o rarely has a bad game but his talent may not be in line with the level his

LAKE FOREST, Ill. Dion Waiters Heat Jersey . - If the New Orleans Saints are looking for comfort, they can take some in this: Their week was almost smooth compared to their opponents. And unlike the Bears, theyre still in the playoff hunt. The Saints will try to shake off their most lopsided loss of the season and give their post-season hopes a boost when they visit Chicago on Monday night. Its a matchup between two of the leagues most disappointing teams. You can watch the game live on TSN1, TSN3 and TSN4 at 8:30pm et/5:30pm pt. They come in with identical records (5-8) and are trying to put a difficult week behind them. The Saints got blasted 41-10 at home last week by Carolina. The Bears got hit with another round of turmoil, with offensive co-ordinator Aaron Kromer acknowledging he was a source behind a critical report by the NFL Network about quarterback Jay Cutler. Man, this is a humbling league, New Orleans coach Sean Payton said. The Saints began the week tied for the NFC South lead with Atlanta — their next opponent — despite dropping four of five. They allowed 497 yards and got pounded by a Carolina team that came in with six straight losses. Payton said during the week he would not rule out lineup changes, and safety Kenny Vaccaro said Thursday his role is changing. He would not say exactly how, and his coach offered few details. Payton also made some roster changes this week, cutting receiver Joe Morgan on Tuesday and promoting receiver Seantavius Jones from the practice squad. A lot of it is the expectation that showing up and playing is enough, right tackle Zach Strief said. Its not: OK, I put my uniform on, I look good, I walk out on the field and now that were here and were the Saints and we have this history where well win games, now were just going to win this game. ... Thats not the reality of this league. For the Bears, this season has been one harsh reality check. They came in with visions of a playoff run, only to fall out of contention for the seventh time in eight years. The situation with Kromer was just another in a line of distractions. He owned up in public to what he did on Friday after asking players and coaches for forgiveness on Monday. That happened after he complained to the NFL Networks about Cutlers ability to audible out of run plays that might not work. The story also suggested the Bears had buyers remorse for signing their quarterback to a contract extension after last season. But according to the Chicago Tribune, Kromer insisted in his apology to the team that he never mentioned that. Kromer said he never considered quitting over this and coach Marc Trestman insisted he did not think about firing him. But the episode raised more questions about the leadership and the direction of the franchise in a season when there were already more than a few. The Kromer situation was just another log in a fire that includes linebacker Lance Briggs missing practice to open a restaurant near Sacramento in the week leading up to the opener; defensive end Lamarr Houston suffering a season-ending injury celebrating a meaningless late sack at New England; and some eyebrow-raising incidents involving Brandon Marshall. Among them was a long, rambling news conference over past allegations of domestic abuse; flying to New York weekly to record Showtimes Inside The NFL program; and challenging a Detroit fan on Twitter to a boxing match for charity. Kromers leak cuts to one of Trestmans pillars, and that is building relationships based on trust. There appeared to be a breach even if Cutler insisted the offence came away from Mondays meeting in a better position. He owned up to it, Cutler said. He let everyone know, Hey, I made a mistake. This is where we stand. And this is where we need to move on to. I wish more guys were like that. He said the Bears have to continue on and that the offence will come together. But they have looked more like a broken bunch. The Bears have been hit hard by injuries, with Briggs, Charles Tillman and Marshall among the key players on injured reserve. Chicago joined the 1923 Rochester Jeffersons as the only teams to give up 50 or more points in consecutive games when it got pounded by New England and Green Bay. The struggles on defence and regression on offence have added up to the most disappointing season in recent memory. We know the (offensive) system works, Kromer said. It worked last year. And its worked in the past in places both myself and Marc have been. Question is: Who will be around to fix the Bears after this season? ___ AP NFL websites: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP_NFL Jimmy Butler Jersey . Hes the same player he always was, only now his efforts are being rewarded. The rookie manager has made a habit of heaping praise on others when things are going well, and accepting criticism when they arent. But in the case of Hurtado, its what the coach is NOT saying that may be the secret to a superb run of form. Tyler Herro Heat Jersey . Pospisil, whose season-ending goal is to improve his ATP Tour ranking enough to qualify for one of the 32 seedings at Januarys Australian Open, dominated Karlovic in 59 minutes. The world No. 40 never faced a break point and limited the big mans threatening ace count to a mere eight, while striking five key aces of his own. https://www.heatlockerroom.com/Alonzo-Mourning-City-Edition-Jersey/ . LOUIS -- St.Free agency is fascinating in North American sports. 