Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice is set to return from a six-game suspension.
Patriots coach Mike Vrabel will face the Titans, the team he coached for six seasons.
The NFL’s top two scrimmage yards leaders, Bijan Robinson and Christian McCaffrey, will face off on Sunday night.

There are 17 NFL teams above .500 entering Week 7. The 5-1 Indianapolis Colts have the AFC’s best record. While the 5-1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers have the NFC’s top record. Both teams have tough road games this week.

The New York Jets remain the NFL’s lone winless team.

There have been 27 contests with a game-winning score in the final two minutes of regulation or in overtime, the most through Week 6 in NFL history, via NFL Research. We’ll certainly have more this week with plenty of good matchups.

USA TODAY Sports examines five things to watch in Week 7:

Chiefs get Rashee Rice back from suspension

It was premature to write off the Chiefs.

Fresh off their biggest win of the young season, the Chiefs will now welcome in their top wide receiver. Rice is set to make his season debut after his six-game suspension.

Rice is the possession receiver, yards after catch creator and go-to wideout Kansas City’s been missing.

Rice’s return means the Chiefs will finally have their full complement of wide receivers. It will mark the first time Rice, Xavier Worthy and Marquise Brown will all be on the field together for a regular-season game.  

“I think they’re looking forward to it maybe even more than I’m looking forward to it. They’re excited to play together, those three are very close,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said this week. “It will be great to get him (Rashee Rice) back going and in the swing.”

The Chiefs host a Raiders club with the AFC West’s worst pass defense.

“He’s gonna want to be out there every single play,” Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes said of Rice this week. “That’s just the mentality that he has. I think it’s gonna be our job as teammates and coaches to kind of build him back the right way, but it’s gonna be hard to keep him off the field for sure.”

Mike Vrabel returns to Tennessee

The Patriots head coach is returning to Tennessee this week, a franchise he coached for six seasons (2018-23). Vrabel had a 54-45 career regular-season record and went 2-3 in the postseason as the Titans head coach.

Vrabel landed in a suitable situation with the Patriots after being dismissed by the Titans. He’s guided New England to a 4-2 start, and they are currently atop the AFC East.

“I’m grateful for another opportunity and being here. I love being here and everything else,” Vrabel said this week. “You just hope if you get another shot and another opportunity, like we tell our players, be ready for it and take advantage of it.”

On the other side, it could be a bit of karma in Tennessee. The Titans are looking for a long-term solution at head coach since firing Vrabel following the 2023 season. The Titans parted ways with Vrabel’s successor, Brian Callahan, after just 23 games at the helm.

Mike McCoy’s been given the interim head coaching tag with the Titans. The Titans’ primary objective should be to successfully build around quarterback Cam Ward.

Jonathan Taylor vs. vulnerable Chargers run defense

Taylor is a midseason candidate for NFL Offensive Player of the Year.

The Colts running back enters Week 7 with a league-leading 603 rushing yards and eight touchdowns from scrimmage. He’s registered an NFL-best 422 rushing yards after contact. He has a favorable matchup against a Chargers defense that’s allowed a 100-yard rusher in the past two contests.

“I don’t even think any of us really know what he’s capable of, but I think he’s going to show us this year,” Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. told reporters earlier this week. “I see him this year, everything he’s doing, and that’s a credit to him, credit to our o-line. I mean, they are blocking their tails off and they’re busting their (expletive) like every single day.”

Taylor is the only player in the AFC with at least 85 yards from scrimmage in each of the first six weeks. Indianapolis ranks fourth in the NFL in run block win rate, per ESPN.

The 5-1 Colts have the AFC’s best record. Indy’s off to its best start since 2009.

Scrimmage yards leaders go head-to-head Sunday night

The Falcons vs. 49ers game on Sunday night features two of the top running backs in the league in Bijan Robinson and Christian McCaffrey. The two represent the NFL’s top scrimmage yards leaders entering Week 7.

Robinson’s compiled an NFL-best 822 yards from scrimmage. He was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week for Week 6 after he produced 238 yards from scrimmage (170 rushing and 68 receiving) and a touchdown in a victory against Buffalo.

“He’s the best player in football. I’ve said it multiple times. I can’t say it enough,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said of Robinson after the team’s Week 6 victory. “You can always have your pick. You can always go out there and figure out who you want to vote for, but in my opinion he’s the best player in football.” 

The 49ers have been ravaged by injuries this season, star linebacker Fred Warner (ankle) being the latest loss. But running back Christian McCaffrey’s given San Francisco reason to be optimistic. McCaffrey’s tallied 780 yards from scrimmage, which ranks second in the NFL. McCaffrey became the first running back in NFL history with at least 50 receiving yards in each of his team’s first six games of a season, per NFL Research.

