Ed Smith is a man who chooses his words wisely, but on this occasion, the message from England's chief selector could not have been clearer. Jonny Bairstow has been dropped from England's Test team, and if he wants his place back, he needs to take a long, hard look at his own priorities, and the needs of the team that will take on New Zealand next month without him.

Selection announcements tend to be a euphemist's paradise. Players in this day and age tend to be "rested" rather than chopped from the reckoning entirely - even Jason Roy was offered a verbal lifeboat by Smith despite an Ashes debut to forget - and it would have been entirely understandable had England taken a similar approach with the Bairstow announcement.

This is, after all, a player whose twin World Cup hundreds were such an important part of the team's fightback from the brink in the group stages of their most important campaign of the decade, and whose subsequently poor run of form in the Ashes could have been mitigated by any number of factors - burn-out, positional uncertainty and ODI-focussed technical tinkering among them.

After all, his failings this summer in Test cricket have been, on the face of it, little worse than those of the men around him in England's middle order. He averaged 23.77 in the Ashes, with a solitary half-century in ten innings, which is only fractionally less impressive than the 24.70 of Jos Buttler, the man who will be wearing the keeper's gloves in his absence this winter.

The difference, however, is of potential on the one hand, and perception on the other. Buttler's freakish methods lend themselves to a certain type of Test innings - generally counterattacking in the time-honoured image of Adam Gilchrist, and ideally from no higher than No.7 in the batting order, at which point the tone of the innings (for better or worse) will have been set, and the licence to have a go will have been established.

Bairstow, however, is an entirely different beast - and the challenge that Smith has laid down to him would appear to be rooted in two important considerations.

Firstly, and perhaps most obviously, Bairstow is a man who finds his motivation from rather different sources to his peers. His career has been fuelled by a curious rage against his doubters - most notably after his comeback century in Sri Lanka last year when he claimed to have been "castigated" for picking up an ankle injury while playing football, but again before England's World Cup revival in late-June, when he declared that England's media had been waiting for the team to "fail".

Therefore, in explicitly using the word "dropped" in announcing his omission from the Test leg of the New Zealand tour, Smith has sought to fuel that anger like a S(m)ith Lord, encouraging him to shove the indignity straight back whence it came, and make England all the more powerful as a by-product.

It also implies a removal of the kid-gloves now that England's summer-to-end-all-summers has finally ended. For the perception abounds that Bairstow has been indulged by the selectors in recent months, that his tendency to rock the boat with those off-message rages was a price worth paying given the pre-eminence of his form in the only format that really mattered at the time. And if that manifested itself in Jonny growling like a mongrel if anyone dared approach his wicketkeepers' gauntlets in Test cricket, then, well, a blind eye was probably the easiest option.

That now looks set to change, not least because of the other key aspect to the axing - the height of Bairstow's ceiling as a pure Test batsman. Smith was unequivocal on this point, and with good reason, given that it is not so long ago - three summers, in fact - since Bairstow's Test form was unquenchable. In the calendar year of 2016, he scored 1470 runs at 58.80 in 17 Tests and looked as likely as any man on the circuit to break into the game's upper echelons.

But ever since that season Bairstow's returns have been unworthy - three centuries in 76 subsequent innings. And, at a time when England are crying out for genuine Test batsmen, both to ease the pressure on the captain Root, and to prevent any more white-ball pegs being hammered in red-ball roles, one of the most obvious answers to their problems finds himself lurking at the wrong end of the middle order, and seemingly unwilling to front up for the greater good.

"I'm using my words carefully, He hasn't been 'rested', because to me, that would feel like a cop-out" Ed Smith on Bairstow's non-selection

"Jonny is a very talented cricketer," Smith said. "I'm using my words carefully. He hasn't been 'rested', because to me, that would feel like a cop-out. However, I do believe he has the potential to be a top, top player in Test cricket for England. This is an opportunity for him to reset and to work on one or two things, and then come back."

Bairstow's statistics back up this assertion about his potential, as Smith himself was at pains to point out. When first picked (as a batsman only), against South Africa in 2012, "Jonny was the outstanding young batsman in England," he said.

Furthermore, Smith pointed out his first-class average excluding Test matches is 50.31, which places him alongside Joe Root among his contemporaries and second to Ollie Pope among England-qualified batsman - although Pope's sample size of 28 matches is too small to compere, even if he is rightly one of the chosen men for the New Zealand tour.

Furthermore, in the period of time that Bairstow has been an England player, his non Test-match first-class average soars to 57. "That clearly shows his potential as a as a red-ball cricketer," Smith concluded, although it also speaks volumes for Bairstow's reaction on the last occasion that England jettisoned him, at the end of the calamitous 2013-14 Ashes.

He returned to Yorkshire to blitz his county to back-to-back Championship titles, racking up 1226 at 76.62 in the 2015 season alone, before cementing his England recall on that winter's tour of South Africa.

To point the finger at Bairstow alone, and blame him for all the ills that have recently befallen England's Test team would be disingenuous, not to mention grossly unfair. The priority of the past four years has been England's one-day side, and Bairstow's perseverance in, first, forcing himself in between Jason Roy and Alex Hales to become a ODI must-pick, and then, latterly, becoming the most reliable half of the most statistically outstanding ODI batting partnership of all time is a staggering achievement.

However, the trade-off for that dedication to white-ball walloping has been as clear as the daylight between his bat and front pad in red-ball cricket. By exposing his stumps to open up his cover-drive in ODIs, Bairstow has exacerbated a propensity to be bowled in Test cricket - 32 times in 69 Tests, a higher percentage any other batsman this century.

