the league, Mack leads all players with 185½ quarterback pressures and ranks second with 68 tackles for loss, according to SportRadar.Oakland still has Bruce Irvin as a pass rusher on one

Ben Roethlisberger doesn't talk like someone eyeing the finish line.If anything Derek Carr Jersey White , the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback is doing what he can to push it further into the distance.The 36-year-old overhauled his diet in preparation for his 15th season and points to the lack of time spent in the trainer's room during camp as proof the choices he's made are working.Asked if he feels rejuvenated and Roethlisberger nods."I really like where this team is," the two-time Super Bowl winner said. "I think if you didn't have a good feeling about this team it probably wouldn't be as exciting, but I am excited about this group."The feeling, however, could be fleeting. Eight months removed from a stunning home playoff loss to Jacksonville , the Steelers are well aware the missed opportunities in recent seasons are starting to pile up. While Pittsburgh has reached the postseason in each of the past four years, the Steelers have just three playoff victories to show for it.Though Pittsburgh is heavily favored to win a third consecutive AFC North title, the window that once seemed so wide open could be starting to close. All-Pro running back Le'Veon Bell is likely playing his final season in black-and-gold after failing to come to terms on a new contract. The offensive line features three Pro Bowlers but also three starters in their 30s.While Roethlisberger downplays any additional sense of urgency — he's been around long enough to know that any season that doesn't end with a victory parade through downtown Pittsburgh in early February is considered a disappointment — he's also well aware the standard coach Mike Tomlin mentions so frequently has not been met."Winning games can lead to Super Bowl opportunities is always our ultimate goal," he said. "There are 31 other teams doing the same, but that needs to be our singular focus."A focus that was lacking at times in 2017 even as the Steelers rolled to a 13-3 record.There was the national anthem debacle in Chicago. The drama surrounding enigmatic wide receiver Martavis Bryant. The late season decision to cut linebacker James Harrison. The devastating spinal injury to budding star linebacker Ryan Shazier. Social media chatter of a rematch with New England in the AFC title game, chatter that looked foolish after the Jaguars beat the Steelers at Heinz Field for the second time in four months.The front office has done what it can to limit the distractions heading into 2018. Bryant was traded to Oakland. Harrison is retired. Longtime quarterbacks coach Randy Fichtner takes over as offensive coordinator for Todd Haley. Shazier is walking again and serving as a de facto coach/scout as his body continues to recover.The message could not be clearer: the team that's built to win now needs to win. Now."Time is running out for everybody," center Maurkice Pouncey said. "I know it's all fun and games for everybody at the beginning but man it's time to win. It's been too long."Other things to look for as Pittsburgh vies for a fifth consecutive playoff berth for only the third time in franchise history:REMODELED BACK END: The Steelers gave the secondary a massive overhaul after the Jaguars lit them up for 45 points in January, drafting safety Terrell Edmunds in the first round and signing veteran Morgan Burnett from Green Bay. The goal is to reduce the number of big plays allowed. Pittsburgh gave up 13 passes of more than 40 yards, tied for third-most in the league. Burnett's sure tackling will help in the run game and Pittsburgh believes third-year safety Sean Davis' athleticism will allow him to be an effective center fielder at free safety.FLIP FLOP: Pittsburgh exercised the fifth-year option on the contract of outside linebacker Bud Dupree in the offseason Antonio Brown Raiders Jersey , a sign it believes the 2015 first-round pick's best days are ahead of him despite uneven results in his first three years. The Steelers moved Dupree from the left side to the right side in the spring, confident he'll be a more effective pass rusher attacking the quarterback's blind side. Either way, Dupree understands he's still in the "prove it" mode in his career and needs to become more consistent at a position that's long been a focal point in Pittsburgh's 3-4 defense.BELL'S BET: There may not be a player in the NFL with more at stake in 2018 than Bell. The 26-year-old believes he's in a class by himself among running backs and wants to be paid accordingly. He'll make $14.4 million this season playing under his one-year franchise tender, but thinks he'll be even more valuable on the open market next spring. Bell shouldn't lack for opportunities to show he's worth a massive payday. He led the NFL in touches last season and Tomlin could opt to use him even more extensively knowing he'll be out the door in the spring.TIGHT SPOT: The Steelers are still trying to find a legit heir to tight end Heath Miller, who quietly stepped away in the spring of 2016. While Jesse James has evolved into a solid complementary player, Vance McDonald is the closest thing to a complete package Pittsburgh has at a vital position. One problem: McDonald has struggled to stay on the field. He missed practically all of camp with a foot injury. The Steelers need him to be a factor in the passing game to help take some of the attention off Brown and second-year wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. ALAMEDA, Calif. (AP) — Jon Gruden didn’t mince words.As excited as he was to coach Khalil Mack in his second stint with Oakland, Gruden believes the right move ultimately was to trade Mack to give the Raiders the draft picks and salary cap room needed to rebuild a depleted roster.