stevens is operating in a manner too thrilling for such mundane settings, as if hes popping out in a tank to pick up some fags from the off-licence.Another selling point Stevens was keen to push was his desire to help out the younger members of the team, who are starting to realise their potential. There is every chance that, if any playing deal were to present itself, it may also feature a coaching element, much like Glenn Chapple (Lancashire) and Vikram Solanki (Surrey) took on as their playing careers wound down.It was fitting, then, that Stevens put on his latest masterpiece with Sam Billings at the other end. Billings, one of the poster boys for this very un-English awakening in English batting, where hand-eye and wrists are king and queen, has often spoken of Stevens influence on his career. Even now, with Billings on his way to becoming a global T20 superstar, he talks of Stevens ball-striking ability with the adulation of a kid hanging around the players balcony for a selfie. Their currently unbeaten partnership of 205 for the fifth wicket has come at a rate of five an over, from a potentially precarious starting point of 140 for 4.Having trailed Billings by some distance, as the youngsters exuberance allowed him a sedate start, with just six from his first 24 balls, Stevens stirred upon entering the forties. He reached 52 off his 70th delivery, before another boundary from the 71st took him level with Billings, for the first time. From then on, master and apprentice traded blows, as Gloucestershire were left powerless to stop the one-upmanship playing out in front of them. Every Stevens drive through extra cover was matched by a Billings sweep - orthodox and reverse - as Gareth Roderick did what he could to stem the run flow.Once Stevens was able to negotiate most of the strike, he made his way to 93. The manner in which he would then bring up his hundred was a nod to both sides of the Stevens coin.Some at the Bristol County Ground, who had already decided he would try and get there with a big shot, wondered which stand hed pepper to bring up three figures. Even the Gloucestershire fielders seemed to brace themselves for the big finish. Instead, Stevens went early, catching the field unaware, who had yet to be deployed in key areas. A glorious pick-up over long on off Jack Taylor took him to 99 The field did not bother converging for the one, which was taken into the leg side - Stevens squeezing the life out of his right fist as he completed the single.To be honest, its been a bit of a nightmare really, he admitted at stumps. It was nice to get the 30th of my career, too. Ive been waiting for about two and a half years for that.In the short-term, he reckons that Kent need to bat half of tomorrow, further strengthening their position, before the push for the final 10 wickets begins. For now, that is what concerns him. Air Max 270 Homme Pas Cher . In taking its goal tally to 99 in all competitions already this season, City delivered another demonstration of its lethal firepower at Etihad Stadium to set up a fourth-round match at home to another second-tier team -- Watford. Vapormax Plus Pas Cher Chine . -- The Missouri Tigers might not have a roster full of superstars. http://www.chaussurepascherchine.fr/grossiste-air-max-270/nike-270-blanche-solde.html . -- The plastic that was taped across the lockers in Oaklands clubhouse came down and the champagne that was on ice went back into the cooler. Air Max 720 Homme Pas Cher . -- Arizona knocked off some quality opponents, rolled over a few overmatched ones and grinded out victories even when things didnt go so well. Air Max 270 Homme Soldes . Irving scored 23 points, Tristan Thompson had 20 points and 10 rebounds and the Cavaliers beat the Denver Nuggets 117-109 on Friday night. DETROIT -- The Detroit Lions have taken good care of the ball this season, and now theyre going up against a team that hasnt forced a turnover in a month and a half.Matthew Stafford isnt letting his guard down.Turnovers are a funny thing in this league, the Detroit quarterback said. Sometimes you dont have them for a while, sometimes they come in bunches.The Jacksonville Jaguars are certainly hoping their turnover margin evens out a bit down the stretch.Theyll enter Sundays game at Detroit ranked ahead of the Lions in total offense and total defense, but Detroit is tied for first place in the NFC North while Jacksonville is last in the AFC South. The big reason for that is that the Jaguars are last in the NFL in turnover margin at minus-14.Jacksonville (2-7) hasnt forced a turnover since Yannick Ngakoue intercepted Andrew Luck in a game against Indianapolis on Oct. 2. That was more than 23 quarters ago.Since then, the Jaguars have gone five games without a takeaway, which is tied for the longest drought since the 1970 merger.It has been a point of emphasis and we have to continue to stress it, defensive coordinator Todd Wash said.The Lions, meanwhile, have lost only one fumble this season, and Stafford has been intercepted just five times.Theres things that I still have to clean up, but our guys have done a really nice job of fighting for the ball if its contested, a really nice job of running with proper leverage, and holding on to the ball securely, Stafford said. All that kind of stuff is key. Its a little bit involved with everybody, its something that weve focused on and try to be as good as we possibly can with it.The Lions (5-4) have only forced seven turnovers themselves, but their ability to avoid big mistakes has helped them move into playoff contention despite being ranked 23rd in both total offense and total defense.Here are a few things to watch when the Lions host the Jaguars on Sunday:SLOW STARTS: Jacksonville has another dubious streak going. The Jaguars have failed to score a touchdown on their opening possession in the past 23 games, the longest current streak in the NFL. The Jags havent reached the end zone on their opening drive since Week 2 of the 2015 season aggainst Miami.ddddddddddddSince then, they have 17 punts, three field goals and three turnovers on opening possessions. Blake Bortles has thrown three opening-drive interceptions this season, including one last week against Houston.TIGHT FINISHES: Every game the Lions have played this season has been decided by seven points or fewer. Detroit has trailed or been tied in the final two minutes of regulation in every game, but Stafford has engineered enough clutch drives at the end to lift the Lions above .500.INJURIES: Detroit LB DeAndre Levy, who hasnt played since the season opener because of knee issues, was on the practice field this week on a limited basis. Its not clear when he might be able to return to game action.Its a sign of progress in terms of where he is just in terms of his rehabilitation and those kinds of things, coach Jim Caldwell said. Wed be happy to get him back whenever hes back.The Lions are coming off their open date. In their game two weekends ago, they were missing cornerback Darius Slay because of a hamstring injury, but hes been able to practice fully heading into the Jacksonville game.HOMECOMING: Jaguars receiver Allen Robinson is a Detroit native who went to high school in nearby Orchard Lake. He said he has some experience playing at Ford Field from high school.Robinson had 80 catches for 1,400 yards and 14 touchdowns last season -- and says he kept working hard in an effort to build on that.For me, it was continuing to challenge myself on some of the weaknesses that I felt like I had, you know, as far as always trying to continue to be a better route runner and trying to be more versatile as far as after the catch and creating separation in my routes, he said. I would say that my main, main focus coming into this year was for sure my route running.IMPROVEMENT: The Jaguars have converted only 35 percent of their third downs this season, but they went 10 of 17 last weekend in a loss to Houston.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL .---Follow Noah Trister at www.Twitter.com/noahtrister ' ' '