But it might also be a metaphor for the entire England set-up, as they embark on a new four-year cycle in which their Test fortunes will be far more rigorously judged than under the Trevor Bayliss regime.

"This is a real opportunity now to reset and focus on how he can go about being that becoming that really Top Test-match player," Smith said. "I would say he needs an opportunity to reset, in his own mind, how he can best contribute to Test cricket.

"If I was asked to give a prediction, my prediction is he comes back stronger and has a very good England career in Test cricket in the future."

Smith might also have added, go and lay a hefty bet on Bairstow being England's top-scorer in the five T20Is in New Zealand that precede the Test campaign. For the fury that this decision may unleash is precisely the sort of cheek-reddening rage that has propelled Bairstow to his most spectacular acts in an England shirt.

And, as a man who turns 30 next week, there's still ample time for more I-told-you-so moments in the near future. Assuming he takes this sacking in the spirit it was intended. And gets bloody livid before he gets even.

Houston senior quarterback D'Eriq King will not play the remainder of the season so that he can take a redshirt, the school announced on Monday.

Keith Corbin, the team's second-leading receiver and also a senior, will also sit out the rest of the season and redshirt, the team announced.

King, who set the American Athletic Conference record with 50 touchdowns responsible for last season, said in a statement that he plans to return to Houston next season.

"I came here to play football for the University of Houston and that is not changing," King said in a statement released by the school. "After carefully thinking through this process with my family and Coach [Dana] Holgorsen, I have decided the opportunity to redshirt this season gives me the best chance to develop as a player, earn my degree and set me up for the best success in the future. I'm looking forward to being a part of the success of this program going forward."

Said Corbin: "Having the opportunity to take time and focus on the completion of my degree, plus having the chance to develop as a student-athlete is why I have decided to redshirt for the remainder of the 2019 season. Coach Holgorsen, myself and my family both took time to make this decision. Being a Cougar has been one of the best decisions I have made, and I'm ready to take this time to help our program develop for the future."

King's father, Eric King, told ESPN on Monday that he felt like it was the best situation for his son going forward, both for his development as a player as it relates to his professional future and to avoid having a "wasted year." He said that returning to Houston was "absolutely" a possibility, but that the quarterback and his family would evaluate their options.

The Cougars are off to a 1-3 start with losses to Oklahoma, Washington State and Tulane. King has started all of them; Corbin has started three of the four. If they don't play another game, both can return for another season under the new redshirt rule instituted in 2018, which allows players to play up to four games and retain a year of eligibility.

Houston will turn to its backup, sophomore Clayton Tune, at quarterback for the team's game at North Texas on Saturday. Tune played in five games last season, including two starts after King suffered a season-ending knee injury.

King, who hopes to play quarterback in the NFL, is on his third head coach and fourth offensive coordinator since signing with Houston in 2016.

"That can take a toll, learning a new system every year and things of that nature," Eric King said.

Eric King added that D'Eriq is "not real comfortable," with the decision "but he knows his opportunities are greater later...at the end of the day sometimes you've got to be a little bit selfish and take care of you."

For those who might view the decision as a selfish one, Eric King said "sometimes, you gotta be, because he hasn't in the past. Not for UH, anyway."

"He played hurt, he played wide receiver, he played punt returner, he played kickoff returner, he played quarterback, he played running back, he's the most unselfish kid there is, but sometimes you got to be selfish to get what you want to get in life. There's only one you, there's only one life. So you've got to make sure your good."

Both King and Corbin will still work out with the team, a team spokesman said. Holgorsen did not return calls or text messages seeking comment on Monday afternoon.

Before the season Holgorsen expressed a desire to use as many redshirts as possible.

"If guys have redshirts available and they're third on the depth chart, I'm gonna try to redshirt 'em," Holgorsen said on Aug. 12. "I don't care if they're a senior. There's some guys that are going to their senior year who have redshirts available and if they're not going to be playing a whole bunch, then I'm gonna try to redshirt 'em. That's how you develop a program, that's how you build a program and develop kids. We've got some seniors who are 20 years old. That's crazy to me. My average starting age [at West Virginia] was 23 years old."

King and Corbin, who have started all four games for the Cougars thus far, weren't at the top of Holgorsen's mind when he made that statement, but it seems he's on board with it to improve Houston going into 2020.

"This four-game thing, that's important," Holgorsen said then. "We'll green-light guys and red-light guys and we'll do everything we can to win the game. But if it doesn't involve that specific guy, we're gonna save the game and if at the end of the year we can get it to where we can play him four games and gain a year then that's gonna be something we're interested in doing."

King has thrown for 663 yards and six touchdowns while completing 52 percent of his passes this season. A dual-threat, King is the team's leading rusher with 312 yards and six touchdowns. He has thrown and rushed for a touchdown in 15 consecutive games, breaking the FBS record previously held by Florida's Tim Tebow.

Corbin has caught 11 passes for 192 yards and two touchdowns this season. He started each of the last two seasons and was second in the American with 10 touchdown receptions in 2018.

Antonio Brown, one day after tweeting that he "will not be playing in the NFL anymore," has announced on social media that he has reenrolled at Central Michigan University.

Brown on Monday posted on his Instagram account a picture of a list of four classes with the message: "Back to school @cmuathletics."

The post shows a list of four classes that are offered online, including: Introduction to Management, Technical Writing, Death and Dying (a religion course) and Racism and Equality (a sociology course).

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler has confirmed that Brown enrolled in the four classes on Sept. 16, four days before he was released by the New England Patriots. Brown's enrollment was first reported by MLive.com.

As part of a Sunday morning Twitter tirade, Brown called out Patriots owner Robert Kraft and former Pittsburgh Steelers teammate Ben Roethlisberger after tweeting that he "will not be playing in the @NFL anymore," adding that "owners can cancel deals do whatever they want at anytime."