NFC championship game preview?

There’s another Monday Night Football doubleheader this week, but the marquee matchup is the Bucs vs. Lions.

The 5-1 Bucs enter Week 7 with the best record in the NFC. The 4-2 Lions are coming off a loss but are 2-0 at home.

Mayfield (10,083 passing yards and 81 touchdown passes) and Goff (10,594 passing yards and 81 touchdown passes) are the top two players in passing yards and touchdown passes in the NFL since 2023, per NFL Research.

“They’re playing hot football, it’s a very good team,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said. “I’ve got a lot of respect for Baker Mayfield. The way he plays, his leadership, his ability to push the ball down the field, make plays with his legs. I just think he’s playing at a high level.”

Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon on X @TheTylerDragon.

The NBA may not be the ‘big man’s game’ that it once was, but there’s still some benefit in having a dominant center in 2025.

Several players across the league continue to demonstrate that, including Denver Nuggets standout Nikola Jokić, who has been a legitimate MVP candidate every season since 2018-19. He won the award three times (2021, 2022, 2024).

There have been other notable big men who have also won the MVP in recent years, such as Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers, while others like Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs have MVP-like potential.

NOTE: Players expected to miss most of, or the entirety of the 2025-26 NBA season were not included.

Top 10 centers for the 2025-26 NBA season

1. Nikola Jokić, Denver Nuggets

Our experts said: Three players – Jokić, Gilgeous-Alexander and Antetokounmpo – received at least one first-place vote, but it was Jokić who ran away with the top spot on this list, drawing 10 first-place selections from the panel. Jokić, 30, has finished first or second in MVP voting in each of the last five seasons, with three awards. He became just the third player in NBA history to average a triple-double in a single season, joining Oscar Robertson (1961-62) and Jokić ‘s teammate from last year, Russell Westbrook (four times). He is the best passing big in the world and draws so much defensive attention, which creates scoring chances for his teammates. He shines in the clutch, has unparalleled footwork in the post and has an unconventional shot that has become wildly efficient. Jokić set career highs last season in 3-point attempts (4.7) and conversions (2.0) per game and 3-point shooting percentage (41.7%).

2.  Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs

Our experts said: When healthy, Wembanyama is the league’s top defender and is starting to become a unique threat on offense as well. His shooting ability and range, at his size, is unlike anything the NBA has ever seen. If the Spurs can achieve anything this year – in this case, even sniff a playoff berth – this could mark the beginning of Wembanyama being in the MVP conversation for years to come.

3. Joel Embiid, Philadelphia 76ers

Our experts said: Embiid played just 19 games due to a knee injury, in what was a disastrous season for the 76ers. When healthy, Embiid shot 44.4% from the field. He could help lead Philly back to the postseason, but he needs to be on the floor. Embiid was the most polarizing player on the list; he was ranked as high as 5th and as low as 38th.

4. Bam Adebayo, Miami Heat

Our experts said: Adebayo will continue to serve as a focal point for the Heat this upcoming season. He has flown under the radar after the Heat finished the season 37-45 and 10th in the Eastern Conference. It was a down season for Adebayo, falling short of making one of the All-Defensive Teams for the first time since the 2019-20 season. He had also been a consistent top-five player among Defensive Player of the Year voting, but finished 10th last season.

5. Alperen Şengün, Houston Rockets

Our experts said: Şengün is looking to build off a breakout season with Houston. The first-time All-Star averaged a double-double for the season.  He also contributed to the overall team success, leading the Rockets back to the playoffs as the second seed in the West.

6. Chet Holmgren, Oklahoma City Thunder

Our experts said: Chet is coming off a championship season with the Oklahoma City Thunder. He played in just 32 of his 114 career games last season but was valuable when he was on the court, averaging 15 points, eight rebounds and two assists.

7. Domantas Sabonis, Sacramento Kings

Our experts said: Sabonis produced a double-double for his sixth consecutive season. The two-time All-NBA third team player will serve as the centerpiece for the Kings in his fifth season in Sacramento. Without another star player to accompany him on the roster, he will likely be the focal point of opposing game plans.

8. Rudy Gobert, Minnesota Timberwolves

Our experts said: The 33-year-old Frenchman has continued to be a problem on the defensive end for the Timberwolves. He is one of five players to average 11+ rebounds and 2+ blocks throughout their entire career, according to basketball reference. It will be his 13th season in the league and fourth with Minnesota.

