DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. [url=https://www.thesunslockerroom.com/Isaiah-Canaan-City-Edition-Jersey /]Isaiah Canaan Suns Jersey[/url] . -- Danica Patrick has a two-year-old photo of her in the car at Daytona, on the receiving end of two thumbs up from Richard Petty. "Its a back shot of his butt stickin

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. Isaiah Canaan Suns Jersey . -- Danica Patrick has a two-year-old photo of her in the car at Daytona, on the receiving end of two thumbs up from Richard Petty. "Its a back shot of his butt sticking out," Patrick said, smiling. It had been the extent of the interaction between the pair -- just a playful sign of encouragement from the Hall of Famer to one of NASCARs most popular drivers after she won the pole at the 2012 Nationwide Series race at Daytona. On Thursday, Patrick spent most of her appearance at the Daytona 500 media day brushing off criticism from The King that the only way she could win a Sprint Cup race was "if everybody else stayed home." She refused to fire back at Petty, a seven-time champion, politely stating that he was entitled to his opinion. Patrick handled the comments much in the same way she dismissed Kyle Pettys remarks last year that "shes not a race car driver." "It has nothing to do with where it comes from," she said. "The people that matter the most to me are my team, my sponsors and those little 3-year-old kids that run up to you and want a great big hug and say they want to grow up to be like you. Thats the stuff I really focus on." Patrick talked at length about almost every topic but racing for the second straight year to kick off Daytona. She spent her 20-minute session last year answering questions about her new relationship with fellow driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. This year, Stenhouse again was a hot topic, with people wanting to know: What are their Valentines Day plans? "I did say to him yesterday, Hey babe, I feel like I shouldnt be thinking about this because it should be your job, but would you like me to ask someone to make reservations at a restaurant?" she said. Odds are, the famous pair wont be asking the Pettys to join them for a bite to eat. Petty gave NASCAR plenty to chew on last week when he said Patrick only gets attention because shes a woman, but added that publicity is good for NASCAR. "If shed have been a male, nobody would ever know if shed showed up at a racetrack," Petty said. "This is a female deal thats driving her. Theres nothing wrong with that, because thats good PR for me. More fans come out, people are more interested in it. She has helped to draw attention to the sport, which helps everybody in the sport." Stenhouse said he was proud of the way Patrick handled the media glare. "I would not be happy if it was about me like that," he said. "But I think shes proved she can drive these race cars. Shes got a lot to learn. Heck, Ive got a lot to learn." Maybe theyll figure out why the Pettys have been so petty toward Patrick. "I dont know what their problem is," Stenhouse said. "But, hey, they have opinions and they like to talk." Dale Earnhardt Jr., long NASCARs most popular driver, said Petty was a "little rough" on Patrick. "Danica deals with more criticism than anybody else has ever faced in the sport," Earnhardt said. "She goes by a different set of rules because of her gender, and thats unfortunate. It seems like shes always having to answer to something like that, and thats a pain in her butt. "And frankly its just got to get old." Patrick drew national headlines to NASCAR in her Daytona Cup debut last season when she became the first woman to win the pole and raced up front for much of "The Great American Race." She led five laps and finished eighth. She never came close to duplicating that Daytona success the rest of the season for Stewart-Haas Racing. Daytona marked Patricks best finish during a rough rookie year in which she averaged a 26th-place finish. Patrick was 27th in the final Sprint Cup standings. Her learning curve figures to be steep one. Six-time Cup champion Jimmie Johnson said Patrick would need at least five years to really get a feel for handling a stock car. Even Patrick, who had one win in her IndyCar career, knows she has plenty to learn. Shes winless with one top-10 in 46 career Cup starts and had only one top-five in 60 career Nationwide starts. Shell run the Nationwide race at Daytona the night before the 500. "Stock cars are not my background," she said. "Ive done two full years. One in Nationwide. One in Cup. I still feel like Im figuring stock cars out, and will for a long time." Brad Keselowski, the 2012 Cup champion, said he respected Pettys stance on Patrick and added his comments to the mix. "But I think its a long ways to go out there and say someone will never win a race," he said. "I wouldnt want my name behind that comment. So I think I would probably give a little more time and see how that one plays out because there are races where I think she can win." Like Daytona. Or Talladega. Restrictor plate races where just about anything can happen and often lead to unlikely winners. But at any other track? "I havent seen any indications that would make me think anything different than that," Keselowski said. Enough about The King, lets get back to the boyfriend. "Thats so much more fun," Patrick said. "I havent really done anything on the race track. What would you ask me if there was no fun things like there are today?" Ray Spalding Suns Jersey .J. -- Rampage Jackson scowled, howled, then bellowed to the crowd: "Im back! Im back!" With rebuilt knees and a new promotion, Jackson might have one more act left in MMA. Jason Kidd Jersey . His chance at winning a Stanley Cup in Philadelphia is over. Same with Jeff Carter. And Brian Boucher. Throw in Ville Leino and Dan Carcillo. https://www.thesunslockerroom.com/Ty-Jerome-City-Edition-Jersey/ . Mueller is the grandson of the late Ron Lancaster, the Hall-of-Fame quarterback and longtime head coach in the CFL. Last season, Mueller was quarterbacks coach of the University of Regina Rams, his alma mater.Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - The NFL is almost universally regarded as a copycat league and for the most part that sentiment is true. When it comes to Xs and Os, plagiarism is certainly an accepted part of professional football and imitation is truly the sincerest form of flattery in the coaching ranks. We are a copycat league, you bet, NFL head of football operations Troy Vincent recently told the Associated Press. If Peyton (Manning) and Philip (Rivers) and (Drew) Brees and (Tom) Brady are doing something thats good, then go out and try to do the same thing. That kind of piracy has never reached into the front office, however. No NFL team has had more success in the Super Bowl era than the Pittsburgh Steelers, who already possess a record six Lombardi Trophies as they prepare to embark on their quest for a seventh Saturday night against the Baltimore Ravens. And the Steelers are renowned for their stability, employing all of three coaches since Chuck Noll arrived in Western Pennsylvania in 1969. That continuity has helped spawn the record six Super Bowl crowns with each coach -- Noll, Bill Cowher and Mike Tomlin -- contributing to the collection. Black Monday is the yearly reminder that few organizations plan to play copycat when it comes to Pittsburghs history of success, with impatience, anxiety and often ego trumping common sense. The first official domino fell Sunday night in Santa Clara when the messy Jim Harbaugh-Trent Baalke divorce finally became official. The 49ers and Harbaugh officially parted ways after Sundays 20-17 win over Arizona, a move weeks in the making and one the team called mutual if mutual means the politician (Baalke) winning a power struggle against the bull in a china shop (Harbaugh). The 49ers announced they have already begun a search for a new head coach and the team quickly asked for permission to talk with Denver offensive coordinator Adam Gase during his bye week. Jim and I have come to the conclusion that it is in our mutual best interest to move in different directions, 49ers CEO Jed York said. We thank Jim for bringing a tremendous competitive nature and a great passion for the game to the 49ers. Harbaugh led the 49ers to a 44-19-1 record in four seasons with three consecutive appearances in the NFC Championship game and one trip to the Super Bowl. He, however, didnt get along with a lot of people in the building and it was clear months ago that the first sign of things going off the rails would give Baalke the excuse to move on. Harbaugh is expected to land on his feet as the highest paid college coach at his alma mater, the University of Michigan, with multiple reports indicating he will be named the Wolverines new head coach by Tuesday. Its been the time of my life. Theres been a lot of memories, great moments, Harbaugh said. I feel like Im going to be friends for life with anybody who wants to be. Others wont have a golden parachute waiting for them. The Jets kicked things off on the actual Black Monday as team owner Woody Johnson cleaned house, firing both head coach Rex Ryan and general manager John Idzik after a 4-12 season. After extensive thought and reflection about the current state of our football team, this morning I informed Rex Ryan and John Idzik that they will not be returning for the 2015 season, Johnson said. Both Rex and John made significant contributions to the team, and they have my appreciation and gratitude for their efforts and commitment. Steve Nash Jersey. Over the years, Rex brought the Jets a bold confidence and a couple of great postseason runs, which all of us will remember. Johnsons decision probably wasnt all that fair to Idzik, who was on board for only two years and never got the opportunity to hire his own coach but thats a tough sell to long-suffering Jets fans, who blame Idzik tor two failed drafts. The lack of development from quarterback Geno Smith -- selected as part of Idziks first draft class -- was a major reason for the Jets struggles this season. He was benched after a Week 8 loss to Buffalo, then returned to the starters role a month later in a Dec. 1 loss to Miami, long after New York was no longer relevant to the playoff picture. Next up was Mike Smith in Atlanta, who was dismissed after seven seasons, one day after losing 34-3 at home to the Carolina Panthers in a winner-take-all game that determined the NFC South champion. The Falcons finished 6-10, their second straight losing season. Atlanta reached the playoffs four times and captured two division titles in Smiths seven seasons, but had just one postseason win, posting five straight winning seasons under Smith before going 4-12 last in 2013. Smittys contributions to our club, team and city over the last seven years are numerous, Falcons owner Arthur Blank said in a statement. His accomplishments on the field made him the most successful coach in the 49-year history of the Falcons, and we are grateful for the foundation he has laid for us for the future. The next domino was a housecleaning in Chicago as the Bears fired both head coach Marc Trestman and general manager Phil Emery on the heels of a 5-11 season. Emery spent three years at the helm and brought in Trestman from the CFL in January 2013 after inheriting coach Lovie Smith, who was fired despite a 10-6 season in 2012. The Bears floundered the past two years, posting an 8-8 mark in 2013 before this years disappointing finish. Chicago hadnt finished below .500 since a 7-9 mark in 2009 and suffered through its worst season since a 5-11 record in 2004. Considered a successful quarterbacks coach, Trestmans ultimate sin was the play of Jay Cutler. The veteran quarterback struggled in 2014 and was even benched for Week 16 against Detroit before playing in Sundays season-ending 13-9 loss to the Vikings after Jimmy Clausen suffered a concussion against the Lions. I want to thank Virginia, George and the McCaskey family, Phil Emery and Ted Phillips for giving me the opportunity to be the head coach of the Chicago Bears, Trestman said. I also want to thank all the coaches and players who gave us everything we asked over the past two years. I have tremendous respect for this organization. Chicago is a special city with great fans. Emery was tied to the Trestman hire and the McCaskeys believed giving him the leash to pick another coach would have been untenable to the Second City faithful. Whether any of the coaches removed Monday rebound to have greater success in a future stop remains to be seen but they all now understand hiccups wont be tolerated in most cities. Meanwhile in Pittsburgh, a legacy that morphed into mediocrity in 2012-13 with a 16-16 mark over that span was answered by staying the course. And the GPS arrived at its destination on Sunday with the organizations 21st division championship. You would think someone might want to copy that. ' ' '