Brown attended Central Michigan and played football there for three seasons (2007-09). He was drafted by the Steelers in the sixth round (195th overall) in the 2010 draft, the 22nd of 27 receivers chosen that year.

Brown has been accused of rape and sexual assault by Britney Taylor, his former trainer whom he met while attending Central Michigan, and sexual misconduct by a female artist.

The NCAA's enforcement staff has charged the University of Kansas with lack of institutional control and Jayhawks basketball coach Bill Self with head coach responsibility violations, a source confirmed to ESPN on Monday.

Those are among the most serious charges levied against Kansas and Self in an NCAA notice of allegations the university received on Monday. The Jayhawks are charged with multiple Level 1 violations, the most serious under NCAA rules, as well as allegations related to the school's football program under former coach David Beaty.

Yahoo! Sports first reported details of the allegations on Monday.

Under NCAA rules, Kansas officials have 90 days to respond to the charges. Sources have told ESPN that Self and Kansas officials plan to fight the allegations.

Self, 56, has guided Kansas to at least a share of 14 consecutive Big 12 regular-season titles, three Final Four appearances and the 2008 NCAA championship. He was president of the National Association of Basketball Coaches in 2017-18.

NCAA bylaw 11.1.1.1 states that a "head coach is presumed to be responsible for the actions of all staff members who report, directly or indirectly, to the head coach. The head coach will be held accountable for violations in the program unless he or she can rebut the presumption of responsibility."

Under NCAA rules, a head coach can receive a show-cause order and be suspended up to an entire season for Level I violations and up to half a season for Level II violations. The length of the suspension is determined by the Committee on Infractions and depends on the "severity of the violation(s) committed, the level of the coach's involvement and any other aggravating or mitigating factors."

According to sources, of utmost concern to the NCAA enforcement staff is the Kansas coaching staff's relationship with Adidas and its employees. The sneaker company was at the center of a federal investigation into bribes and other corruption in college basketball over the past two years. The Jayhawks are the company's flagship program and signed a 14-year, $196 million apparel and sponsorship extension in April.

Earlier this month, former Adidas consultant T.J. Gassnola was sentenced to probation and fined for his role in pay-for-play schemes to steer recruits to Kansas and other Adidas-sponsored programs.

During closing arguments in a federal criminal case in New York in October, an attorney for former Adidas executive James Gatto told a jury that his client approved a $20,000 payment to current Kansas player Silvio De Sousa's guardian only after Self and Jayhawks assistant Kurtis Townsend requested the payment through Gassnola.

Gatto, former Adidas consultant Merl Code and aspiring business manager Christian Dawkins were found guilty on felony charges of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

The three were accused of paying money from Adidas to the families of recruits to ensure they signed with Adidas-sponsored schools and then with the sneaker company and certain financial planners and agents once they turned pro.

Gatto was accused of working with Gassnola to facilitate $90,000 from Adidas to former Jayhawks recruit Billy Preston's mother and agreeing to pay $20,000 to Fenny Falmagne, De Sousa's guardian, to help him "get out from under" a pay-for-play scheme to attend Maryland, which is sponsored by Under Armour.

Gassnola testified during the trial that Self and his assistants weren't aware of the alleged payments.

On Sept. 19, 2017, three days before Kansas announced the 14-year extension with Adidas, Gassnola texted Self and thanked him for helping the sponsorship deal get done.

Self responded: "I'm happy with Adidas. Just got to get a couple real guys."

Gassnola replied: "In my mind, it's KU, bill self. Everyone else fall into line. Too f---ing bad. That's what's right for Adidas basketball. And I know I am RIGHT. The more you win, have lottery pics and you happy. That's how it should work in my mind."

Gassnola, a former youth basketball director from Springfield, Massachusetts, pleaded guilty in April 2018 to conspiracy to commit wire fraud for his role in the alleged pay-for-play schemes. He testified during the October trial as part of his cooperation agreement with federal prosecutors.

The NCAA had previously alleged that Gassnola and Adidas were representatives of NC State's athletics interests when Gassnola provided $40,000 in cash to then-assistant coach Orlando Early in November 2015 to ensure star guard Dennis Smith Jr.'s commitment to the Wolfpack.

Josephine Potuto, a professor at the University of Nebraska College of Law and a former chair of the NCAA Committee on Infractions, said a corporation such as Adidas might fit under the NCAA's definition of boosters.

Under NCAA rules, an individual or entity can be identified as a booster if they "assisted or [have] been requested by the university staff to assist in the recruitment of prospective student-athletes."

"Typically, when you think about a booster, you think of somebody who is trying to assist a particular school," Potuto said, while not specifically talking about Kansas or any of the other schools involved in the federal government's investigation into college basketball corruption. "That's the normal definition and the normal way you think about it, but it's not exclusive.

"To the extent that one of the shoe companies was providing payments to a prospect or to the family members of a prospect, and the interest was getting the prospect to attend a particular school, that would sound as though that would fall within that [booster] provision."

David Ridpath, president of the Drake Group, a thinktank dedicated to protecting academic integrity in college sports, and an associate professor of sports business at Ohio University, said it's too early to tell whether the NCAA can make a dent in cleaning up college basketball corruption.

"[The notice of allegations] is not surprising," Ridpath said. "But it's one thing to allege and another to know what's going to be the end game. I think we saw that in the North Carolina case [involving alleged academic misconduct]. I have my doubts that the membership really truly, truly wants to punish these schools and punish coaches like Bill Self. At the end of the day, whether he knew or didn't know, he should have known or did know. My guess is Bill Self probably knew a lot more than he's letting on.