9. Ivica Zubac, L.A. Clippers

Our experts said: He continues to prove he’s a valuable asset for the Clippers. He played a career-high 32.8 minutes per game last season. He will continue to play a big role for the Clippers’ defense, which produced the third-best defensive rating. Zubac won’t have to try to shoulder the load alone this year after L.A. made the extra efforts to bring in some other backup bigs.

10. Jarrett Allen, Cleveland Cavaliers

Our experts said: Jarrett Allen played in all 82 games for Cleveland last season, the most he’s played in a single season. He contributed to the Cavaliers’ 64-18 overall record and the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

Joe Flacco won his first home start for the Bengals. Will it be the first of many this season?
Cincinnati has embarked on a three-game homestand but will see the Steelers again very soon.
As for the Browns? Expect their decisions to continue impacting their division’s outcome in 2025.

Week 18. Jan. 4, 2026. “Sunday Night Football.” Joe Flacco vs. Shedeur Sanders, flexed into prime time at Cincinnati’s Paycor Stadium with the AFC North title hanging in the balance.

OK, maybe this crystal ball is about as accurate as Flacco was with his previous team. But after watching the Bengals’ new/temporary/galvanizing/graybeard QB1 knock off the first-place Pittsburgh Steelers 33-31 on Thursday night while ending his latest club’s four-game slide, it’s already worth wondering: Are the lowly Cleveland Browns ultimately going to determine their division’s champion?

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin already gave the notion credence, seeing it coming from a mile away when he uncharacteristically lashed out Monday.

“Andrew Berry must be a lot smarter than me or us because it doesn’t make sense to me to trade a quarterback that you think enough of to make your opening day starter to a division opponent that’s hurting in that area,” Tomlin said of Cleveland’s general manager, who traded Flacco to the Joe Burrow-less Bengals last week.

“But that’s just my personal feeling.”

And it probably was a little bit … personal?

Tomlin, the NFL’s longest-tenured coach – hired by Pittsburgh in 2007 – has been combatting Flacco, 40, with mixed results, for most of the past 18 seasons. The still strong-armed Super Bowl 47 MVP has now faced the Steelers 26 times in his career, playoffs included and – yep – he’s been on the winning side against Tomlin 13 times. The Steelers coach was more circumspect amid the fresh Flacco fallout Thursday night.

“They did what was required to win – they made a few more plays than we did,” Tomlin said of the Bengals.

“I’d be remiss if I didn’t compliment them, they fought their tails off.”

But you think he and the Steelers wouldn’t have preferred the opportunity to work over Jake Browning, who was mostly abysmal in his three starts following the Week 2 toe injury Burrow sustained and is now trying to come back from, potentially at some point in December?

Flacco clearly enjoyed this latest chapter with Pittsburgh, saying Thursday night that many of his football war stories involve losses to the Steelers.

“I have so much respect for Mike and the battle that we’ve had,’ said Flacco as a smile broke across his face at the postgame podium. ‘I always find a way to play them. I love playing them.

“Those games against those guys – like in my career – those games have been different than others, just the physicality and the energy.

‘Nothing but respect for (Tomlin).”

The question now becomes: Have the Browns irreversibly − maybe even disrespectfully! − changed the AFC North’s stripes in 2025? Consider:

The Bengals seem to have a new lease on life, starting a three-game homestand with Thursday’s win. Now, they can enjoy a 10-day interlude before hosting the winless New York Jets, with the Chicago Bears up after that. After a Week 10 bye, the Flacco-ful, Browning-less Bengals go to Pittsburgh, where they generally give the Steelers more problems than they typically do in Cincinnati.

The Bengals’ schedule serves up Flacco’s original team, the Baltimore Ravens, in Week 13 (Thanksgiving) and 15, by which point Burrow could be close to a return … unless Flacco is the better option. Regardless, there’s now renewed hope − for both teams − that those could now be relevant matchups.

And to extrapolate this just a bit more, Cleveland will face all of its divisional adversaries once more this season, including the Steelers in Week 17 and the Bengals in the regular-season finale. And the Browns obviously won’t be helmed by Flacco, who rolled off the couch to spark them to the playoffs in 2023 but struggled mightily last month while trying to operate a limited offense. Moving forward Cleveland will instead presumably still be evaluating rookie QB Dillon Gabriel and/or Sanders, arguably the highest-profile of their players – if one who hasn’t taken a regular-season snap. Yet. However, owner Jimmy Haslam has expressed a desire to see Sanders play at some point.

Got all that?

