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SEATTLE -- Even with all the teaching hes done to change the way tackling is handled in the NFL, Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll still believes in the importance of the big hit.So when Earl Thomas raced across the field and leveled Rob Gronkowski with a shoulder tackle to the midsection last week, Carroll was ecstatic about the result of the play, and the message it sent that the game can still be physically brutal but in a safe way.Neither one of the players got hit in the head. Still the jolt was significant, but if we could show kids how we want them to hit and play this game, and college kids, thats how you do it, Carroll said. Its the new way, its the new way to make hits.The duo of Thomas and strong safety Kam Chancellor are just two of the challenges rookie Carson Wentz has to face when the Philadelphia Eagles travel to Seattle on Sunday. Wentz has passed plenty of tests in his first NFL season, getting Philadelphia into the playoff conversation at 5-4 after last weeks home win over Atlanta.But even Wentz acknowledged theres little that can prepare him for the experience of facing the Seahawks defense in Seattle .You go in there confidently. You dont worry about the extra outside noise and all those things, Wentz said. You just go in there and play ball.The past two weeks have indicated another second-half surge could be on the horizon for Seattle. After holding off Buffalo in a Monday night victory, the Seahawks went across the country on a short week and won at New England , stopping the Patriots at the 1-yard line in the final seconds. They kept a two-game lead over Arizona in the NFC West.It ranked among the more impressive regular-season wins since Carroll arrived in Seattle and showed flashes that a plodding offense could be on the verge of a breakout.Its a process, said Seattle wide receiver Doug Baldwin, who had three TD catches last week. Weve still got some young guys. Our offensive line was pretty much all in new spots, Russell was dealing with some injuries, so there are a lot of things that go into it. Its not just a normal routine. ... I do expect us as the season goes on to continue to get better. Thats one thing I expect.Heres what else to watch as the Eagles and Seahawks meet for the 15th time:ROAD WOES: The Eagles are 4-0 at home and have outscored opponents 108-38, but theyre 1-4 on the road with four straight losses after winning at Chicago on Monday night in Week 2. They fell behind 14-0 in three of those four losses and rallied to either have a lead in the fourth quarter or have the ball with a chance to go ahead on the final drive, only to lose.I think when you are on the road, you try to press just a little bit, coach Doug Pederson said. You try to get that quick, early lead, try to take the crowd of out of the game. You maybe do some things that are uncharacteristic of what you do at home, and we just cant do that.The Seahawks are 31-5 at home since 2012, when Wilson became the starting quarterback.SPLITTING CARRIES: Seattle will have running back Thomas Rawls in the lineup for the first time since Week 2, when he suffered a hairline fracture in his leg. The return of Rawls led to the release of leading rusher Christine Michael earlier this week, but its unclear how the carries will be split between Rawls and rookie C.J. Prosise.Prosise energized a lethargic run game last week against New England, rushing for 66 yards and catching seven passes for 87 yards.A quick emergence is really exciting, Carroll said. Hes coming up and doing stuff. You can see how hes capable.BALL CONTROL: The Eagles rank second in the NFL in time of possession (32:28) and controlled the ball for 38:10 in their win over the Falcons. Ryan Mathews had a season-high 108 yards rushing, helping keep Atlantas high-powered offense on the sideline. Its no secret that a balanced attack is Philadelphias formula for success. Pederson doesnt want Wentz throwing 45 passes per game the way he did in losses to the Cowboys and Giants.WELCOME BACK: Pederson has a longstanding connection to the Seahawks. The graduate of Ferndale High School about 90 minutes north of Seattle went to numerous Seahawks games in the Kingdome as his family had season tickets. Pederson even got to play a high school playoff game in the Kingdome.You just kind of walk on that turf and you go man, one day it would not only be great to play in this game, and who knew back then that youd be a head coach in the league, Pederson said.---AP Pro Football Writer Rob Maaddi contributed to this report.