"If we're going to have these rules, they need to be enforced. Until we see the end game, I don't know how worried Kansas should be about these allegations, because it still has to go through the infractions process. The committee on infractions has shown in the past that it's very reticent to punish some schools. We'll have to wait and see. If they're doing their job, Kansas should be absolutely eviscerated."

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- The NFL regular season is less than one month old, and the Chicago Bears find themselves in a precarious situation.

The Bears' top-ranked defense looks Super Bowl-ready, but quarterback Mitchell Trubisky looks far from it.

"[My confidence is] good. It's good," Trubisky said last week. "You just got to believe this week is going to be the week."

The Monday Night Football matchup against the Washington Redskins is Trubisky's 30th career start (including the postseason). Thus far, the 25-year-old quarterback's overall body of work has raised more questions than it has provided answers.

Trubisky puttered through a relatively nondescript rookie season in an offensive system that lacked any innovation or true playmakers outside of running backs Tarik Cohen and the since-traded Jordan Howard.

In 2018, Trubisky's second season, that changed. New head coach Matt Nagy ditched the archaic offensive style preferred by former coach John Fox. Nagy, an assistant in Kansas City under Andy Reid, brought a more dynamic, forward-thinking scheme.

He also worked wonders for Trubisky.

There were bumpy moments, but Trubisky finished with 3,223 passing yards (66.6 completion percentage), 24 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, 421 rushing yards, three rushing touchdowns and a quarterback rating of 95.4. The Bears also won the NFC North for the first time since 2010.

All signs pointed toward continued improvement in 2019.

So far, the opposite has happened.

Through two games in 2019, Trubisky's completion percentage (58.3), passing yards (348), touchdowns (zero), Total QBR (27.5), yards per attempt (4.8) and number of attempts that traveled 10-plus yards in the air (16) are substantially worse when compared to Trubisky's play in the opening two games of the 2018 season, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

"We haven't been executing the way we want to," Trubisky said. "There are definitely some things that we are missing on film, but we're coming together and we're correcting them."

Coming together won't be an issue. The young quarterback is popular inside the locker room, where he seamlessly meshes with teammates. Trubisky's work ethic has never been called into question.

"The biggest thing that I see is that the head coach is very hesitant to trust the quarterback," ESPN NFL analyst and former quarterback Dan Orlovsky said. "He's very hesitant to trust him with playcalls. When you get a playcaller that trusts you as a quarterback, they're constantly aggressive because they think, 'I know that if this guy doesn't make the throw here or if he doesn't like what he sees here, he'll check the ball down, get it out of his hands, and I'll call it again.' I'll call a chunk play again. And you don't see that from Matt Nagy right now."

Starting the season with the Green Bay Packers and Denver Broncos certainly isn't a good way to ease into the season. Both are giving up under 340 yards per game this year. And Nagy accepted blame for the uneven playcalling in the season-opening loss to Green Bay, when the Bears tried 50 passing plays versus 15 rushing plays.

But whatever the cause, the Bears' offense has lacked cohesiveness and explosive plays. The Bears have gained five or more yards on just 18 of their 51 first-down plays. That is in turn making it harder for Trubisky & Co. to keep drives going. Per ESPN Stats & Information, the Bears have faced third-and-7 or worse on 16 of 26 conversion attempts (62%). Last year, the Bears needed seven or more yards on just 43% of their third-down plays.

Trubisky hasn't helped his own cause much, often missing on the few deep throws he has attempted. Through two weeks, Trubisky has attempted just nine passes of 20 yards or more and thrown 19 balls at or behind the line of scrimmage. Trubisky's 4.8 yards per pass attempt ranks 32nd in the NFL.

"We just have to believe those explosive plays are coming," Trubisky said.

Trubisky has demonstrated big-play ability outside of the pocket. The former North Carolina Tar Heel is dangerous on the move, where he can use his exceptional athleticism to his advantage -- either as a runner or thrower.

But there are concerns about how Trubisky processes the game from inside the pocket.

"I just don't see enough consistency in the pocket," one NFC scout said. "I think when people pin him inside, you can see the wheels spinning a little bit. He'll make throws you like, sometimes ones you really like, but big-picture accuracy has to be better, and it's just an opinion, but I think if he had a better feel pre-snap of where [pressure] is coming from, he would do better with that first read and not force things."

Great quarterbacks are instinctual; it's almost as if they have a supercomputer in their brain that allows them to read a defense in milliseconds.

"He still looks like an athlete trying to play the quarterback position, rather than a quarterback with good positional instincts," former Bears receiver Tom Waddle said. "When he gets out on the edge and the play breaks down, he's brilliant, because he's just being an athlete and he doesn't have to process a ton of stuff."

Yet so far, that hasn't happened. Trubisky has attempted just nine throws outside the pocket. He has run the ball only four times.

"Let him run," ESPN analyst and former NFL defensive tackle Booger McFarland said. "Do what Baltimore is doing with Lamar Jackson. Let him run 10-15 times per game. Don't try to make him into something he's not. Just take what he is and build on it."

"He much more comfortable when things break down than when things are in structure, which is crazy, right?" Orlovsky added. "Normally it's the opposite thing for quarterbacks. He's a thrower that is a good athlete right now. He's not a quarterback that's a good athlete just yet. ...

"He also showed signs of being a quarterback that is a good athlete last year. That's the odd thing to me."

It's two games into the season, and although the Bears are 29th in total offense, Monday night could be a good starting point for the Bears and Trubisky to try to reach their form of a year ago. While Trubisky ranks 28th in Total QBR, Washington has the second-worst passing defense by Total QBR, where opposing quarterbacks are averaging an 89.0 rating.

