Gruppen » Kingsbury can appreciate their plight. The high-te

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Tennessee Titans thought they finally had the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.Their ground game was chugging along, Marcus Mariota was playing the best football of his short career, the defense had just shut down Aaron Rodgers & Co. and they were about to face a team that had been struggling.Somehow, they still couldnt exorcise The Streak, and now the Titans are heading home looking for answers again.It hurts deeply inside, especially for me personally, having to lose to (Andrew) Luck again, defensive tackle Jurrell Casey said after the 24-17 loss. Like I always talk about, going back to my college days (at Southern California), it is time for me to get over the hump and beat this dude.Luck improved to 9-0 all-time against the Titans (5-6), who have lost 11 straight in the series.But as discouraging as the numbers look, Tennessee still has plenty at stake. The Titans are a half game behind Indy (5-5) in the AFC South chase and two games behind division-leading Houston (6-3). So playoff visions still exist -- if the Titans can rebound from another demoralizing loss to Indy.You cant come into their place and spot them 21 points, coach Mike Mularkey said. We did and we had a chance to come back in the second half and the way our guys came back, I give them a lot of credit. But we cant do that against teams in this stadium.Or any stadium if theyre going to be playing after New Years Day.Tennessee was undone in this one by a mish-mash of penalties, blown coverages and an ineffective offense that got within 21-17 in the fourth quarter despite never really being in sync.Now, its back to the drawing board before heading to Chicago next week.Stay positive, dont get too frustrated, dont do anything dumb and dont listen to the outside, cornerback Perrish Cox said after letting a seemingly sure interception slip through his fingers and into the hands of receiver T.Y. Hilton for a touchdown. We know what we have, and we know we can play with every team in this league.They just have to prove it.Some other things we learned Sunday:NOT SO AUTOMATICColts kicker Adam Vinatieri is human. The oldest player in the league at age 43 missed his first field goal attempt in 14 months when a 42-yarder sailed wide right. It ended Vinatieris NFL record streak of 44 in a row but he atoned by making a 49-yarder in the fourth quarter for the final points of the game. The ball was flying good for a long time, Vinatieri said. I had a little hiccup right there, and I guess were at one in a row now.GROUNDING MURRAYDeMarco Murray had been on quite a run lately until Sunday when the Colts limited him to 21 carries for 70 yards. The Titans running back did reach the 1,000-yard mark for the third time. He also caught a 3-yard TD pass from Mariota. But his longest run was eight yards and his franchise-record tying streak of five consecutive games with a rushing score ended and he was stopped for no gain on fourth-and-1 from the Colts 19-yard line with 2:42 left.TRICKY COLTSIndy dug deep into its playbook against Tennessee. Three times on the first two series, they lined up in the wildcat formation with Andrew Luck lining up at receiver. The third time, Frank Gore took the snap, ran left, flipped the ball to Luck and then got it right back for a 49-yard pass play because he was uncovered. The Titans werent as fortunate Their fake punt on fourth-and-2 from their own 43 went for a 2-yard loss.SURGING MARIOTAMariota continues to impress, throwing two more touchdown passes on a day he did not turn the ball over. Mariota wound up 25 of 38 for 290 yards, ran five times for 29 yards and broke Warren Moons franchise record with his seventh consecutive multi-touchdown game. Continue to play that well, and the Titans will have their chances.---For more NFL coverage: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Adidas Superstar Nederland . After Gasquet beat fifth-seeded Ivan Dodig of Croatia 7-5, 6-3, Tsonga followed up with a 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-2 win against sixth-seeded Edouard Roger-Vasselin in an all-French match. Adidas Stan Smith Nederland .Y. - Free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, fresh off winning the World Series with Boston, reached agreement with the rival New York Yankees on a seven-year contract worth about $153 million, a person familiar with the negotiations said Tuesday night. http://www.nmdtekoop.com/nmd-r1-sneakers.html . -- Aaron Murray threw for 408 yards and three touchdowns, ran for another score, and led No. Adidas Ultra Boost Uitverkoop . Jason Zucker and Matt Cooke also scored for Minnesota, which has won five of six. Kuemper made five saves in the first, nine in the second, and nine in the third. The rookies best save came with 2:17 left in the third period when he denied former Wild forward Matt Cullen from just outside of the crease on the right side. Adidas NMD R1 Nederland . It was just business as usual for the Thunder at home. Durant scored 32 points and the Thunder beat the Bulls 107-95 on Thursday night for their eighth straight win. Its hard out there for a Big 12 cornerback.In a conference full of innovative offenses and gun-slinging quarterbacks, the job of the defensive back can seem impossible at times. They have to play faster, smarter and tougher than ever before. And when they dont, they get embarrassed.In 45 conference games last season, Big 12 quarterbacks attempted throws of 20-plus yards more than 600 times. No other Power 5 conference comes close to matching that barrage. A year ago, the QBs in the conference produced 18 touchdown passes of more than 60 yards during league play. After just 15 games this season, there have already been 10.Only one Big 12 team (Baylor) ranks among the top 60 in FBS in pass defense. Everybody else is just trying to survive the week.Welcome to the island and the many challenges of playing corner in the Big 12.The challenge of being The GuyOklahomas Jordan Thomas had a hunch his junior season might play out like this.Hes arguably the best cover corner in the Big 12. He proved that with five interceptions in his breakout sophomore campaign. Todd McShay projects Thomas to be a top-10 pick if he comes out. But Thomas knew what comes with that hype.Its just what I expected out of this year of being The Guy, he said. Theyre going to see if he really is The Guy. Theyre gonna throw what they can at me.Thomas has nearly twice as many pass breakups this season (11) as any other