NEW ORLEANS -- The Saints and Falcons?came together for a display of unity Monday night, joining hands in a circle on the field following the national anthem.ESPNs Lisa Salters reported from the sideline during the broadcast that Saints coach Sean Payton reached out to Falcons coach Dan Quinn with the idea earlier in the week and that player leaders from both teams loved it. The coaches left it up to their quarterbacks, Drew Brees and Matt Ryan, to come up with the exact way for that statement to be both unifying and respectful of the national anthem.Payton and Quinn figured it was a great way for players to join the growing protests around the NFL against injustice in America while still making it a message about unity, especially with two longtime rival teams from culturally rich cities. They planned to spend a minute holding hands in thought and prayer.I reached out to Drew [Brees] and just told him we were on board, Ryan said. But I think the big thing was, I mean, obviously, everybody knows whats been going on throughout this entire year and for a long time. And people think things need to change. We all felt like the best way to do it was everybody do it together. And we wanted to send a message loud and clear that unity is probably the best way to make a change, and I thought that came across loud and clear tonight.The gesture was inspired by the latest police shootings in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Tulsa, Oklahoma, this past week. A source suggested to Salter that a handful of players had been feeling outside pressure to join the cause, but they didnt want to do it at the expense of the teams.Saints running back Mark Ingram expressed that very conundrum earlier this week.Well probably come up with something before Sunday. We just want everybody to be on the same page, and we want it to be unity, said Ingram, who has strongly supported the message of San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and others who have protested during the national anthem and who said more than once Friday that his heart is hurting.We want it to be all, everybody, because thats what were trying to do. Were trying to bring everybody together. Our nation needs to come together. Everybody needs to care for each other, Ingram said. And thats whats so good about sports. It brings everybody together, no matter what race. These are my brothers in here. Guys I played with in the past, those are my brothers. You dont see color. You just see a guy who you work hard with and go to battle with and work with every single day.I understand that theres differences when you go out to the real world, so we just want to set an example, and we want to bring unity. We want everybody to be together and dont want to do anything that causes division or controversy.Brees was one of the most vocal critics of Kaepernick and his decision to use the national anthem as his forum for protest. Brees said he supported Kaepernicks message but wholeheartedly disagreed with his method because he found it disrespectful to the flag and the sacrifices of military members.Its a serious issue, Brees said after the Falcons 45-32 victory Monday, and we felt like an appropriate way to show our unity and bring attention to that was by making that circle together, everybody lock arms, take a moment of silence, to pray, to be in thought, meditation, whatever you want to do. ... [It was] the way we would like to give attention -- after the national anthem -- in a way that shows were all in this together.Falcons tight end Jacob Tamme issued a statement on Twitter after the game praising the pregame show of unity as what we wanted to show tonight.Said Ingram earlier this week: I know people have different opinions about the anthem. But Kaeps cause and what hes doing it for, for the injustices of not just blacks but anybody who [is a victim of] police brutality ... I know it happens to everybody, whites, blacks, Asians. Its just unfortunate.So I support [the protestors] and everything they stand for 100 percent. But with my team, I want us to do something that we all would be proud of. Its just unfortunate whats going on in our country right now. Nike Air Max 720 Damen Sale .com) - The Calgary Flames aim to bounce back from their first regulation home loss of the campaign on Friday night when they host a Detroit Red Wings club that they swept in three meetings a season ago. Nike Air Max 270 Kaufen Schweiz . Pierce was ejected in the third quarter of Indianas 103-86 win Monday. George Hill stole a bad pass and was going in for a layup, and Pierce hustled back and appeared to be trying to wrap him up. http://www.shopairmaxschweiz.com/vapormax-fake-kaufen.html . McPhee said that Ovechkins father Mikhail is in stable condition after having the surgery this week and is no longer in intensive care. "Weve told him to stay as long as necessary with your dad," he said. Ovechkin and his Russian national team were eliminated from the mens hockey tournament in Sochi on Wednesday with a 3-1 quarter-final loss to Finland. Nike Air Max 270 Damen Schweiz . Andrew Luck lost his favourite target and the Indianapolis locker room lost one of its most revered leaders when Reggie Wayne was diagnosed Monday with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee that will cost him the rest of the season. Nike Air Max Plus Schweiz . Robredo, ranked No. 16, bounced back from an upset loss to Leonardo Mayer in the second round of the Royal Guard Open in Chile last week to down Carreno Busta in 1 hour, 25 minutes. On a day filled mostly with qualifying matches, fifth-seeded Marcel Granollers of Spain also entered the second with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia, while Guido Pella of Argentina defeated Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 7-6 (6), 6-4 to advance. AKRON, Ohio -- Shane Lowry of Ireland says if the Olympics were anywhere other than Rio de Janeiro, he would be the first to show up. Instead, he is the sixth golfer to withdraw because of the Zika virus.Lowry, who got married in April, said he wants to start a family and soon and he received firm medical advice from doctors in Dublin that he should not go to Rio. He joins Rory McIlroy as the top two Irish golfers who wont be in the Olympics because of Zika concerns.That means Padraig Harrington at No. 159 in the world and Seamus Power (No. 283) would play for the Irish flag in Rio.Theres too much of a gray area for me, Lowry said. Theres not a 100 percent way of saying you have it or you dont have it when you get back, so thats a problem for me and my wife, especially. If I came back from Rio and was able to say 100 percent that I didnt have it? Then it might be a different story.Lowry said he read all the material from the PGA Tour and European Tour and met specialists in Dublin.They left it to me, he said. But they advised me that if I went to them and said I was going to Rio on a holiday, they would advise me not to go. It was our decision. It was a tough decision to make..dddddddddddd. Because I wanted to go.Others who have withdrawn specifically because of Zika are Jason Day, Charl Schwartzel, Branden Grace and Marc Leishman. Lowry said if he were single, that potentially would change his plans. And if the Olympics were elsewhere?One hundred percent, Id be there. Id be the first person there, he said. I was going for the whole lot and planning to stay on afterward. But Im recently married, were thinking about starting a family and its not ideal to be going places like that.Four other golfers already have pulled out for reasons beyond Zika, such as a crammed schedule. Lowry believes the threat of Zika has to be considered more for golf than most other sports.We do seem to be more at risk, he said. Were on the golf course for six hours a day, seven hours a day. Other athletes are in a stadium. This is just my opinion, but other athletes have been training four and eight years to go to Olympics. I can see why theyre going. Its the pinnacle of their sport. Its not the pinnacle of golf yet. It could be in 20 years time. ' ' '