2010 and 2014 may be remembered by many as World Cup years but if you are an NBA fan both summers will be forever linked by the decisions made by LeBron James. One was a full on farcical television special and another was a magazine exclusive. Big business. In the NHL many of the top players are signed the day they are available. July 1. Happy Canada Day hockey fans! It is very unusual for a star player to have not found a team by the second day of the month. Major League Baseball takes more time and is currently in the middle of free agent frenzy, a period that starts five days following the World Series and usually runs to some point in January. Occasionally, for some, it continues much longer if they have been extended a qualifying offer, which is linked to a draft pick by their former team that they turned down. For baseball fans the excitement of seeing so many different players linked to different teams is a way to get through the dark days of winter before the magical words pitchers and catchers report to spring training hit the newswire. In the Premier League there is no such fuss. English football is still coming to terms with the idea that an employee can become unattached and free away from its club once the contract ends, something that only became possible in 1995 with the Bosman ruling. There are many differences between the ways the players look at their contracts in English football than in North American sports. Far fewer high-profile footballers go into their final year of a contract and even fewer see it run out completely and those that do can begin to open negotiations with other teams once the January transfer window is open. It is certainly an unusual process. It would be hard to imagine the San Francisco Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval playing for them in the recent World Series having already agreed to join the Boston Red Sox next season, for example. One thing free agents in any sport have in common is leverage and an ability to get more money than they normally would. In the Premier League, where amounts are given to clubs to purchase players on top of wages, it is clear a players agent can ask for more money per week for his client because they know the club doesnt have to pay a fee for their services. For clubs, though, this can still be a process of bargain buying, so as many shoppers head out around the Black Friday weekend in North America here are five players in the league that could be had for nothing in the next few months. Steven Gerrard – Easily the biggest name available, the Liverpool skipper, much like his club, is having a difficult season. Despite playing every minute of the Premier League season so far questions have arisen about where he is best suited on the field and it looks like its another year of chasing trophies, rather than winning them, for the midfielder. Liverpool fans, of course, want him back and want him to finish his career with one club, but what about Gerrard? His next contract could well be his last and he may decide the time is now to move on. He is a player who could still excel with superior players around him who can take the pressure off and reduce the amount of minutes he plays. Best destination if he leaves – Bayern Munich Why? – Gerrard will not want to play for another Premier League club, being so tied to Liverpool as a club and a community but his legacy on Merseyside would not be altered at all if he moved to Europe for a couple of years to play for a super power like Bayern Munich. The German giants could easily rely on Gerrard to play at a high level against many teams domesttically and use him periodically in European matches. Dwyane Wade Heat Jersey. Winston Reid – The West Ham centre-back is likely on his way from West Ham having failed to come to terms on a new deal with the club. His performances under Sam Allardyce have caught the attention of many teams and in an era where it is very difficult to get a return on a heavy investment on a defender it is not hard to see why teams are interested in one who is a consistent Premier League performer and will soon be a free agent. Best destination if he leaves – Arsenal Why? – Reid is very comfortable in London and staying in the capital while moving to a higher level with the Gunners would be ideal. Arsene Wengers team badly need depth in that position and finding a player of Reids talent without spending money on a large transfer fee is exactly the type of business the club believes in. Ron Vlaar – The Dutchmans stock rose significantly at the World Cup when he was exceptional in a back three and a back four for a side that finished third in Brazil. Vlaar knows, at 29, that the time is now for him to use that to his advantage and move away from Aston Villa, a team that continues to struggle in the bottom half. Despite their struggles, Villa may be wise to take advantage of many teams needing a central defender and sell him for a fee in January instead of losing him for nothing in the summer. Best destination if he leaves – Manchester United Why? – Reunion is the word for Vlaar, which is why he was linked with old boss Ronald Koeman at Southampton last summer but a link up with former national team boss Louis Van Gaal makes more sense. United should be in the market for players better than Vlaar but as they transition towards trying to become a force in European football again a three-year deal would make sense as he is good enough to start for them for the next couple of years and brings leadership qualities the Old Trafford backline certainly misses at the moment. Fabian Delph – Vlaar wont be the only player leaving Villa Park on a free at the end of the season with the English midfielder likely departing in the same manner. Villa fans have seen Delph progress to another level in the past two seasons but having been picked for England that is no longer a secret. Delph, currently out with a shoulder injury, is a big part of the penetration needed in Villas stagnant midfield as he is aggressive and ambitious in his runs with the ball. Best destination if he leaves – Tottenham Why? – A major overhaul is coming at White Hart Lane as new boss Mauricio Pocchetino makes his mark. Currently many big name midfielders are frozen out and young Ryan Mason has been preferred ahead of them but next summer Delph would represent an upgrade over Mason as the likes of Paulinho, Mousa Dembele and Etienne Capoue possibly move on. James Milner – The next few weeks will be very important for the future of the England international. It appears he is now ready to talk about an extension with Manchester City after playing more this season than last but he should think carefully before signing. City are an ambitious club with problems at the moment and if they look to make changes Milner could soon be back out of favour with or without a new contract. Best destination if he leaves – Liverpool Why? – The Reds are usually first in line to purchase English talent and Milner would bring a much-needed work rate to a club that is one of the few teams in England that could get close to the wages he is on at City. Milner is an underrated player who rarely has a bad game but his talent may not be in line with the level his current club wants to reach. ' ' '