"For Mitch and our offense, we have to make sure we have the earmuffs on and the blinders on," Nagy said. "It's hard in this world today. Because it's everywhere. People are talking and saying things and when you're doing real well, everyone's all about it. When you're not doing well, everyone's all about it. So we have to make sure that we control what we can control, and that's today's practice."

ASHBURN, Va. -- His introduction to Walter Payton occurred via the internet. A young Adrian Peterson searched for footage of the former Chicago Bears great. He saw Payton run over defenders; he saw him cut one way as a defender fell another; he saw him sprint past defenders on long touchdown runs.

Eventually, Peterson saw something else: himself.

"I would say I'm more similar to Walter Payton than anyone else," the Washington Redskins running back said as his team prepares to host Chicago on Monday (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN). "A lot of people say Eric Dickerson because I run upright, but if you look at Walter's and my game, I would say it's similar as far as getting it by any means."

Which is why Oct. 14, 2007 -- a date Peterson loudly introduced himself to the NFL in Week 5 -- meant so much to him. He rushed for a Minnesota Vikings franchise record 224 yards against Payton's old team and at Soldier Field, Payton's former home. Nobody has rushed for more yards or gained more all-purpose yards (361) against the Bears.

All of this coming against a team whose defense led a run to the Super Bowl the previous season.

"That's what made it a big game for me," Peterson said. "It was something I was looking forward to, not only that but playing in this historical stadium where Walter Payton played. It's like, come on, how can you not be prepared to play there?"

There's a reason Peterson has his white No. 28 Vikings jersey from this game framed in a glass case at his home in Houston.

As Peterson prepares to play the Bears once more, it's worth remembering that game. Three weeks later, Peterson made an even louder pronouncement with 296 yards rushing against the Chargers. But Peterson never had more all-purpose yards in one game than he did against the Bears -- and it ranks as the third most in NFL history.

"I get in that zone and get locked in and my nose is smelling that end zone," Peterson said.

His nose must have been working like a bloodhound on a hunt: Peterson found the end zone three times. Here's how it went down:

Touchdown No. 1: 67 yards

Peterson's speed to the outside was among the reasons Minnesota drafted him No. 7 overall in 2007. But it stood out even more seeing it in person during the team's rookie minicamp. The quarterback in that camp, Jimmy Terwilliger, had a tough time on the outside zone handoffs.

"I remember how hard he had to run away from center to reach the ball out to stretch it to Adrian," said Brad Childress, the Vikings coach at the time and now a senior offensive assistant with Chicago. "You couldn't deny what kind of speed he had to the edge and watching him cut up was like: Holy cow!"

This play ended with another "holy cow." Peterson again ran untouched on an outside zone to the left, running through a wide gap in the defense five yards downfield. He remained untouched for the first 12 yards. Then Peterson took over: He broke a tackle at the 46-yard line, cut inside a safety sprinting from the middle, stutter-stepped and left cornerback Charles "Peanut" Tillman (a future first-team All-Pro) leaning backward as Peterson bounced around him to the right.

And then: speed.

"He was all-of-a-sudden, and once past that initial wave, be careful," former Bears All-Pro linebacker Brian Urlacher said. "That was his whole career. He was so all-of-a-sudden. You didn't want the DB to be one-on-one with him. You always had to make sure you took leverage with him and force to the help. It wasn't like you were tackling Jerome Bettis. That's not to say he was easy to tackle -- in no way shape or form was he easy. But once you got hold of him he went down. You just couldn't get hold of him."

Urlacher said the Bears were well aware of Peterson. He had rushed for 383 yards and a touchdown in the first four games that season. The linebacker had even seen highlights of Peterson from his Texas high school days.

"He might have come out of high school and been good in the NFL," Urlacher said.

Peterson made it look easy on this day, too.

"Just some great blocking and just the effort I was putting in there to get to the end zone," he said. "I was just out there playing football, enjoying myself."

Touchdown No. 2: 73 yards

Peterson has used vision and speed to help accumulate his 13,343 rushing yards. This play provided a perfect example of both. He starts right and, as the Bears linebackers flow hard with him, a gulf opens to the left.

Cornerback Danieal Manning has contain, but out of the corner of his eye Peterson saw him falling for quarterback Tarvaris Jackson's boot action. As Manning starts at Jackson, Peterson quickly stutter-steps and bursts to the middle of the field. He shakes another defender, cuts outside to the left and is off.

"That's a great example of feeling that flow," Peterson said. "You feel the flow and actually trusting your eyes and use your God-given ability and quickness, the explosive power to stop on a dime and get back and take over.

"Vision is key to everything. You can take care of the body and all, but you have to have the eyes to be able to see that crease, or to see a hole develop, or to see if a linebacker is scraping over the top."

As on the first touchdown, it became a footrace between he and Tillman. The cornerback dove helplessly at Peterson's feet at the 10-yard line.

"He went from zero to full speed in two steps," said Urlacher after rewatching the play. "It was amazing how fast he was running at the line; he hit the holes and it felt like he was running full speed every time. Maybe he wasn't, but it looks like he was. I saw Peanut trying to catch him; he's not gonna catch him."

Peterson said, "Tillman tried his hardest to get there."

Touchdown No. 3: 35 yards

Once again: excellent blocking from the line and speed from Peterson. A one-handed swipe at his legs nearly seven yards downfield failed, as did an attempt by Manning to knock the ball out at the 10-yard line.

"I don't know what he was thinking," Peterson said of Manning.

But this play was indicative, once more, of Peterson's burst. For the day, Peterson averaged a career-best 11.2 yards per carry, a career best.

