ORCHARD PARK, N. Alex Arias Jersey .Y. -- Buffalo Bills president Russ Brandon sees no reason why last years stalemate in contract talks with Pro Bowl safety Jairus Byrd would prevent the two sides from reaching a long-term deal this off-season. "Its a process and theres no carryover. You start over again and you try to get something done," Brandon told The Associated Press on Monday. "We just werent able to come up with a solution that worked for both parties, so you reset it and start again." Brandon said the team maintains "great communication" with Byrd and his agent, Eugene Parker, and said there are no lingering hard feelings from talks last year. "We all are hoping to get a deal done," Brandon said. "And were going to do the exact same thing this time, work our tails off to try to get another one done." Byrd is the Bills most high-profile player not under contract this off-season. He spent last year playing under a $6.9 million franchise tag after the sides were unable to reach a long-term deal by a mid-July deadline. The stalemate in talks led to Byrd waiting until the final day of training camp to accept the contract. He then missed the first five games of the season because of plantar fasciitis. Despite the missed time, the fifth-year player was selected to his third Pro Bowl after he tied for the team lead with four interceptions, and added a sack and a forced fumble. General manager Doug Whaley said the Bills are in the midst of putting together contract offers to pending free agents, including Byrd. Whaley wouldnt rule out using the franchise tag one last time on Byrd in order to retain his rights. The price of this years tag would jump to over $8 million for Buffalo. Byrd did not return after hurting his back in the first quarter of the Pro Bowl on Sunday. Byrd posted a message on his Twitter account that hes OK. Whaley had no update on the injury. He said Byrd was expected to return to the teams headquarters for evaluation. Brandon provided an update on another front. Without going into detail, he said hes had discussions with Rogers Communications regarding the teams concerns about its annual "Bills In Toronto" series. Brandon questioned the benefits of the series following a 34-31 overtime loss to Atlanta at Toronto on Dec. 1. He wondered about the Bills possibly giving away a home-field edge by playing indoors. Brandon has not ruled out the possibility of the Bills pulling out of the remaining four years of the series. Jordan Holloway Jersey . With the results, North America claimed 2.5 of the three available points, opening up a 17.5-12.5 lead in the overall standings. A total of 60 points are available, meaning the first team to 30.5 points will win the Continental Cup. Andre Dawson Jersey . Having won the first leg 1-0 in Barcelona, Madrid entered the match at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium already in control and quickly sealed its place in the semifinals when Jese Rodriguez scored in the seventh minute. https://www.cheapmarlinsjerseys.us/1391r-livan-hernandez-jersey-marlins.html . You can see all the action on TSN2 beginning at 7:30pm et/4:30pm pt. Chicago won two of three games during its stay at the United Center. The club began the homestand with a 5-1 win over Pittsburgh on March 1 and fell to Colorado on Tuesday before posting another blowout win in Thursdays tilt against Columbus. MIAMI -- Eager to give himself some run support, New York Mets pitcher Jonathon Niese stepped to the plate with a runner at third and dropped down a perfect suicide squeeze bunt. His teammates, meanwhile, swung away -- and connected. Daniel Murphy hit a three-run homer and the Mets matched a season high with 17 hits Sunday to beat the slumping Miami Marlins 11-5. Niese (4-4), who has been plagued by a lack of offensive help this year, won for the first time since May 22 and enjoyed pitching with a big lead. "It was a good feeling," he said. "We hit them hard and hit them early. Its a lot more comfortable going out there, and youre able to pound the zone." Niese allowed less than four earned runs for the 19th consecutive start, giving up three in six innings. "The offence really busted out, and Jonathon did another great job," teammate David Wright said. "Every time he takes the ball, you think hes going to go nine innings, and offensively we havent done a lot to pick him up. Im glad we were able to do that today." Niese -- batting eighth -- drove in a run with a bunt in the second inning. Manager Terry Collins joked that he hadnt called for a suicide squeeze since 2006, and Niese said it might have been the first of his career. "Luckily was able to get a pitch I could put down," Niese said. Kirk Nieuwenhuis scored without a play for a 2-0 lead. "The squeeze was huge," Collins said. "We dont do that much, but I wanted to see if we could get something started, so we tried something different." The bulk of the offence, however, came from higher in the order. Wright drove in a run for the sixth game in a row. Curtis Granderson thrived again in the leadoff spot, reaching base four consecutive times. He and Lucas Duda each had three hits. Murphy had two hits, including his sixth homer. Nieuwenhuis, making his first start since being recalled from Triple-A, doubled twice. "Weve been waiting a long time to break one open," Collins said. "People think we play ugly game. Were getting beat 4-3 and 3-2. Were hanging in there. Wee get a lot of guys on, we just havent been able to get big hits. Isan Diaz Jersey. When you have big hits, you look great." Rookie Anthony DeSclafani (1-2), making his fourth major league start, gave up seven runs in 3 2-3 innings and departed with a 7.59 ERA. He was unable to keep the ball down or throw breaking pitches for strikes. "I fell behind hitters, and the fastballs were flying up in the zone," he said. "When that happens, youre not going to get the results you want." The Marlins (37-38) fell below .500 for the first time since April 30. Ten days ago they had the best home record in the majors, but they went 3-7 on their longest homestand of the year, losing all three series. "You just have to keeping grinding and stay positive," Garrett Jones said. "Its a long season. Every team runs into this type of thing where the offence isnt clicking and the pitching isnt clicking." The Mets had scored a total of 13 runs in Nieses previous five starts, but he led 7-0 before giving up three runs in the sixth. The left-hander then struck out Derek Dietrich with the bases loaded to end the inning and his afternoon. Nieses performance was part of a trend. Mets starters have an ERA of 1.74 over the past six games. The Mets have won four of their past five, but they still trail NL East leader Washington by five games. "If we keep the starting pitching going and keep the offence going, I think we should climb back in this thing," Niese said. NOTES: Marlins SS Adeiny Hechavarria (elbow) sat out his second game in a row but was feeling better available to pinch-hit. ... Marlins Spanish-language radio announcer Felo Ramirez celebrated his 91st birthday. ... The Mets improved to 16-11 in day games. ... The game drew a crowd of 24,613, plus 605 dogs on "Bark in the Park" day. ... The Mets begin a two-game homestand Tuesday when RHP Bartolo Colon (7-5, 3.88) pitches against Oakland. ... The Marlins begin a four-game series at Philadelphia on Monday when RHP Nathan Eovaldi (4-3, 3.76) pitches against RHP Roberto Hernandez (3-5, 4.52). ' ' '