defensive back in the Big 12. Hes also given up five touchdown passes. Comes with the territory.His game against Texas is a fine example of the boom-or-bust nature of the job. In the first half, Thomas shut down everything thrown his way. In the opinion of Bob Stoops, Thomas played as well as anybody thats been here. In the second half, Texas receivers outran him for scores of 63 and 45 yards.Thats how it goes. The great days can always get spoiled on one or two mistakes.I laugh about it, he said. Its not funny, but at the same time, youve just got to forget about it. Why complain, moan, cry about it? You just keep playing.Hes trying to help Oklahomas young corners learn that mindset. Four different players have tried to hold down the Sooners No. 2 corner job this season. For now, its true freshman Jordan Parker.Even if the young guys do everything the right way in film sessions and practice, they still need the right instincts come game day. As Thomas puts it, Bow your neck and be a player.Yeah, its difficult. Everyone loves to throw the ball around, he said. Everyone watches film. Whatever weakness you show, theyll attack it. When youre out there by yourself, you find out how good you really are. At the same time, its exciting and a fun thing to live in.The challenge of all these receiversOne thing that amazes Oklahoma State cornerback Ramon Richards about playing in this pass-happy conference: the variety of dangerous pass-catchers.These arent regular receivers, he said.Every day in practice, he has to face an All-America-caliber player in James Washington. Some days, they have to stop speedsters like Baylors KD Cannon, Oklahomas Dede Westbrook and West Virginias Shelton Gibson, who can run right past you. Other days, the 5-foot-11 Richards gets physical 6-foot-5 pass-catchers like Iowa States Allen Lazard and OUs Mark Andrews. The Big 12s leading receiver, Texas Techs Jonathan Giles, does his damage from the slot.And its not just the star power that bothers Richards, who has played in 31 games and grabbed seven career interceptions. Its the depth of these receiving corps.The Big 12 currently has 34 receivers with 200-plus receiving yards and 37 whove caught more than 15 passes. Sixty have recorded at least one catch of 30 or more yards. And their coaches are rotating all of them in and out frequently to keep them fresh.Were playing 80 to 90 snaps a game, and sometimes you do have to play every snap, Richards said. These guys are moving fast. You have no choice but to go the whole drive. You have to stay on your toes.The challenge of inexperienceWest Virginias defense held the most-prolific passer in college footballl to 10 points last week.dddddddddddd Texas Tech QB Patrick Mahomes threw for 305 yards (his fifth-fewest in a Big 12 start) on 44 attempts before being pulled in the fourth quarter of a 48-17 loss to the undefeated Mountaineers. On paper, West Virginias cornerbacks shouldnt have stood a chance against Mahomes.Defensive coordinator Tony Gibson is relying on four former transfers -- Rasul Douglas (junior college), Antonio Crawford (Miami), Maurice Fleming (Iowa) and Elijah Battle (juco) -- and veteran backup Nana Kyeremeh to survive.Its a totally new group, Gibson said. Thats the one position where we had nobody coming back who played any meaningful snaps.How was going through an offseason with essentially a brand new group of corners?Very scary. Especially in this league, Gibson said. Maybe if we were in the SEC, it wouldnt be as bad. In the Big 12, you better have a whole stockpile of em.Gibson credits first-year cornerbacks coach Blue Adams with getting all five players ready to contribute. They had big shoes to fill after Daryl Worley -- now a rookie starter for the Carolina Panthers -- decided to go pro. There might not be as big a star in this group as Worley was, but theyre winning on depth and learning as they go.Theyve got to play with extreme confidence and, no matter how good or bad the last play was, move forward, Gibson said. Because stuffs going to happen to you in this league. Thats one thing we stress a lot.The challenge of getting beatTexas was supposed to have one of the best groups of cornerbacks in the Big 12 this year. Davante Davis and Holton Hill both earned preseason all-conference recognition after showing serious promise as true freshmen.Six games into the season, Davis is now a backup and Hill is mostly playing special teams. The Longhorns gave up 15 touchdown passes and 15 yards per completion over their first five games. Charlie Strong has had to make changes. And he doesnt make excuses for how hard it is to be a Big 12 corner.If you do your job, its not very hard, he said. The thing you cant do is give up the deep ball. You cant allow guys to run past you.Kris Boyd and John Bonney, the Longhorns new starters, didnt give up those bombs. Theyve gone back to basics: Keep the ball in front of you and make the tackle.Bonney, a sophomore, admits he didnt play with much confidence in the nickel spot last year. Now hes outside on the island, all by himself, against the conferences best. Hes trying to get comfortable in that role while knowing if he gets burned, someone else can take his spot. Hows that for pressure?I dont think its for everyone, Bonney said, or else everybody would be doing it.The challenge wont ever get easierAs one of the offensive masterminds making these cornerbacks jobs harder every week, Kliff Kingsbury can appreciate their plight. The high-tempo Big 12 offenses continue to evolve in ways that only further stress defensive backs.The fast tempo is a problem. The quarterbacks getting the ball out in just a few seconds is a problem. The popularity of quick screens and those easy access throws Kingsbury and so many other coaches utilize to build rhythm means a corner has to be able to think fast at the line and make tough one-on-one tackles. And when defenses start taking that away?Now youve got to take your deep shot and throw it over their heads, Kingsbury said, and then here goes some star receiver running as fast as he can.And with the touchy-feely nature (Kingsburys words) of how officials call pass interference these days, the risk-reward is in favor of taking that shot. The receivers chances of getting either a big catch or a big gain off a penalty make it all worthwhile. The job of the Big 12 cornerback isnt getting any easier anytime soon.My hats off to all the guys who play that position in this league, Kingsbury said. I dont think they get enough credit.I wouldnt want to play that position, I can tell you that much. ' ' '