SAN FRANCISCO - Patrick Willis so hoped he would be able to withstand the pain in his troublesome toe and play on this season, and ultimately help lead the San Francisco 49ers to another playoff run. Jonathan Schoop Jersey .Instead, Willis will miss the remainder of the season and require surgery for a strained muscle in his left big toe. He was placed on the season-ending injured reserve list Tuesday after getting hurt in the third quarter at St. Louis on Oct. 13.Its very frustrating, Willis said. My teammates mean everything to me and I want to be out there experiencing all the good times and all the rough times with them.A Pro Bowler in his first seven NFL seasons, Willis had missed six games in his career before this latest injury sidelined him for the final 10 games of 2014 for San Francisco (5-4). He had 34 tackles and an interception this season for the Niners.Willis is a captain and leader of a 49ers team that has reached the NFC championship game in each of the past three seasons.We havent lost him in the locker room, linebacker Michael Wilhoite said. Were still all together here. It hurts but at same time we need to keep going out and win games.Willis had hoped the injury wasnt so serious to sideline him long term. He missed practice last week after returning in a limited role the previous week.This is something I have been dealing with for a long time now, Willis said. I want to get it done so I can get back to rehabbing and get back to form.Willis indicated his toe has been bothering him for several years and that he continued to play as long as he could stand the pain.I always think I can do more than Im supposed to and tried to compensate, Willis said. Sometimes guys are hurting, and hurting bad, and still go out and play. You could say I should have done this earlier, before I hurt it worse against the Rams.After resting through the Oct. 26 bye, Willis was back as part of the 49ers full active squad on the field for the start of practice Oct. 29, but he had been limited primarily to individual work.I felt, maybe just give it a couple of weeks but it just didnt get better, Willis said. I feel like I have five or six years left in my body so I have to think about the big picture. I promise you when I come back I will be bigger and better than I was.This is a big loss to one of the NFLs leading defences, though the 49ers are expected to have Aldon Smith back Sunday on the road against the New York Giants.Hopefully I can get in there and play as much as I have, Smith said. I want to stay strong, keep my eyes on the prize and Im ready to do that.Smith is set to begin practicing this week after serving his nine-game suspension by the NFL for violations of the leagues substance-abuse and personal-conduct policies.I did everything that was necessary, Smith said. Ive learned a lot and ready to move forward.In addition, 2013 All-Pro NaVorro Bowman could be cleared to begin practice this week, opening a 21-day window for the team to activate him or place him on IR.Bowman is recovering from surgery on his left knee after he tore the anterior cruciate and medial collateral ligaments in a devastating injury in the NFC championship game loss at Seattle last January.Rookie Chris Borland has filled in for Willis and been spectacular, recording 18 tackles in a loss to the Rams two weeks ago then 17 more tackles in an overtime win at New Orleans on Sunday.Im truly proud of the way hes playing, Willis said. Hes gone out and held down that position.The NFL Network first reported Willis would need toe surgery.The Niners signed running back Alfonso Smith to replace Willis on the roster and added linebacker Shayne Skov to the practice squad.___AP freelancer Rick Eymer in Santa Clara, California, contributed to this report. Nelson Cruz Jersey . Defenceman Tessa Bonhomme was among three players released from the team Tuesday morning along with defenceman Brigette Lacquette of Waterhen, Man. Max Kepler Twins Jersey .com) - Ben Lovejoy tallied a goal and an assist as the Anaheim Ducks cruised into the All-Star break with a 6-3 victory against the Calgary Flames. http://www.twinssale.com/twins-michael-pineda-jersey/ . Vonn had another scary moment at Saturdays World Cup downhill in Val dIsere, ending up clutching her knee in pain after losing her balance and missing a gate. But she gave a reassuring answer shortly afterward, saying no new damage had been done to the surgically repaired knee, and that her plans for the Sochi Olympics were still intact.HOUSTON -- The Houston Rockets havent had a drop-off offensively despite top scorer James Harden being sidelined with a sore foot for the last three games. Houstons role players have stepped up in each game to make up for his lost points. On Wednesday night it was Francisco Garcia and Aaron Brooks who came through, each scoring 21 points to help the Rockets cruise to their third straight win, 113-84 over the Atlanta Hawks. The 29-point win was their largest of the season. "Its just the way it is," Brooks said. "We are a talented team. A lot of guys are working out and have a lot of energy that are ready to play." Garcias 21 points were a season-high and Brooks has been great in two of the three games with Harden out, scoring 26 points in the first before adding 21 on Wednesday. "Weve got good chemistry going right now," Garcia said. Houston didnt trail for its fourth straight home game and again used a balanced scoring attack with Harden out. "Their bench was the difference in the game," Atlanta coach Mike Budenholzer said after Houstons reserves outscored his 67-32. "They have some depth and they have a good team. All those guys came in and contributed." The Rockets went up by 12 on John Jenkins 3-pointer early in the fourth quarter. Then Brooks outscored the Hawks 8-4 over the next 1 1/2 minutes to extend Houstons lead to 90-74. "The fourth quarter we made a strong effort to come out the first three minutes and kind of put it away a little bit and thats what we did," Brooks said. Houston shot almost 52 per cent from 3-point range with Brooks and Garcia combining to make seven of Houstons 14 3-pointers. Paul Millsap had 16 points for Atlanta and Cartier Martin, who grew up in Houston, started in place of an injured Kyle Korver and had 14. Chandler Parsons and Terrence Jones had 14 points each and Dwight Howard had 11 points andd eight rebounds for Houston which improved to 11-5. Jake Odorizzi Jersey. Al Horford scored 14 points and had eight rebounds as Atlanta dropped its third straight game. The Rockets were up 77-67 entering the fourth quarter. "I think for three quarters we put ourselves in some positions where we had some opportunities and battled," Budenholzer said. "In the fourth quarter we werent able to find a way to sustain that effort and keep it close." Harden was out with a sore left foot. Jeremy Lin started for Harden, who is averaging 24.2 points, 4.8 rebounds and 5.4 assists. But Lin sustained a right knee bruise and left the game with about eight minutes left in the first quarter and did not return. Coach Kevin McHale said X-rays were negative and he would know more about his status for Fridays game on Thursday. Houston led by 11 points with about eight minutes left in the third quarter before Atlanta used an 8-2 run to get to 65-60. Millsap had four points in that span and Martin capped it with a jump shot. The Rockets scored the next five points to push their lead to 70-60 with about four minutes remaining in the third. Along with Korver (rib contusion), the Hawks were also without Shelvin Mack (sprained left ankle) and Lou Williams (right knee rehabilitation) who did not travel to Houston. Korver was injured on Tuesday night after extending his streak of consecutive games with a 3-pointer to 88. He needs one more to break the NBA record set by Dana Barros from 1994-96. Budenholzer didnt have any details on Korvers injury and said he isnt sure how long hell be out. Houston jumped out to a 20-9 lead thanks to nine early points from Jones and was up 56-45 at halftime. NOTES: Parsons has scored in double figures in 11 straight games. ... McHale said before the game that Harden was feeling better on Wednesday and that he doesnt expect him to be out for any extended time. ' ' '