(SportsNetwork. Salomon Shoes Sale Clearance .com) - There was already a pretty good chance that the final stop in Kevin Williams football career was going to be in northeast Ohio. As an 11-year Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle, Williams fit in nicely with the franchises identity for producing Hall of Fame defensive linemen. Two of the famed Purple People Eaters -- Alan Page and Carl Eller -- are enshrined in Canton and a third one, Jim Marshall, probably should be. The 1980s and 90s generated two more HOF Purple pass rushers in Chris Doleman and John Randle, while the current generation has produced three resumes that will be looking for the stamp of approval in the coming years, Jared Allen, Pat Williams and Kevin himself. Williams, an Oklahoma State product taken with the ninth overall pick in the 2003 NFL Draft, was the best three-technique in football for years while in Minneapolis, amassing six-time Pro Bowl berths and five All-Pro nods with the Vikings. The 6-foot-5, 321-pound Arkansas native is the epitome of country strong, a living, breathing definition of functional football strength, and the kind of guy who always put even the best interior offensive linemen on skates. At 34 though Williams is no longer the star and clearly a player who has lost some of the first-step quickness that defined him as a Viking. And Williams is far closer to the end of his career than the beginning, a reality that prompted him to leave the only professional existence he had ever known, the rebuilding Vikings, in an attempt to check the last box for admittance to Canton, a Super Bowl championship. While shopping for a new home, Williams was looking for two things, a team with the talent to win it all and a proven, battle-tested quarterback to get them there. Interestingly, the two clubs at the top of his wish list are the combatants in Super Bowl XLIX on Feb. 1, the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots, Williams, of course, signed a one-year, $2.1 million deal with the Seahawks back in June of 2014 and is scheduled to be the teams starting nose tackle in the big game. Its awesome, man, Williams said on Monday. Im still kind of in a little disbelief, how we got it done and how the (the NFC Championship Game) unfolded. Now Im back to concentrating on lets get this other win now. Williams was brought in as a rotational player on Seattles front in an effort to increase his effectiveness after a decade-plus of piling up major repetitions for the Vikings. The thought was that the lighter workload would enable the aging star to maximum his production, understanding he could leave it all out on the field for 25 or 30 plays a game. The plan was working well as Williams was solid if unspectacular while averaging 26.7 reps a game through his first nine contests with the Seahawks with a high of 41 against Dallas in Week 6. Things changed from there, however, as Williams was forced to take over the nose tackle position when run-stuffer Brandon Mebane was lost for the season with a hamstring injury. In his later years in Minnesota many thought a move to the nose was the way to go for Williams but the veteran always resisted it despite an impressive 2 1/2 sack cameo at the position in 2013. In Seattle, where Williams had no history as a great under tackle, he has embraced his new role and taken over for Mebane as the starter since Week 11. The workload has increased a bit, especially over the past month as the stakes have gotten bigger and for the most part Williams has come through, most recently contributing four tackles, including one for loss, in the Seahawks overtime win over his old rivals with the Vikings, Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers, in the NFC Championship Game. Its kind of unique how things happened, Williams said. You come in to help contribute wherever you can, you lose one of your starting players to injury and youre moving to the nose. Im just trying to do whatever Im called upon to do and make plays. When ones professional mortality approaches, many players undergo the same metamorphosis Williams has. Its no longer about money or personal accolades, its about the ring. And holding the Lombardi Trophy is the only reason Williams uprooted himself and landed in Seattle for one last run at the games ultimate prize. You play a long time, you get the contracts, you make All-Pros and all that stuff, he said. But you want to play in a Super Bowl. And to be able to do that with this great group of guys, its tremendous. Salomon Shoes Australia Sale . Crawford hit his slam off Pirates starter Edinson Volquez to give San Francisco a four run lead in the fourth and they never looked back. Brandon Belt had three runs batted in as well. Bumgarner pitched all nine innings and allowed just four hits. Salomon Shoes Clearance Australia . The Toronto Maple Leafs were holding a news conference, so they got curious. It didnt take long for them to find out via social media that coach Randy Carlyle was coming back — with a two-year extension — and assistants Greg Cronin, Scott Gordon and Dave Farrish were being let go. http://www.cheapsalomonaustralia.com/ .com) - The Calgary Flames were again involved in a game in which a team was held scoreless, only this time they came out on the winning side.Toronto - Toronto FC and the Columbus Crew will square off at BMO Field on Saturday in the second Trillium Cup match of the season. TFC was victorious in the first meeting between the two sides with a 2-0 win at Columbus, but the result sparked a run of three straight defeats for the Canadian club. You can catch all the action on TSN and TSN Radio 1050 beginning at 5pm et/2pm pt. The Reds appear to back in form though, managing four points from their last two league matches. They most recently came back twice to get a point form a 2-2 draw at Sporting Kansas City. It was a tremendous point for Toronto given that the team was without several key players due to international duty. The Reds were also reduced to 10 men in the match as Steven Caldwell was issued a straight red card in the 63rd minute. "We had three of our starting midfield out, so we had a lot of absences," TFC head coach Ryan Nelsen said after the match. "We had three starting players out in three different positions and (SKC) had two out. So everybodys made (a deal) about their injuries and weve got a few out as well. Since the start of the season weve only had to pick a starting 11, the actual starting 11, once." Toronto will look to get Gilberto going this season. He has logged 10 consecutive starts but is still searching for his first goal with the club. "Weve got to pick (Gilberto) up," Nelsen said. "Weve all been through it as players and weve all been through it inn jobs. Salomon Shoes Online Australia. And when you move to a new country like that its very difficult, and we forget hes only 24. "We know how good of a player he is and its our job to pick him up and obviously get his confidence up and get him going and it will. Maybe we could get a penalty one of these days and he can get on the scoreboard." Like Toronto, Columbus has taken four points from its last two games. After an enthralling 3-3 draw with the Portland Timbers, the Crew ran out to a 2-0 home victory over the Chicago Fire to put an end to an eight-match winless run. "I think weve been frustrated that weve been playing well and not getting the results. Were still trying to focus on the product were creating and how were playing," said Crew head coach Gregg Berhalter. "Its nice when you get results. From that standpoint were happy. I think it was a good effort. Obviously were missing some guys but we did a great job." Federico Higuain played a starring role the Crews defeat of the Fire, but the striker will miss Saturdays clash at Toronto due to yellow card accumulation. "You dont replace Federico, simple as that. We get someone on the field that can play their game and were not going to ask someone to come in and play like Federico that would be foolish of us," said Berhalter. "Were going to ask someone to come in and play to the best of their ability. Im confident that we are going to be able to get that out of someone." ' ' '