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THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Rams barely had time to process the news that head coach Jeff Fisher was being fired before starting preparations to play the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night.That was especially true for interim coach John Fassel.Fassel found out an hour before he was set to lead a special teams meeting Monday that Fisher had been fired after going 31-45-1 since becoming head coach of the Rams in 2012. He met with Fisher to get his blessing to take over for the final three weeks before sit-downs with Executive Vice President Kevin Demoff, general manager Les Snead, and the teams medical staff. Fassel then oversaw an hour-long walk-through as the Rams began on-field preparations to face the NFC West leaders.Fassel did not even have time to let his father, former New York Giants head coach Jim Fassel, know he was now in charge of an NFL team.A lot has happened in a little amount of time, said Fassel, who has been the Rams special teams coordinator for five seasons. It will be an interesting couple days. It happened fast. Football, you got to be able to adapt and react and this is one of those situations you cant ever really prepare for.The last 24 hours Ive been learning on the fly, he added. Its been an incredible experience. I would love to know everything Coach Fisher knows. Just there are so many things and Ill never learn all of it, but its interesting to be on that side of it.Even as Rams players expressed their disappointment with Fishers firing and regret that their performances in recent weeks had cost the job of a coach who was well-liked and respected in the locker room, everyone understood the need to pivot quickly on a short week.Cant help but feel some type of responsibility, but Seattles not going to care how we feel. Our last three opponents arent going to care how we feel, safety T.J. McDonald said. We just know we got to go out and keep playing, keep fighting and get better every week.The Rams have actually fared quite well against the Seahawks in recent years, winning three straight games and four of the last five. The Rams first game back in Los Angeles after 22 years was a 9-3 win over the Seahawks in September during which the Rams allowed just 67 yards rushing and sacked quarterback Russell Wilson twice.Usually its a knockdown dragout all the way to the last play and we see that same type of game coming, linebacker Alec Ogletree said.Leaning on that familiarity is critical, as there simply isnt enough time to make dramatic changes. The Rams had one more practice Tuesday before traveling to Seattle on Wednesday.Fassel acknowledged it felt strange taking on a more prominent role with the offense and defense.I kind of had to find my place, where Im supposed to be, Fassel said. Im used to being with the specialists or bouncing around and talking to the guys on the sideline. No manual for it and I just tried to find my spot.In spite of the turmoil and short turnaround, defensive tackle Aaron Donald expects the Rams to respond well this week.Were playing a team we know and its usually a dogfight when we play these guys, so we know what to expect, Donald. We got the mindset of going in there and trying to get a win.Game notesSafety Maurice Alexander (concussion), running back Benny Cunningham (neck) and cornerback E.J. Gaines (thigh) did not practice for the second consecutive day.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFLJahlil Okafor Pelicans Jersey . Kuznetsov, who was selected by the Capitals in the first round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, has been playing for his hometown team Chelyabinsk Traktor of the KHL. ETwaun Moore Pelicans Jersey . "I wrote 36 on my sheet at the beginning of the game," the Cincinnati coach said, referring the yard line the ball would need to be snapped from. http://www.shoppelicansonline.com/Customized/ . Marincin has played in two NHL games so far this season with two penalty minutes. The 21-year-old has three goals, four assists and a plus-5 rating in 24 games with the American Hockey Leagues Oklahoma City Barons this season. Anthony Davis Pelicans Jersey . Miikka Kiprusoff had just announced his retirement after a decade-long run in Calgary and it would be up to Berra and Ramo to fill the void. Jrue Holiday Jersey . -- Claudio Bieler hadnt scored since early September, and not from the run of play since mid-July.NEW YORK -- The Colorado Rockies are hoping to hit the .500 mark Saturday and then use it as a springboard to more notable accomplishments. The New York Mets will be looking to avoid slipping another game closer to .500 while climbing out of the funk that has imperiled their chances at defending the National League pennant.The Rockies try to reach .500 for the first time in more than two months Saturday night when they visit the Mets in the third contest of a four-game series at Citi Field.Colorado (51-52) won its second straight game over New York (53-49) on Friday, when Carlos Gonzalez went 2-for-5 with four RBI in a 6-1 victory. The win was the 11th in 15 games since the All-Star Break for the Rockies, who are five games behind the St. Louis Cardinals in the race for the NLs second wild card.The Rockies have not been at .500 since they were 21-21 on May 21. The franchise has not been at .500 after the All-Star Break since 2010, the last time Colorado finished with a winning record.Thats a good benchmark, Rockies manager Walt Weiss said. Weve worked hard to get in this position. Weve worked really hard. Thats the first benchmark and there are other ones after that. Obviously we want to be playing after the regular seasons over.The Mets played as long as possible last season, when they won the NL for the first time since 2000 before falling to the Kansas City Royals in five games in the World Series.ddddddddddddBut New York has lost 11 of its last 17 to fall 2 1/2 games behind the Cardinals.The Mets have scored three runs or fewer 13 times in the last 17 games. On Friday, they had runners at first and second with nobody out in the eighth before Rockies right-hander Scott Oberg recorded three outs on three pitches.I think theyre going to bounce back, Mets manager Terry Collins said. We just have to quit worrying about the bad stuff and start thinking about some of the good things ahead.Mets right-hander Bartolo Colon will oppose Rockies left-hander Jorge De La Rosa in a battle of rotation elder statesmen. Colon, who earned the win in the second game of a doubleheader against the Cardinals on Tuesday, will be starting on three days rest for the first time since 2005. The 43-year-old is not only the only pitcher older than 28 in the New York rotation but also the oldest player in baseball.The 35-year-old De La Rosa, the only 30-something in the Rockies rotation, will be looking for his 100th career win. Twenty-six active pitchers have reached the milestone.Prior to Saturdays game, the Mets will retire the number 31 worn by recent Hall of Fame inductee Mike Piazza, who played for the team from 1998-2005. ' ' '