IRVING, Texas - Before he became the Dallas linebacker caught up in the critical pass interference penalty that wasnt in a wild-card win over Detroit, Anthony Hitchens was a steadily improving rookie playing a much bigger role than the Cowboys anticipated. Cheap Nike Air Max Uk Store .Nothing about that description has changed in his mind now that millions more people know who he is.Im just a guy who is trying to do his job, Hitchens said. I dont make calls. All I can do is get to the ball and do my job. Thats all I can say.Hitchens sprinted into the spotlight when he was trying to run down Brandon Pettigrew and made contact with the Lions tight end just before Matthew Staffords pass hit Hitchens in the back and he eased up before rolling over Pettigrew as both players fell.One official threw a flag, and referee Pete Morelli announced the penalty before another official overruled the call, saying there wasnt enough contact for interference. A day later, the NFL said there wasnt any interference, but that Hitchens should have been called for holding.People are still talking about it, even with the Cowboys (13-4) well on their way to preparations for Sundays division-round game at Green Bay (12-4).I think I did a pretty good job of closing the distance and at least trying to get my head turned around, Hitchens said. You can always improve. Just focus on more of the negatives than the positives at that time.The Cowboys were criticized for taking Hitchens in the fourth round out of Iowa when he projected as a later-round selection. They took him as insurance for oft-injured Sean Lee, who tore a knee ligament on the first day of off-season workouts less than a month later.Its been a whirlwind since for Hitchens, who has started at all three linebacker spots and is third on the team in tackles with 100. The leader is safety Barry Church, ahead of linebacker Rolando McClain, who was acquired in a trade just before training camp with the Cowboys hoping he could take Lees starting spot.McClain has had trouble staying healthy, and Justin Durant was lost to a torn arm muscle halfway through the season. Hitchens made it through all 16 games, then played through a sprained ankle against the Lions after missing practice all week. He was out again Wednesday.We planned to have him in a role where he wasnt going to have to play that much, coach Jason Garrett said of the wild-card game. Before you know it, Rolando cant play and now hes out there probably playing double the snaps we had planned to have him play.Its been that way since Lees knee gave out in a noncontract drill, and the significance of the injury wasnt lost on Hitchens.That I needed to grow up fast, like right then and there, Hitchens said of what he was thinking at the time. I didnt know if I was going to be in there right then or some other time down the road. I just knew I had to speed up my learning process real soon.Bruce Carter, who missed three games with a thigh injury and had to be replaced by Hitchens, said the rookie succeeded.Normally rookies come in, and they have the rookie wall, and the seasons gone on, Carter said. I dont see him as a rookie, to be quite honest. Hes one of us.The Cowboys liked Hitchens during the draft because of his versatility, but even they didnt think they would be moving him around as much as they have. And they didnt think he would be making the calls on defence, which he has occasionally.I do think he has grown up quickly, Garrett said. Sometimes that happens. When there is an opportunity that is there and there are a lot of people who are trying to fill a void, typically the progression and development happens more quickly and they get thrust into it.NOTES: DE Jeremy Mincey missed practice Wednesday, a day after concussion-like symptoms emerged. McClain is also set be evaluated for a concussion. ... DT Terrell McClain and RT Doug Free missed practice. Both are dealing with ankle injuries.___Online:AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL___Follow Schuyler Dixon on Twitter at https://twitter.com/apschuyler Wholesale Air Max Uk .Commissioner Adam Silver said Wednesday it is inevitable that the league will one day take after European sports and have sponsor names on team jerseys. Cheap Air Max Uk Sale . The Raptors had an early deadline Sunday, a dreaded afternoon game, and they left the bulk of their work until the last minute, as theyve done so many times before. http://www.ukairmax.com/ . The 28-year-old lefty made his MLB debut in 2013, making 10 starts and going 2-5 with 4.05 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. Albers was named the Twins organizations minor league pitcher of the year for 2013.PARIS -- Nothing came easily for Maria Sharapova