"If everyone's in their gap, then there's no place to run," Urlacher said. "The problem is he runs through arm tackles. If you pop your head out of the gap for half a second, he's gone. You can't peek and see where he's going. If you do, he's running through the gap. It's his ability to set guys up good, too. He'll set you up and the cutback makes you peek, and once you peek he's gone."

The kick return: 53 yards

Minnesota blew a two-touchdown lead in the final four minutes and, with 1 minute, 38 seconds remaining, Chicago opted to kick to the rookie.

Why?

"Because our kickoff coverage was good," Urlacher said. "Until it happens, you never expect [opponents] to break one on you. We thought we could pin him and didn't. It's not like Devin Hester back there, plus he's still a rookie. We didn't know what we didn't know because he was still a rookie."

Mistake.

Peterson, catching the ball at the 9-yard line, returned it 53 yards to set up the game-winning field goal. It was his fourth return of the day; the first three totaled 75 yards. Hester, a first-team All-Pro return man and receiver gained 272 all-purpose yards that day; he was upstaged.

"We had practiced [Peterson] at kick return, but he wasn't going to return kicks in that game," Childress said. "Right at the end of the game, he had a tremendous game and he says, 'Coach, let me take the kickoff return.' It was good blocking, but sheer force of will."

This was the sort of game Peterson knew he could have; it was the kind of game that Minnesota dreamed of after the draft.

"I had a lot of confidence in what I could do," Peterson said. "I remember doing an interview before the draft, not cocky, but with confidence that it would be an easy transition for me. I remember seeing the faces of some of the people I was talking to like, 'He's in for a rude awakening.' But they were in for a rude awakening, you know?"

Minnesota knew. That's why the Vikings engaged in subterfuge before the draft. They sweated out Arizona at No. 5, knowing the Redskins -- who picked sixth -- already had their back in Clinton Portis.

"We were so happy Arizona took [lineman] Levi Brown," Childress said. "We were like, 'Yeah!' We were putting disinformation out on [Peterson] that the collarbone was broken and wasn't going to heal and was chronic. He only knew one speed, even in walk-through on Saturday morning we had to grab him by the back of his pants to slow down so he wouldn't run into the offensive linemen. When I watch him with the Redskins, it's full blast."

After the Chicago game, teammates chanted Peterson's nickname -- "All Day! All Day!" -- in the locker room after the game. Peterson, too, knew what this game meant.

"You had some good guys on the other side of the ball," Peterson said. "You had Urlacher; [linebacker Lance] Briggs, Tillman. That Chicago defense was good and me coming in as a rookie and really trying to prove myself. That was the first time we played a defense that solidified 'we're serious as an offense and I'm serious as a ball carrier.'"

WASHINGTON -- Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto is out of Monday night's lineup against Washington with right knee soreness after leaving Sunday's loss in Cleveland in the eighth inning.

Realmuto, who is hitting .275 with 25 homers and 83 RBIs, has started 130 of Philadelphia's first 154 games at catcher. He made his second All-Star Game appearance this year.

"J.T. was prepared today," manager Gabe Kapler said. "He was open about being willing to play today. It was a decision I made on his behalf to protect him and look out for his best interests."

Realmuto said he suffered the injury while running out a double-play grounder in the fifth inning. He said he didn't feel anything while running but experienced discomfort while catching.

Realmuto said he would undergo an MRI as a precautionary measure.

"I don't want to take any chances," Realmuto said. "I don't see it being anything too serious. I should feel better tomorrow."

TAMPA -- Gary Sanchez is hopeful that he'll be able to return to the New York Yankees' lineup sooner than later, but the All-Star catcher is being cautious as the regular season winds down.

Sánchez has been sidelined since September 12, when he suffered a left groin strain in the second game of a doubleheader against the Detroit Tigers as he was thrown out in an attempt to steal his first base of the season.

"Right now with everything I've done, I feel better," Sanchez said after a full workout day at the Yankees' minor league complex in Tampa on Monday. "Hopefully in the next few days, with all I have to do, and after working with the trainers, I can feel the way I feel now."

Sanchez, who missed 16 games earlier this season also due to a strained left groin, worked out under the supervision of hitting coach Marcus Thames and head athletic trainer Steve Donohue. The Yankees traveled Sunday night to Tampa ahead of a two-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays, which starts on Tuesday.

"I ran the bases a bit; played some defense too. I took regular batting practice in the cage and I took BP outside. I feel good," Sanchez added. "Everything I have done has gone well. There have been no problems at all. We have to wait to see how things go in the next couple of days."

For the Yankees -- who established a new major league record by sending 31 players to the injured list this season -- not having Sanchez has been a blow down the stretch after having lost outfielders Mike Tauchman and Aaron Hicks for the year.

Even though the Yankees already locked up home-field advantage for the American League Division Series, they are still battling the Houston Astros for the best record in the majors.

Nonetheless, Sanchez told ESPN he doesn't feel any pressure to return this week and his focus is solely on being healthy for the postseason. When healthy, Sanchez has enjoyed an extremely productive season, slashing .233/.318/.531 with 34 home runs through 104 games.

"I was always hopeful, from day one, that I would be back," Sanchez told ESPN. "I knew that because our trainers do tremendous work and I knew they were going to be able to put me in the position of how I feel right now. I feel very good, and all I need is to be ready for the playoffs."

Designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion, who is rehabbing a left internal oblique strain he also suffered during the Detroit series, was also at the team's minor league complex on Monday. Encarnacion, who ran, played catch, and took batting practice, told ESPN that he was feeling good and expected to play in the second game of the Tampa series.

During their last home stand, manager Aaron Boone said that Encarnacion should be able to return to the lineup during their end-of-the-season road trip, which includes the two games in Tampa and three against the Rangers in Arlington.