“It wasn’t my goal to trade Khalil when we got here,” Gruden said Sunday. “One of the reasons I’m here is because of him. Unfortunately, we had a standoff with a contract, and we could not come to terms. The Bears made us an offer of two first-round draft choices and here we are today.”The Raiders made the blockbuster trade on Saturday, dealing one of the game’s most dominant defensive players to Chicago for first-round draft picks in 2019 and 2020, a sixth-rounder next year and a third-rounder in 2020. Oakland also included its second-round selection in 2020 and a conditional fifth-rounder that year in the trade.Mack then immediately signed a six-year, $141 million extension with the Bears that guarantees $90 million. That’s the richest deal ever for a defensive player and nowhere near where the Raiders were willing to go after already committing $25 million a year to quarterback Derek Carr.“It’s tough when you have two players that are the highest paid at their positions Womens Bo Jackson Jersey , so the economic part of it certainly weighs in,” Gruden said. “We’ve got free agents on our team that are going to be (up) next year; we’ve got to find a way to bring them back. So you’ve got to field a 53-man roster and there are some implications of having two players making that much money. That’s no mystery to anybody.”The Bears were willing to commit that money in part because they have quarterback Mitchell Trubisky on a rookie deal. The Los Angeles Rams gave $87 million guaranteed to Aaron Donald this past week in what was the richest defensive contract for one day until Mack surpassed it, but they also have quarterback Jared Goff on a rookie contract.The Raiders don’t have that luxury and have several holes to fill on a team that went 6-10 last year and has gotten little production from recent draft classes. Oakland has already cut ties with its second-round picks from 2015, ’16 and ’17 in Mario Edwards Jr., Jihad Ward and Obi Melifonwu and has only 11 of the 50 draft choices that general manager Reggie McKenzie made from 2012-17 on the 53-man roster.That has contributed to the Raiders having the oldest roster in the league and the desire for more draft picks.“We’re trying to hit on the draft,” Gruden said. “We’re trying to draft and develop. Obviously the last three draft classes we haven’t got a lot of production out of yet. I don’t think there’s anybody left from the ’13 draft.The ’15, ’16, ’17 (classes), not much production at all. With that being said, you have to fill holes.”Gruden didn’t want to second-guess the approach the Raiders took with Mack after exercising the fifth-year option on his rookie deal worth $13.8 million.The two sides traded offers before the start of the league year in March that were far apart and the Raiders made no more offers after that as Mack held out. Despite the wide gap, the Raiders did not look to trade Mack before the draft when they could have gotten help for this season.When Donald got his big deal Friday, Oakland saw where the bar was set and made the deal rather than wait to see if Mack would eventually report.“We would like to have the player stay here; he was under contract,” Gruden said. “We did not expect this to last as long as it did. But we’re going to be second-guessed until the cows come home on this. I understand that. But, bottom line is Bo Jackson Jersey , we did do our due diligence, there was a standoff, and he got a great contract from the Bears — a great contract.”Now the Raiders must move on with the season opener coming Sept. 10 against the Rams. There is a big hole on defense as the Raiders try to replace a player who is a two-time All-Pro and the 2016 NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Since entering the league, Mack leads all players with 185½ quarterback pressures and ranks second with 68 tackles for loss, according to SportRadar.Oakland still has Bruce Irvin as a pass rusher on one side and rookie Arden Key showed promise this summer on the other side. The inside rush should be improved with rookies P.J. Hall and Maurice Hurst, but none of those players are at Mack’s level.Mack also was a leader in the locker room and one of the most popular players, making his loss even bigger. But Gruden felt it was still time to move on, no matter how much he will be missed by his teammates.“He’s a great player and a good teammate and a lot of these guys were very good friends with him,” he said. “It was tough but he’s been gone for some time. Like I said, we wish him the best. We have to build this football team. We have a lot of needs and we’ll address him as we see fit. But it’s never easy to say goodbye to anybody, especially a great player.”