Meanwhile, the Steelers will have to hope 41-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers remains upright and can continue to dink and dunk Pittsburgh to the division crown. The Ravens hope their prodigiously talented roster, namely two-time MVP Lamar Jackson, can be sufficiently healthy down the stretch to salvage the season following a stunning, injury-marred 1-5 start. The Bengals, who finally left the gate 2-0 for the first time in the Burrow era, will have to hope he can get back – right? – to trigger the high-powered offense he advocated for before Cincy’s historically miserly front office essentially bet most of its cap space that Burrow and wideouts Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins could finally lead this 57-year-old franchise out of The Jungle and to Lombardi Land.

Chase and Flacco seem to be enjoying an already near-instant rapport, hooking up 26 times for 255 yards and two TDs – most of that after Flacco’s first-half mulligan during his Bengals debut at Green Bay on Sunday. He’s even still trying to discern some of the play calls as they’re sifted through head coach Zac Taylor’s Oklahoma accent. But generally speaking? So far, so good.

“You hope you can come in here and play well,” Flacco said after beating the Steelers. “Now to go out there and have done it for like the last six quarters, I think it’s gonna give us a lot of confidence. And hopefully we can carry that over and use it to our advantage.”

He targeted Chase 23 times against Pittsburgh, more than the rest of Cincinnati’s players combined, hitting him 16 times for 161 yards and a score. Flacco finished with 342 yards and three TDs through the air, though Cincinnati’s offense was also unusally balanced for a change − churning out a season-high (by far) 142 rushing yards.

“Honestly, it’s been amazing,” Chase said on Prime Video’s postgame set.

As for the Browns? They don’t have their quarterback of the past – as in their Week 1 starter. Their quarterback(s) of the present have yet to win a game. Their quarterback of the future may arrive via one of their two first-round picks in 2026. And Cleveland is clearly more incentivized to offload veterans like Flacco – at the mere cost of upgrading a sixth-round draft pick to a fifth next year – than trying to win as many games as possible in the moment.

It’s an approach that’s already cost the Steelers and could have further repercussions.

And Bengals fans know it, appropriately chanting after Thursday’s potentially season-salvaging triumph: “Thank you, Cleveland.”

Yet while some things will be forever, a 41-year-old with a surgically repaired back and a balky thumb that may portend arm trouble and thinning hair beneath his Toronto Blue Jays cap – fifth team in five years – suggests something else.

That it might be wise to take a look around, to cherish the moment, to appreciate the opportunity before the man never again throws another competitive pitch.

Then again, Mad Max could never.

The mound-stalking, snarling, three-time Cy Young Award winner has been largely missing the past four years, disappeared due to injury and a general lack of dominance and changes of addresses that, combined with performance, might gently suggest that his voice ought not be the loudest in the room.

Yet Scherzer’s Toronto era took a massive turn Oct. 17, two outs, fifth inning, Game 4, John Schneider heading out to the mound and, even though they’ve been co-workers since January, about to really meet Scherzer for the first time.

There were death stares and cuss words and raised voices – OK, all of that from Scherzer – and bemused infielders watching a future Hall of Famer take on his purest form.

“I thought he was going to kill me,” says Schneider. “It was great.”

Yeah, it takes a certain kind of masochist to manage a major league team, and a certain touch to realize that, even as most playoff starts nowadays are expired by the fourth inning, and that Scherzer’s Seattle Mariners counterpart, Luis Castillo, was hooked in the third inning, that performance – and pedigree – earns some slack.

“I’ve been waiting for that all year, for Max to yell at me on the mound,” Schneider told reporters in Seattle. “I think at that point there’s numbers, there’s projections, there’s strategy, and there’s people.

“So I was trusting people.”

And Scherzer rewarded him, striking out Randy Arozarena with a nasty curveball to strand a runner, and preserve Toronto’s four-run lead in an eventual 8-2 victory.

This ALCS is now tied, 2-2, just 48 hours after the Blue Jays stared at a 2-0 deficit and the notion that the next time the lads would toss the ball around together might come in Dunedin, not Toronto.

Yet suddenly, the Blue Jays are outflanking the Mariners in the most important ways. Their starters are pitching deeper into games, exposing Seattle’s bullpen further. They amassed 29 hits in two games in Seattle, with Game 5 in front of their Western Canada supporters to come.

It’s what one expects from the No. 1 seed in these AL playoffs. It’s just that Scherzer wasn’t expected to be a key part of it.

He hadn’t pitched since Sept. 24, the Blue Jays excluding him from the ALDS roster because a four- or five-inning starter who doesn’t miss a ton of bats simply had no role in that format.

And to be brutally honest, Scherzer’s last four postseason starts dating to 2022 produced an 0-2 record, 8.79 ERA and a 1.67 WHIP.

In his last October run, he pitched three shutout innings in Game 3 of the 2023 World Series, then abruptly exited while warming up in the fourth, back tightness ending his postseason. The Texas Rangers went on to win the World Series; Scherzer headed for offseason back surgery.