"I feel pretty good that it will certainly be the games in Arlington, it could even be Tampa," Boone said. "We'll see how these next few days go. [Encarnacion] is doing pretty well, so we'll see whether it's midweek or the weekend; feel like he's on track for that."

When it came to Sanchez, the Yankees' manager refused to set a timeline for a possible return.

"I don't think he's on as fast a track as Edwin," Boone said, "but I'm feeling more confident certainly by the playoffs and hopefully at some point maybe in that final series he could get in."

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Ned Yost did something that few thought possible when he took over the Kansas City Royals in 2010: He not only built the organization into a winner but delivered the long-suffering organization its first World Series title in three decades.

Now, he's leaving the next rebuilding job to someone else.

Yost announced Monday that he will be retiring at the end of the season, ending a nine-year tenure that included two American League pennants and that dramatic 2015 championship.

The announcement came on an off-day for the Royals, who lost 12-8 on Sunday to the AL Central-leading Twins to fall to 57-100 -- their second consecutive season with at least 100 losses.

The Royals wrap up their season -- and their skipper's big league managerial career -- with two games against the Braves beginning Tuesday night, then a weekend series at home against Minnesota.

Yost, 65, who has been on a year-to-year contract, will retire as the club's career wins leader with 744 to date. He is the only manager to lead the Royals to back-to-back World Series, losing to the Giants in seven games in 2014 and beating the Mets in five the following year.

"I've thoroughly enjoyed my time here as your manager and will never forget the good and the hard times we had together as an organization and a fan base," Yost said. "I will never forget the fact that you fans supported us through it all. Kansas City will always have a special place in my heart, and I look forward to rooting the Royals on to their next world championship very soon."

Yost and general manager Dayton Moore are expected to address reporters Tuesday.

Like many small-market clubs, the Royals were forced to gut their roster after their stunning run of success once their foundational stars became too expensive to keep. That began a massive rebuilding effort last year that has continued into this season.

Yet unlike last season, the Royals showed signs of hope this summer. Building blocks such as shortstop Adalberto Mondesi, third baseman Hunter Dozier and outfielder Jorge Soler -- who broke the franchise record for homers in a season -- gave Royals fans a reason to return to the ballpark, while a bevy of talented pitchers in the minor leagues offers more hope for the future.

"With the development of our young players and our returning veterans, I feel and hope the worst is behind us in this rebuilding phase of our organization," Yost said. "My plan all along was to get us through the rough times then turn it over to a new manager to bring us the rest of the way.''

The Royals are not expected to move quickly in hiring Yost's replacement, though bench coach Dale Sveum and special adviser Mike Matheny would provide their young core with a seamless transition.

Both of them have managerial experience, with Sveum replacing Yost after he was fired in Milwaukee and Matheny with the cross-state rival St. Louis Cardinals. And should Matheny get the nod, it would be remarkably similar to the circumstances in which Yost got the Kansas City job: He moved from an advisory role within the rebuilding Royals in 2010 to replace the fired Trey Hillman.

Yost began his career in baseball as a catcher when he was drafted out of Chabot College in 1974. He made his big league debut six years later for Milwaukee and went on to play parts of six seasons with the Brewers, Rangers and Expos before moving into coaching.

That's where he ultimately made a name for himself.

After a long tenure on Bobby Cox's staff in Atlanta, he was hired by the Brewers in 2003 and immediately set about rebuilding that franchise. He had them within sight of the postseason in 2008 when he was fired with just 12 games remaining in the regular season.

Sveum guided them into the playoffs, where they lost to Philadelphia in the divisional round.

Yost got a second chance to rebuild a franchise when he took over for Hillman in Kansas City. The once-proud organization had just one winning season since 1993, and had not reached the playoffs since beating the Cardinals to win the Royals' then-only World Series title in 1985.

The Royals lost at least 90 games in each of Yost's first two seasons, but with young stars such as Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas arriving, they had finally become competitive. They won 86 games the following year and finally broke through in 2014, advancing all the way to the World Series.

Their championship season in 2015 was celebrated by an estimated 800,000 people who turned out in downtown Kansas City for a parade, a surreal sight for those who had followed the Royals for years.

The final week! A good time for 10 questions ...

What's left to play for?

The Cardinals' four-game sweep of the Cubs at Wrigley -- just the second time in MLB history that a team lost a four-game series at home with all four losses by one run -- did a lot to clarify what had been a crowded National League playoff race. Here's where we stand:

• The Cardinals are three games up on the Brewers, who swept the Pirates and are 10-2 since Christian Yelich went down for the season (11-2 if you include the game Yelich was injured).

• The Brewers and Nationals are now effectively tied for the two wild cards, although the Nationals have played two fewer games (they have a five-game series at home against the Phillies, including a doubleheader on Tuesday, while the Brewers have a day off Monday). Both teams are a comfortable four games up on the Cubs and 4 1/2 up on the Mets. The Brewers won the season series against the Nationals, so if the clubs end up with the same record the wild-card game will be played in Milwaukee on Tuesday, Oct. 1.

• If the Brewers manage to catch the Cardinals in the NL Central race and they end up tied, the tie-breaker game would be Monday, Sept. 30, at St. Louis (the Cardinals won the season series 10-9).

• The Astros and Yankees are both at 102 wins as they battle for best overall record and home-field advantage, although the Yankees have to finish with the better record since the Astros own the tiebreaker. The Astros finish with two at Seattle and four at Anaheim while the Yankees have two at Tampa Bay and three at Texas.

What about the American League's wild cards?

The Athletics have opened up a two-game lead on the Rays and Indians as they've gone 15-5 in September. They finish with two in Anaheim and four in Seattle. The Rays host the Red Sox on Monday, play the Yankees for two games and finish with three games at Toronto. Cleveland has a six-game road trip against the White Sox and Nationals.