in the French Open final. Serves hit by her surgically repaired shoulder often missed the mark, resulting in 12 double-faults. Shots that would be winners against most opponents were retrieved by Simona Halep and sent right back. Leads that usually hold up vanished in a blink. On a muggy afternoon, with the temperature in the high 70s (20s Celsius), points were lung-searing struggles. Sharapova was up to the task. In an entertaining and undulating championship match -- the first womens final at Roland Garros in 13 years to go three sets -- Sharapova showed that shes as tough as they come, particularly on the red clay that used to flummox her. She edged Halep 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-4 Saturday to win a second French Open title in three years. "This is the toughest Grand Slam final Ive ever played," Sharapova said. It is her fifth major trophy in all. Remarkably, Sharapova owns twice as many from Paris as the one each she won at Wimbledon in 2004, the U.S. Open in 2006, and the Australian Open in 2008. "If somebody had told me ... at some stage in my career, that Id have more Roland Garros titles than any other Grand Slam, Id probably go get drunk," Sharapova said with a chuckle. "Or tell them to get drunk. One or the other." The 3-hour, 2-minute tangle featured too many momentum swings to count, filled with lengthy baseline exchanges, and terrific defence and shotmaking by both women. Not bad for someone who once famously described herself as feeling like a "cow on ice" when it came to playing on clay, a slow, demanding surface that requires excellent footwork. Now Sharapova knows how to move on clay, and can stretch points when needed. Since the start of 2012, Sharapova is 54-4 with seven titles on clay. Shes also won 20 consecutive clay three-setters, including four in a row this week. "It says that shes very fit. It says that shes very determined," said Sven Groenefeld, Sharapovas coach. "And it says that she never gives up." Sharapova broke into a huge smile while hoisting the trophy overhead, then shaking it with both hands and scanning a stadium that, improbably, has become hers. This was her third final in a row in Paris: She won the 2012 title to complete a career Grand Slam, then lost last year to Serena Williams, who bowed out in the second round this time. Sharapova is 20-1 the last thhree years at Roland Garros -- which is nothing compared to Rafael Nadals 65-1 career French Open mark heading into Sundays final Sunday against Novak Djokovic, but certainly quite impressive. Nike Air Max Cheap Uk Online. "Youre not just born being a natural clay-court player. OK, maybe if youre Nadal. But certainly not me," Sharapova said. "I didnt grow up on it; didnt play on it. I just took it upon myself to make myself better on it." Plus, Sharapova had an operation on her right shoulder, the one she uses to swing her racket, in October 2008. That joint troubled the Russian again in 2013, when she played one match from July to December. She now travels with a physiotherapist, Jerome Bianchi, and told him during the post-match ceremony, "Thank you for keeping me healthy." This was the ninth Grand Slam final for the No. 7-seeded Sharapova, and the first for Halep, a 22-year-old Romanian seeded fourth. Supported by a dozen folks in her guest box wearing red T-shirts saying "Allez Simona," and fans that chanted her first name, Halep acquitted herself well, showing off the scrambling baseline style that carried her to six straight-set wins until Saturday. "I will not forget this match," said Halep, who wiped away tears afterward. Each time it appeared Sharapova was ready to pull away, she was forced to do extra work. At 4-3 in the second set, Sharapova held two break points, but Halep saved both with gutsy groundstrokes. In the tiebreaker, Sharapova got within two points of victory at 5-3, but Halep took the next four to claim the set. Thats when Sharapova left for the locker room, taking an 8-minute break during which she changed out of her sweat-soaked outfit -- and let Halep stew for a bit. Sharapova went ahead 4-2, but Halep broke back to 4-all. It turned out that was her last stand, though. Sharapova wouldnt lose another point, gritting her teeth and shaking her fists after breaking at love for 5-4 with a backhand winner, then holding at love by forcing a backhand error from Halep on match point. When it ended, Sharapova dropped to her knees, caking her shins with clay, and folded her body forward, burying her face in her hands. "I had good tactics today. I opened the angles. Also, I was hitting the ball strong," Halep said. But Sharapova, Halep continued, "was moving really well." 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