This year, myriad aches and pains – including that vexing thumb condition – limited Scherzer to 17 starts. Game 4, though, was different: Scherzer took a minute to find his rhythm in issuing two first-inning walks, got a key double-play ball, gave up a Josh Naylor second-inning home run and then was cruising.

He was snapping his curveball, and catcher Alejandro Kirk kept pressing for it. He picked off a runner. He outlasted Castillo.

It was within all that context that Schneider strolled to the mound and stared up at the toughest dude to lift from the game.

Good luck, Schneids.

“And then all of a sudden I saw Schneids coming out, and I kind of went, ‘Woah, woah, woah,” says Scherzer in a postgame news conference. “Like, I’m not coming out of this ballgame. I feel too good.

“So we had a little conversation that basically I wanted to stay in the game but just with some other words involved. I just knew I was strong, I knew I wanted the ball, I knew I could get outs in this situation.

“I just wanted to stay in. I wanted it.”

He got it. And got Arozarena, and stalked to the dugout, leading to another Schneider-Scherzer confab –away from cameras – that Schneider described as “another fun conversation, in the tunnel.”

So Scherzer got the sixth, too, and took down two more outs before leaving to a roar from the Blue Jays fans on hand.

With two more wins, the Blue Jays will reach the World Series for the first time since 1993. That would likely ensure another Scherzer start, probably against his former Los Angeles Dodgers club.

Yet there are no guarantees, not in this game, certainly not for those north of 40. So when Schneider lifted Scherzer, he tucked the ball in his back pocket.

“I just put it in my pocket and brought it in the dugout,” says Schneider. “Pretty cool for Max to have. He’s got a lot of stuff on his mantle, but I don’t know if he wanted it.”

Perhaps someday, but maybe not now. The sentimental glances around the stadium, the mementoes, the curtain calls are at least for now, still for another day.

On this one, Mad Max was back.

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers were at a breaking point in September.

Dodgers ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto was one pitch away from throwing a no-hitter against the Baltimore Orioles, and they somehow still lost.

They lost two of three games to Arizona, were swept by the Pittsburgh Pirates, and lost two of three games to the Orioles in a 10-day span.

The season was unraveling, the San Diego Padres were closing in, and panicking was starting to settle in.

Funny what a difference five weeks makes.

On a gorgeous Thursday evening in Los Angeles, the Dodgers stifled the Milwaukee Brewers yet again, with a 3-1 win in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series and are one victory away from a sweep and return trip to the World Series.

It’s over.

The Dodgers know it.

The Brewers know it.

“We know,’ said Dodgers second baseman Tommy, the 2024 NLCS MVP, “what it takes to win a big game.’

And on the eve of their third champagne celebration in two weeks, the Dodgers were able to reminisce about that fateful Sept. 6 night in Baltimore and the turnaround that made them baseball’s best team once again.

“That was crazy,’ Edman said. “I actually was on a rehab assignment, but it was very painful to watch. I was in the dugout, I was watching the game and got to the phone. He was one out from a no-hitter. And I was like, ‘Oh, let’s get the no-hitter.’

“He gave up a hit, and I was like, ‘Oh, well, let’s close it out.’

Five batters later, it was over, and the Dodgers somehow found a way to lose, 4-3.

“I definitely felt like that was the low point of the season,’ Edman said. “I know a lot of teams that could have caved in that one, in that moment.

“But we didn’t.’

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had a team meeting the next day, reminded his players that they still are the best team in baseball, and told them there’s no reason why they can’t become the first team in 25 years to win back-to-back World Series championships.

“I think it was a perfect time because that was devastating,’ Dodgers infielder Miguel Rojas said. “It was heartbreaking losing that game when Yamamoto was one pitch away from a no-hitter and then losing that game against a team that’s not even in contention. You start thinking, ‘What’s wrong with us?’ …

“But I knew those moments were going to make us better. When you face a lot of adversity like that, you never give up, and you don’t get down on your team. I feel like you’re just going to get better. I feel like all those opportunities to be losing games and losing leads and not being able to close games, helps us for this moment.

“I feel like we were always going to make a commitment to push through and get 13 more [postseason] wins. We’re really close. We have an opportunity to do something really special here.’

They have since morphed into an absolute beast.

They finished the regular season on a 15-5 run and have gone 8-1 in the postseason.

They’re pitching like it’s the 60’s with Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale back in the starting rotation, yielding a 1.54 ERA and a .135 opponents’ batting average.

