mmy Lasorda also attended but did not speak. "It is fitting that

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. -- Denver Broncos coach John Fox returned to work Monday, four weeks after open-heart surgery, his newfound energy matching his renowned enthusiasm. "I feel tremendous. As my surgeon said, I had a valve that was the size of a pinhead and now its the size of a 50-cent piece," Fox said. "Obviously, the doctors feel good about me getting back to work. I actually would have preferred to be back sooner, but there was a pretty hard deadline of four weeks post-surgery and I honoured that and here I am." Truth is, Fox has been telecommuting for weeks. As soon as he was released from the hospital after having his aortic valve repaired, a surgery he had hoped to put off until after the Super Bowl, Fox set up a sort of command centre at his off-season home in Charlotte, N.C., some 200 yards from the spot on the golf course where he fell ill on Nov. 2 during the Broncos bye. Not only was he in daily contact with defensive co-ordinator Jack Del Rio, who guided the Broncos (10-2) to three wins in four games during in his absence, but Fox was also in constant communication with his captains, including quarterback Peyton Manning, over the toughest stretch of Denvers season. Fox was able to keep track of his team on his big-screen TV on game days and on his iPad play book, watching cut-ups of practices and helping to formulate game plans. "Other than that I was in another state, (it was) much the same as what I would have done in my office at Dove Valley," Fox said. "I want to be careful how I say that. I was involved, just like everybody in this building is involved. Like I said, its not one guy. Its a team. And its a lot of people doing their job. As I mentioned before, its a tribute to the staff and the players that did a tremendous job as I went on the longest bye week in history." Del Rio maintained his defensive play-calling duties while he was interim head coach and he allowed offensive co-ordinator Adam Gase to continue calling plays for Manning & Co. Fox admitted there were times he cringed at the play-calling while watching the games on TV. "In fairness, a couple times," he said, chuckling. "But Im sure a lot of people do the same thing when Im doing that. Its just part of the game." Fox and his wife, Robin, flew home on team owner Pat Bowlens jet on Wednesday and at Del Rios suggestion he visited with the team on Thanksgiving morning, then watched from his home in Denver as the Broncos beat the Chiefs 35-28 Sunday at Kansas City to take charge of the AFC West. Executive Vice-President John Elway presented Del Rio with a game ball afterward. "It was special to have John Elway recognize the things I did," Del Rio said, "but I basically want to say that is just a representation of what we all did. It wasnt about me; it was a collective effort of all the players, coaches, trainers, equipment guys that had to pull together in Coach Foxs absence." On Monday, Fox drove into work and was greeted by hugs and handshakes. Players said he flashed that famous smile all day long. "I had open-heart surgery and watching those games was harder than any pain I felt during that rehab," Fox said. "He stood up there in front of us in the team meeting and told us he feels better than ever," tight end Joel Dreessen said. Fox said he lost 10 pounds, and "Im actually in better shape now than I was a month ago." He said he has no restrictions, but isnt going to push it, either. "Yeah. Im going to be smart," he said. "If all of a sudden I cant hold my eyes open, Im going to go home. Like I said, the last three weeks, Ive been operating pretty much like I did the first eight games of the season. Its not like Im moving furniture or doing roofs. I sit somewhere and watch football." Hes not sure yet whether hell coach from the booth or the sideline Sunday when the Broncos host Tennessee (5-7). "Im going to see how I feel. I havent been to a practice yet. But it wont make a big difference. Im in communication with everybody whether theyre in the press box or on the field," Fox said. Air Max Plus Australia . - PGA Tour rookie Tony Finau shot a 9-under 63 at Del Monte and had a two-stroke lead over Billy Andrade and Lee Janzen of the Champions Tour after Thursdays opening round of the Callaway Pebble Beach Invitational. Discount Air Max Plus Australia . -- The Kelowna Rockets earned their 16th straight win with a 7-2 rout of the Portland Winterhawks in Western Hockey League action Thursday. http://www.airmaxplusaustralia.com/ . Cleveland released the troubled wide receiver on Wednesday, an expected ending after Bess was arrested in January for assaulting a law enforcement officer at an airport and other bizarre behaviour. Cheap Air Max Plus Australia . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Marc-Andre Fleury, Penguins (3) - Surrendered a tough first goal against on a deflection through the body short side. Air Max Plus Australia Sale . The Brewers finalized a US$36 million, three-year contract with free agent third baseman Aramis Ramirez on Wednesday, adding a much-needed bat to their lineup.GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Grand Rapids captain Jeff Hoggan scored twice as the Griffins edged the Abbotsford Heat 5-3 on Friday to advance to the second round of the American Hockey League playoffs. Teemu Pulkkinen had a goal and an assist, and Riley Sheahan and Landon Ferraro also scored for the Griffins, who took the best-of-five series in four games. Markus Granlund had a goal and an assist for the Heat, who will be moving out of Abbotsford in the off-season. Shane OBrien and Kane Lafranchise also scored. The Heat took an early lead on a power-play goal from OBrien, flew past Griffins goalie Petr Mrazek at 14:21 of the first period. The Griffins came back at 7:26 of the second period when Pulkkinen fired a power-play slapshot from the left of the net to beat Abbotsford goalie Joni Ortio. McIntyre lost control of the puck in front of an open net two minutes later, and passed it to his right as Ortio righted himself. The puck found Hoggan who tipped the it into the open net to giive Grand Rapids a 2-1 lead.dddddddddddd Abbotsford forward Max Reinhart passed the puck across the ice and found Lafranchise, who weaved his way around Mrazek and backhanded the puck in to tie the game at 13:16 of the second. Hoggan struck again with 33 seconds left in the second as Griffins forward Cory Emmerton sent in a pass from the corner boards. The puck bounced around until it hit Hoggan and found its way into the net. Sheahan added a fourth goal for the Griffins 4:51 into the third, collecting a rebound and netting the puck past a recovering Ortio. A minute later, a penalty on Griffin Ryan Sproul gave Abbotsford its fourth power play of the night and Granlund found the top corner of the net just seconds into the man-advantage to bring the Heat to within one. Ferraro added an empty-net goal with 13.4 seconds left in the game. Grand Rapids outshot Abbotsford 36-27. Ortio made 31 saves for the Abbotsford, while Mrazek stopped 24 shots for Grand Rapids. ' ' '