GREEN BAY, Wis. - Ted Thompson is happy to have Julius Peppers in the fold. But the Packers general manager insisted Thursday that landing the eight-time Pro Bowl defensive end from the rival Chicago Bears wont have an effect on what Green Bay does with its nine selections in next weeks NFL draft. In his first public comments since Peppers surprising signing on March 15, Thompson said he believes the 34-year-old lineman has plenty left in the tank and that he expects him to have an impact on the Packers up-and-down defence. "Theres no evidence of any decline in his play, in our opinion," Thompson said Thursday. "He still has the same athletic traits that he had coming out (of college). Hes had a remarkable history in the NFL in terms of durability. Were looking forward to it. I think he is, too." The 6-foot-7, 287-pound Peppers certainly has been durable, playing in 186 of a possible 192 games. Hes also been productive, registering the second-most sacks (118.5) in the NFL and forcing the fifth-most fumbles (39) since he entered the league. He leads all NFL defensive linemen with nine interceptions over that span. But playing 855 snaps for the Bears last season, Peppers managed only 7.5 sacks, the third-lowest total of his 12-year NFL career. The Packers envision him as a hybrid defensive end/outside linebacker in their 3-4 defence, and their hope is that by playing him fewer snaps, they will not only increase his production but give opposing offences another pass-rushing threat to worry about opposite four-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker Clay Matthews. Matthews, who missed six games last season with a twice-broken thumb, is expected to be fully healthy for training camp. "When I view him as a football player, hes an individual youd like to create targeting problems," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said of Peppers in March. "He has the ability to play from the two-point stance, has the ability to play on the move." In 10 career games against the Packers with Carolina and Chicago, Peppers has recorded 9.5 sacks, his fourth-highest total against a specific opponent. The Packers finished tied for eighth in the 32-team NFL last season in sacks with 44 despite Matthews absence. Their hope is that Peppers, who reported for the first day of the off-season program last week, will have an impact on more than just that one category. Last season, the Packers finished tied for 24th in scoring defence (26.8 points per game), 25th in yards allowed (372.3), 25th in rushing yards allowed (125.0), 24th in passing yards allowed (247.3) and tied for 20th in takeaways (22). "Its fun to see Julius. Hes a specimen. He looks great," Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said last week. "Itll be fun to get him really into the fold and get him feeling like hes part of the team, encouraging him to be a leader for us. I think he brings a lot to the table -- on the field and in the locker room. Im just excited about not having to run away from him anymore." As hopeful as the Packers are of Peppers contributions, Thompson insisted that he wont approach the No. 21 overall pick - or any of his other picks - differently with Peppers on board. "We talked about this before. I might sound like a broken record, but we feel that the draft is a long-term investment," said Thompson, whose teams most immediate needs appear to be at safety, linebacker, tight end, offensive line and cornerback. "We dont get too carried away with what our perceived needs are at the moment. We think thats good business. If you can marry those things up thats fine but if you stretch to try to fill quote unquote need somewhere then you end up messing up a couple of spots, so we try to stick to the best player available." Air Jordan 11 For Sale Australia . 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It could have been worse. “Its going to take maybe two weeks,” said Encarnacion. “It depends how Im going to be and how Im going to be day after day, feeling better or not. Air Jordan 11 Australia .m. ET, CBSOPENING LINE — Falcons by 3 1/2RECORD VS.BEIJING -- Canadas Kevin Koe had to settle for fourth place at the world mens curling championship after falling 7-5 to Switzerland in Sundays bronze-medal match. Koes Calgary rink came into the 10th end down by three, but couldnt muster the comeback, scoring just a single point in the final end against the Swiss team. Switzerland stole single points in the first two ends, and padded their lead with deuces in the sixth and ninth ends en route to the victory. "We definitely didnt want to lose that game," said lead Nolan Thiessen. "But after yesterday, it was tough to get fired up. But no excuses. They played better than us." Canada had two chances on Saturday to reach Sundays gold-medal game, but fell short to Norways Thomas Ulsrud in the 1-2 Page playoff game, and then to Swedens Oskar Eriksson in the semifinal. Ulsrud led from start to finish in defeating Sweden 8-3 to claim the gold medal later Sunday. "I thought we played well in the one-two game and the semi," sad Koe. "We were very close. But in games like that where the other teams are playing well, you have to make the last shot of the end sometimes and we let our chances sliip away.dddddddddddd" Despite failing to medal at the world championships, Canadian coach Rick Lang says theres no reason to push any panic buttons, considering Canada has finished in the top six at every international curling event this season. "Twenty-four hours ago, we were within a shot or two of being in the final here," said Lang. "And then we have a bad 24 hours and that chat starts. But we had a great team here. They didnt play like themselves the last couple days, but they were worthy Brier champions. "We sent a great team here. They just didnt have a good day, and that can happen to anybody. The level of competition here is strong and getting stronger. We just have to answer the bell, thats all." Koe said he was proud of the way the team performed in Beijing. "Thats the way weve always done things," he said. "Some people might not like our style or our game, but we fight. Its not always the prettiest, but we get things done. "Im proud of the guys. We had a great run. World championship, two Brier titles, a Brier final -- obviously this was very disappointing, but its been a great team." 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