It’s the second-lowest ERA by a National League team with at least 50 innings since the 1918 Chicago Cubs, and the lowest overall since the 1981 Baltimore Orioles.

Tyler Glasnow was the first Dodger starter Thursday to pitch less than six innings in eight days and still gave up only three hits and one run, while striking out eight. The Dodgers’ bullpen, which was supposed to be their weakness, came in and pitched 3 ⅓ shutout innings, giving up just one hit. They have a 1.93 ERA this postseason.

“We’ve been telling them all year that we believe in them,” Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy said. “Hopefully they’re getting a little confidence and they start believing in themselves. But we trust them. Every time we see them come running through the gate, everyone on the infield trusts that they’re coming in to do their job, and that’s never been an issue.

“They’re pitching how we’ve expected.”

Across the field in the Brewers clubhouse, they’re trying to figure out what hit them.

The Brewers, who ranked third in runs scored this year, are hitting .101 this series.

They have scored exactly one run in each of the three games.

They have played 27 innings, and the Dodgers have led in 26 of them.

Their power trio of Christian Yelich, Brice Turang and Andrew Vaughn have combined to hit .061 with 13 strikeouts in 33 at-bats.

The Dodgers’ pitching staff simply are making the Brewers, who love to call themselves the “Average Joes’ like the Sloppy Joes.

“It’s challenging. These guys are the best in the world, right?” Brewers left fielder Jake Bauers said. “But that’s what you get when you get to this point in the season: the best arms that anybody has to offer.”

While everyone else is on fumes, the Dodgers are fresh. Yamamoto, who led the Dodgers with 173 ⅔ innings, is the only starter in their postseason rotation who pitched more than 91 innings this season at 172. Glasnow is next at 90.1 innings. Snell pitched 61.1 innings. Ohtani threw 47.

‘There’s probably something to having guys fresh,’ Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior said. “But you also have guys you don’t want them too fresh where they’re still trying to get synced up.’

And, just think, they are dominating this postseason with Shohei Ohtani, who hit 56 homers this season and will win his fourth MVP, doing virtually nothing. He led off the game with a triple, but struck out twice and grounded out the rest of game. He is hitting just .103 since the NL wild-card series with one extra-base hit.

“Obviously Shohei’s not performing the way he would like,’ Roberts said, “or we expect. But I just know how big of a part he is to this thing.’’

Well, even if he doesn’t get going at the plate, there wasn’t a soul in that clubhouse who doesn’t expect him to dominate on the mound Friday, closing out the series.

“I’m expecting nothing short of incredibe,’ Muncy said. ‘I’m expecting him to pitch a great game and what he does offensively is just kind of icing on the cake at that point.’

Said Rojas: “Shohei’s one of those superheroes. I have no doubt with the talent that he has that he’s one swing away from doing something really special. He’ll have a lot of opportunities leading off for us, and pitching.’’

And then, well, the party can start.

“We’re up,” Dodgers All-Star shortstop Mookie Betts says, “but you know, like Kobe [Bryant] said, ‘The job’s not done.’ We’ve got to keep going and just keep applying pressure.”

The Dodgers have done ever since that near-no-hitter, carried it through the first half of October, and they’re not about to stop now.

Follow Nightengale on X: @Bnightengale

The Cincinnati Bengals, led by quarterback Joe Flacco, defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers 33-31.
Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase had a career-high 16 receptions for 161 yards and a touchdown.
The Steelers’ defense struggled, allowing 33 points and failing to contain Chase.

Mike Tomlin was perplexed as to why the Cleveland Browns traded Joe Flacco to the Cincinnati Bengals. We found out why Thursday night.

With Flacco at quarterback, the Bengals upset the Pittsburgh Steelers 33-31 in primetime.

The Steelers got off to a quick 10-0 lead, but the Bengals scored 20 unanswered points and were able to hold off their division rival.

Flacco targeted star wideout Ja’Marr Chase throughout the game. The Bengals wideout was uncoverable as he finished with a career-high 16 receptions for 161 yards and a touchdown.

Flacco passed for 342 yards and three touchdowns.

USA TODAY Sports breaks down the winners and losers from the AFC North battle:

Winners

Ja’Marr Chase shines

When in doubt, throw the football to Chase.

Chase was the undisputed best player on the field. The Steelers secondary had all kinds of trouble covering the star wideout. The Steelers inexplicably rarely doubled Chase.

Chase had a career-high 16 catches on a career-most 23 targets. He finished with 161 yards and one touchdown. His 23 targets were tied for the third most ever since 1978.

Chase joined Hall of Famers Jerry Rice and Randy Moss as the only three players in NFL history with 6,000-plus receiving yards and 50-plus touchdown receptions in their first five career seasons.