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL. Yairo Munoz Jersey . - After leading the Saints to a fourth playoff appearance in five seasons, Drew Brees expressed confidence in the direction of his team and, perhaps more importantly, showed a willingness to listen to contract proposals if the team needs his help getting under the NFLs salary cap. John Brebbia Jersey . The Brazilian goalkeeper signed a loan deal with the Major League Soccer club on Friday as he looks to get playing time ahead of this summers World Cup in his home country. https://www.cheapcardinalsonline.com/1864t-edmundo-sosa-jersey-cardinals.html . LOUIS -- Heading into the final stretch of the season, the issues for the Chicago Bears banged-up defence only seem to be getting worse. Harrison Bader Cardinals Jersey . The veteran safety was a starter for the Bengals from 2008-2012. He totaled 41 tackles and three interceptions while starting all but four of the 13 games he played last season. Matt Wieters Jersey . Olli Jokinen, Mark Scheifele, and Bryan Little each had a goal and an assist as Winnipeg won 5-2, handing Calgary its record-setting seventh consecutive loss on home ice. (STATS) -- With its regular-season finale on Thursday night, Libertys players can watch the final full weekend of FCS action unfold from the comforts of their dorm rooms knowing theyll at least share the Big South championship regardless of their own result.Thats about all they know.Liberty (6-4, 4-1) lost control of its own playoff fate Saturday, but that doesnt mean its game at No. 16 Coastal Carolina is without meaning. Far from it, in fact, in the first game of what should be a wild weekend in the Big South.Charleston Southern (6-3, 5-1), ranked 14th, revived its hopes of back-to-back conference crowns by blasting the Flames 48-26 in Lynchburg last weekend, leaving those two teams and Kennesaw State with one league loss apiece. But in Libertys case that was its final conference game, so while theres the guarantee of a share of the Big South title, the automatic playoff bid that goes to the winner is still very much up in the air.The Buccaneers will grab it with a victory Saturday against the Owls (8-2, 3-1), but if they come up short their at-large aspirations will disappear thanks to a schedule thats only produced five wins over Division I opponents. Should Kennesaw State pull the upset, that automatic bid will go to Liberty.I really hate depending on other people and thats the kind of situation were in right now, Flames cornerback Chris Turner said. Weve just got to depend on somebody else to put us in the playoffs when we had the opportunity to do it ourselves.While Charleston Southern needs the auto bid, theres hope for Liberty and Kennesaw State to get in come Sunday morning even without it. For the Owls, beating Charleston Southern would give Brian Bohannons program a signature victory in its second year of building from the ground up.Its important to understand where we are, first of all, Bohannon said. If were fortunate enough to go beat a really good football team on Saturday, youll have a football team that is 9-2.Theres no question in my mind, if we take care of business, youre talking about maybe one of the hottest teams in the country. I dont think there is a team that would be more deserving to go play in the playoffs than Kennesaw State.The Flames played a difficult schedule, falling at Virginia Tech in September before hanging with SMU well into the fourth quarter. They also played Jacksonville State and won aat Kennesaw, though the 22-point loss to the Bucs will certainly be fresh in voters minds.ddddddddddddEnter Coastal Carolina, which is likely the last team Liberty wants to see as a potential spoiler.The Chanticleers won parts of three straight Big South titles from 2012-14 but are now transitioning to the FBS, so they wont take part in the FCS playoffs despite having a resume that would probably put them there otherwise. Theyd love to bid farewell to the subdivision by playing even a small part in the demise of Liberty, which is the only current Big South program that Coastal Carolina is under .500 against (6-7).Chanticleers coach Joe Moglia has made no secret of his animosity toward the Flames, who in his mind havent conducted themselves well before, during or after beating Coastal in each of the past two seasons.One of the things that a lot of people are not crazy about is their players ... spend a lot of time mouthing off at you, Moglia said. Theyre doing that at the beginning of the game, theyre doing it at halftime, theyre doing it during the game, theyre doing it during warmups. I dont find that particularly classy, so I wont miss that part.The man whos helmed those 2014 and 15 losses wont be standing on the sideline across from Moglia. Liberty coach Turner Gill is serving a one-game suspension for a self-reported program violation earlier this season, leaving defensive coordinator and safeties coach Robert Wimberly in charge.Hes well organized, he understands the university, understands the way we go about doing things, understands how I coach and how we lead the team, Gill said, so I thought he was the best person to give us the best chance to win this football game and lead our football team.To review: Charleston Southerns in with a win Saturday. A loss and its out, ceding the Big Souths automatic bid to Liberty. Even if the Bucs win, the Flames could get in with an impressive win over Coastal. Kennesaw State needs to beat Charleston Southern and hope the committee likes the Owls overnight success story. The Chanticleers are driving into town hoping to create chaos for their old pals before riding off to the big city.Got it?Come Sunday, the Big South is hoping two teams can say they do, too. ' ' '