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KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Dee Ford was a bust, a laughingstock in Kansas City, the punchline to jokes that usually referenced broken-down pickup trucks and ended up with them never getting where they were supposed to go.That was last year. Things have changed this year.Now, the 2014 first-round pick is among the league leader in sacks, the emerging star for a defense that has pushed the Chiefs into AFC West contention, and hes the one having all the laughs.Thats human nature for athletes: The more you play, if you work hard, you get better at things the second time you do it and the third time you do it, Ford said. But every player doesnt get better every game, but hard workers do. Its a testament to that.The Chiefs were roundly criticized for drafting Ford with the 23rd overall pick two years ago, when he was rated a second- or third-round talent by many. The Chiefs already had Justin Houston and Tamba Hali at outside linebacker and many other needs on a team in the midst of a rebuild.Those critics only grew louder when Ford rarely got on the field as a rookie.But when Houston got hurt late last season, Ford was pressed into the starting lineup. He responded with three sacks in a game against Oakland and another in the regular-season finale against San Diego, then helped Kansas City win its first playoff game in more than 20 years.That first-round pick nobody seemed to want? Hes been crucial to a 6-2 start.Thats because Houston wound up needing surgery in February for a malfunctioning ACL, and he isnt expected back for at least a few more weeks. Ford has been starting in his place, providing the only real pass rush for a defense that has been carrying Kansas City most of the season.Hes been playing hard. Hes giving you good, hard snaps, Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. Its a tribute to him. Hes taken a lot of heat, so its good for him to get a little bit of taste of this.Ford has had at least a partial sack in five of the Chiefs first eight games, including a 3 1/2-sack performance on Oct. 30 in Indianapolis. He also had the Chiefs only two sacks in a 19-14 win over Jacksonville on Sunday, and nearly had a third when Blake Bortles managed to throw the ball away.His fourth career multi-sack game gave him nine sacks on the season. Thats only a half-sack off Von Millers league lead and was tied with Buffalos Lorenzo Alexander heading into the Bills game Monday night.Theres no way in our league that you can be an effective rusher unless youre just relentless. It just cant be done, Chiefs defensive coordinator Bob Sutton said. He has such great speed that if a quarterback does step up or does step out, even if its away from him, he can track them down. You have to be relentless within the play, and then, relentless within the game.One reason for his success rushing the quarterback is his vast improvement in other areas. He was rarely asked to drop into pass coverage at Auburn, and he struggled to set the edge against the running game when he made it to the NFL. But shoring up those areas has made him a more complete player.As a result, Ford stays on the field more and has more opportunities to get after the quarterback.A year ago I think he started to become a better overall player -- the run game, pass coverage, all that, Sutton said. Then, I think this year, hes kept that thing going and made some really big plays for us in the pass game. Now, I think hes taking his pass rush game and hes improved that.Game notes Reid said QB Alex Smith will start Sunday at Carolina. Nick Foles replaced him against Jacksonville after Smith sustained a head injury against Indianapolis. ... RB Spencer Ware could be ready to face Carolina if he passes the leagues concussion protocol, Reid said. Ware was inactive Sunday. ... There is an outside chance Houston (knee surgery) will play this week. He will be added to the roster by the deadline Wednesday, unless he experiences a setback.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Cheap MLB Jerseys 2018 .C. -- Al Jefferson joked that he feels he can score from anywhere on the court. Wholesale NFL Jerseys China .Y. - New York City has been selected to host the NBA All-Star weekend in 2015, with the game played at Madison Square Garden and the slam dunk contest and other skills events held at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. http://www.cheapchinamlbjerseys.com/ .J. -- Josh Cribbs was in the Pro Bowl in February and out of a job six months later. Wholesale Baseball Jerseys China . 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Thats Jordan Spieths message to Dallas Cowboys fans.But be sure to keep any thoughts of gloating away from social media, too; until they reach the playoffs, at least.Ive been quieter on social media this year about it, Im kind of just like just let them do their thing, Spieth said at Royal Sydney Golf Club, where he is preparing to play in the Australian Open.But come Super Bowl time, if they go through the process and make it there, then we can go nuts ... most people arent Cowboys fans and Ive realized Ill just keep to myself [until then].Currently riding an eight-game winning streak and three games clear at the top of the NFC East, the Cowboys are the hottest team in the NFL.And its all been without star quarterback Tony Romo, with?Dak Prescott thriving in the hot seat of one of the NFLs most scrutinized franchises.Its incredible what theyre doing, Spieth said of the Cowboys.I think they actually just recently named that Dak was going to stay the starter, I think Jerry Jones named that, he continued when asked whether Prescott should retain the starting spot.Its awesome to have two fantastic quarterbacks on the team when we were kind of really struggling last year with Tony out. [Its] fun to watch. I hope I actually get to go back and get to a couple of games. It looks like theyre going to make it into February - so to the Super Bowl.Spieth said Dallas was a ddifferent place when the Cowboys were winning.ddddddddddddI mean when the Cowboys are playing well, the city of Dallas is just rocking, its just a different vibe.Texas is just a huge football state, so its a lot of fun at home now and hopefully [Ill] get to a couple of games.Before he heads back to the U.S. to take in some Cowboys action, Spieths focus is firmly on this weeks Australian Open -- a tournament he won two years ago before his runner-up finish in 2015.This year hasnt reached the lofty heights of his amazing five-win 2015 season, but Spieth said he was maybe a little disappointed really only with the second half of the PGA Tour.I got myself into position early on this year, I mean Hawaii was a better performance than any of the ones in 15, he said.And then the Masters, I got myself into position there, a couple of swings away from another major and then, where else, Colonial, winning the way we did there was a lot of fun, too.So it was just the second half of the year where I would say I maybe tried just a bit too hard, didnt let it come to me, was getting a little frustrated with the lack of first-place finishes; I guess, even though if you win five times a year from the amount of time I expect to be on tour, Ill have more than Tiger [Woods]. So its unrealistic. ' ' '