Chase is the best wide receiver in football right now.

Joe Flacco impresses

Flacco was comfortable conducting Cincinnati’s offense despite being traded less than two weeks ago.

Flacco targeted Chase throughout the game, and rightfully so because the Steelers couldn’t contain the wideout.

The 40-year-old QB completed 31-of-47 passes for 342 yards and three touchdowns in the win.

The Bengals scored points on seven of their final eight drives, including the game-winning field goal drive.

Flacco even kept the football on a zone read in the fourth quarter for good measure.

Bengals offensive line

The much-maligned Bengals O-line played perhaps their most complete game.

The Bengals came into the game averaging a league-low 56.7 rushing yards per game. Cincinnati produced 142 rushing yards, in large part because of the offensive line’s performance.

Joe Flacco was only sacked twice.

‘Old’ quarterbacks

Aaron Rodgers, 41, and Joe Flacco, 40, took center stage Thursday night. It marked the fourth matchup all-time between starting quarterback both over the age of 40.

Tom Brady and Drew Brees met twice during the 2020 season and once in the playoffs.

The “old” quarterbacks combined for 591 passing yards and seven touchdowns. Rodgers did toss two picks.

Flacco had the better performance but both quarterbacks played well.

Losers

Steelers defense

Joe Flacco was traded to the Bengals on Oct. 7. Flacco doesn’t even know his way around Cincinnati yet, but he had an easy time carving up the Steelers defense.

Pittsburgh gave up 328 passing yards, 142 rushing yards and 33 points. The Bengals had seven scoring drives. At one point Cincy scored points on six straight possessions.

Jalen Ramsey, Steelers secondary

Ramsey had a difficult time covering Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. He couldn’t stop either of them in man coverage.

Ramsey gave up a touchdown to Chase, and then Higgins had a 28-yard reception on the corner in the fourth quarter that set up a game-winning field goal.

Ramsey wasn’t the only corner who had a difficult night. The entire secondary got torched by Chase. And Higgins did his part with six catches, 96 yards and a touchdown.

Bengals CB Cam Taylor-Britt

Taylor-Britt went from Bengals starting cornerback to being inactive. He was a healthy scratch.

Taylor-Britt’s given up a career-worst 146.7 passer rating when targeted in five games this season.

Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon on X @TheTylerDragon.

From unconscious to unstoppable, the Toronto Blue Jays have pulled even with the Seattle Mariners in this American League Championship Series thanks to a cast of characters both unlikely and highly anticipated.

A No. 9 hitter suddenly flexing his muscles. A 41-year-old trying to wring the last few pitches out of his skill set before jetting off to the Hall of Fame.

And a resident superstar very much acting the part.

The Blue Jays called upon all of that, most notably a command performance from starting pitcher Max Scherzer, to crush the Seattle Mariners 8-2 in Game 4 Oct. 17 at T-Mobile Park in Seattle.

Notching his first postseason victory since Game 1 of the 2019 World Series, Scherzer wobbled early, steadied himself and then unleashed a classic Mad Max tirade when manager John Schneider dared visit the mound with two outs in the fifth inning.

Schneider, just four years Scherzer’s senior, wisely backed off, Scherzer finished the fifth – and even got two more outs in the sixth.

Hey, 5 ⅔ innings, non-Dodgers edition, is a lengthy outing in this day and age and Scherzer – left off the AL Division Series roster and starting his first game since Sept. 24 – certainly gave Toronto more than anticipated.

So did Andrés Giménez.

For the second consecutive night, he hit a two-run homer in the third inning, in a sense singlehandedly pulling Toronto back from the brink after it came to the Emerald City trailing 2-0 in this best-of-seven.

In Game 3, that meant a game-tying shot. In Game 4, it was a go-ahead two-run homer, maybe a section to the right of his dinger the night before, and it ignited a five-run uprising over two innings for the Blue Jays.

He added a two-run single in the eighth, a four-RBI night.

In between all that, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. ripped a solo homer, his second in as many nights and fifth of the postseason, to push the lead to 6-2 in the seventh.

Seattle, save for the vociferous Canadians who trekked down from British Columbia to root for the Blue Jays, was shell-shocked.  This ALCS is now even.

And the Mariners will need their bats to wake up and right-handers Bryce Miller and Bryan Woo to be on point in Game 5 if they don’t want to go back to Toronto facing a 3-2 deficit.

Then again, the road team has won every game in this series. As Game 4 proved, there’s always more surprises lurking around the corner. 

Here’s how Game 4 unfolded:

Blue Jays blow it open in the eighth

The Mariners and Blue Jays traded runs in the sixth and seventh and Toronto took a 6-2 lead into the top of the eighth. With runners on second and third and one out, Andres Gimenez hit a two-RBI single to extend the advantage to 8-2, giving him four RBIs in Game 4 after his two-run homer earlier.

Max Scherzer becomes ‘Mad Max’ once more

Max Scherzer screamed at his manager. And then he turned his madness against his opponent, putting himself in line for his first postseason win since 2019. 

Scherzer, visited by Blue Jays manager John Schneider with two outs in the fifth inning, vociferously lobbied to stay in the game. Schneider agreed, and then Scherzer struck out Randy Arozarena on a curveball well outside the strike zone to preserve the Blue Jays’ 5-1 lead in ALCS Game 4. 

Scherzer, making his first start since Sept. 24, allowed just a second-inning homer to Josh Naylor and a pair of harmless singles, striking out four. Schneider even let him go out for the sixth, recording two outs before a walk prompted Schneider to lift him, for reals.

Reliever Mason Fluharty allowed that run to score on a Eugenio Suarez RBI single, trimming the lead to 5-2, but the game is on to the seventh, Toronto just nine outs from squaring the series.

At 41, Scherzer perhaps can’t go as deep in games as he used to. But he can still be Mad Max when he needs it. 

Blue Jays take 5-1 lead in fourth inning

The Toronto Blue Jays are getting contributions from all quarters – and drifting toward tying up this ALCS. 

Isiah Kiner-Falefa, given a start at second base, has two hits in his first two at-bats and scored on George Springer’s RBI double as the Blue Jays tacked on two more runs in the fourth to take a 5-1 lead. 

Toronto has sapped the energy from the Mariners and T-Mobile Park, as it chased Luis Castillo, dinged up lefty reliever Gabe Speier and then scored a fifth run when Matt Brash bounced a wild pitch off Cal Raleigh’s shin guard, scoring George Springer. 

Andrés Giménez slugs another HR for Blue Jays

The No. 9 hitter is now public enemy No. 1 in Seattle.

Andrés Giménez, who hit no home runs in his final 76 at-bats of the season, clubbed his second two-run home run in as many nights, as the Blue Jays scored three third-inning runs to take a 3-1 lead over the Mariners in Game 4 of the ALCS.

The home run circumstances were eerily similar.

Game 3, third inning, Mariners leading 2-0: Giménez rips a game-tying two-run home run.

Game 4, third inning, Mariners leading 1-0: Giménez tags a hanging slider from Luis Castillo 364 feet – perhaps a section or two over from his Game 3 shot – for a 2-1 lead.

The homer invigorated the throng of Blue Jays fans in Seattle and stunned Mariners fans worried their club may be staring at a 2-2 ALCS after Game 4.

After one-out singles by Nathan Lukes and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and a walk to Alejandro Kirk, Castillo was lifted after recording just seven outs. Reliever Gabe Speier walked Daulton Varsho to score another run, but escaped the inning without further damage.

Josh Naylor home run puts Mariners in front

An invigorated Seattle Mariners lineup against a rusty Max Scherzer has already yielded an expected result. 

Josh Naylor ripped Scherzer’s second pitch of the second inning over the center field wall to give the Mariners a 1-0 lead in Game 4 of the ALCS.

Scherzer has not started since Sept. 24 and was not on the ALDS roster. The rust showed in the first inning, when he yanked pitches all over the zone and walked a pair, escaping on Jorge Polanco’s double-play grounder. 

Yet Naylor jumped him quickly in the second, and Seattle scored first for the third consecutive game. 

Mariners lineup today: ALCS Game 4

Randy Arozarena (R) LF
Cal Raleigh (S) C
Julio Rodríguez (R) CF
Jorge Polanco (S) DH
Josh Naylor (L) 1B
Eugenio Suárez (R) 3B
Dominic Canzone (L) RF
J.P. Crawford (L) SS
Leo Rivas (S) 2B

Blue Jays lineup for ALCS Game 4

George Springer (R) DH
Nathan Lukes (L) LF
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (R) 1B
Alejandro Kirk (R) C
Daulton Varsho (L) CF
Ernie Clement (R) 3B
Addison Barger (L) RF
Isiah Kiner-Falefa (R) 2B
Andrés Giménez (L) SS

Anthony Santander replaced on Blue Jays roster

Toronto outfielder Anthony Santander’s season is over after being replaced on the ALCS roster by Joey Loperfido due to injury. MLB rules dictate that mid-series roster changes result in the player missing the next round of the playoffs.

Santander, signed to a $92.5 million free agent deal last winter, was limited to 54 regular-season games and had appeared in five of Toronto’s seven postseason games.