The most likely tiebreaker scenario at this point is the Rays and Indians tying for the second wild card. That tiebreaker game would be in St. Petersburg, since the Rays crushed the Indians in the season series 6-1, outscoring them 41-18.

What's interesting right now is how the two teams' rotations line up, especially now that the Rays have Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow back (although neither has gone more than three innings yet). Scheduled starts right now for the week are as follows:

Tampa Bay: Snell (Monday), Brendan McKay (Tuesday), Charlie Morton (Wednesday), Glasnow (Friday), Ryan Yarbrough (Saturday), Snell (Sunday).

Cleveland: Aaron Civale (Tuesday), Mike Clevinger (Wednesday), Shane Bieber (Thursday), Zach Plesac (Friday), Adam Plutko (Saturday), Civale (Sunday)

Assuming those rotations stick, that would set up Morton going for the Rays in either Monday's tiebreaker game or Wednesday's wild-card game, while the Indians would have Clevinger in a tiebreaker game and either Clevinger or Bieber in the wild-card game.

Just for giggles, what happens if the Cubs suddenly get hot and force a tie?

The Cubs finish with three at Pittsburgh against the reeling Pirates and three at St. Louis. The Brewers are on the road against the Reds and Rockies, and the Nationals have those five at home against the Phillies and then three against Cleveland. We could get a three-way tie for two wild cards at 88-74 if this happens:

Cubs: 6-0
Brewers: 2-4
Nationals: 3-5

Possible, although unlikely. The Cubs' playoffs odds are down to 2.4 percent, according to FanGraphs. If we do somehow end up in a three-way tie, we go to the three-teams-for-two-spots tiebreaker, which involves designating teams A, B and C. The Brewers have first choice because they won both season series. The Nationals pick second. Club A hosts Club B. The winner is one wild card. Club C would then host the loser of the first game for the second wild card.

What's going on with the Yankees?

It's a never-ending story for the Yankees, and now Domingo German is out for the postseason because of a domestic violence investigation. Giancarlo Stanton returned to the lineup last week for his first action since June and played four games, homering on Saturday and going 4-for-10 overall. But the biggest news is that Luis Severino returned and looked very sharp in two outings. He threw four scoreless innings against the Angels and followed that up with five scoreless innings against the Blue Jays on Sunday, striking out nine with zero walks and throwing 80 pitches.

He looks ready to go in the playoff rotation along with James Paxton and Masahiro Tanaka, so only the fourth spot remains a question mark. A possible tandem outing with German is no longer in the works. J.A. Happ struggled in August, but he has the hot hand in September, with four runs in 23 1/3 innings this month. With Paxton in top form (he's allowed one earned run in September), Severino healthy and Happ looking better, the Yankees may actually be entering October in the best spot they've been at all season. Gleyber Torres did miss a couple games after tweaking his knee Friday night and Edwin Encarnacion has been out since Sept.12, but both are expected back this week. Catcher Gary Sanchez (groin) has been taking indoor batting practice, and the Yankees hope he'll be ready for the ALDS.

Any other injuries to watch?

Freddie Freeman is going to remain in Atlanta to get treatment for a bone spur in his right elbow as the Royals travel to Kansas City for a two-game series. Freeman has played through the issue for a few weeks and has hit .288 in September, although with just two home runs.

• Twins outfielder Max Kepler hasn't started since Sept. 14 because of a strain in his left shoulder.

• Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong missed the final three games of the Cubs series with a Grade 2 hamstring strain.

• Justin Turner finally returned to the Dodgers' lineup on Saturday after missing 13 days with a nagging ankle injury. Teammate Max Muncy sat out Saturday and Sunday with a sore thigh, but manager Dave Roberts said he would have played if it were a postseason game.

• Nationals catcher Kurt Suzuki hasn't been able to catch since Sept. 7 due to elbow inflammation.

• Rays rookie All-Star second baseman Brandon Lowe returned Sunday, playing in his first game since July 2.

• Jose Ramirez could be back in the Cleveland lineup Tuesday.

• A's reliever Blake Treinen is out for the rest of the regular season with a stress reaction in his back. Fellow reliever Lou Trivino hasn't pitched since Sept. 14 due to an oblique strain.

Who is Houston's No. 4 starter?

Wade Miley was having an excellent season heading into September, ranking in the top 10 in the AL in ERA, but he's allowed 23 hits and 18 runs over 7 1/3 innings in his past four starts -- including three outings in which he lasted no outs, one out and three outs. Can A.J. Hinch have any confidence giving him the ball in the postseason? He'll have one more start this week to turn things around.

The Astros don't really have a fifth starter at the moment, so it's Miley or some sort of bullpen game. The Astros could elect to go with a three-man rotation in the division series, which would entail the Game 1 starter pitching Game 4 on three days' rest. No doubt Justin Verlander will get the ball in the playoff opener, but asking him to go on short rest is asking him to do something he hasn't done since pitching 2 2/3 innings in relief in Game 4 of the 2017 ALDS. The only postseason game he started on short rest in his career was in the 2011 ALDS, but that was after pitching one inning in a rainout.

What's going on with the MVP races?

We're kind of where we were last week. Alex Bregman hit three home runs and drove in four runs as he continues to put some doubt in what looked like a Mike Trout lock before Trout went down for the season. Bregman is at .293/.419/.585 with 39 home runs, 117 runs, 108 RBIs, 112 walks and good defense.

Over in the NL, Anthony Rendon did not have a good week, hitting .167 with one home run and two RBIs as the Nationals went 3-3. They haven't had a three-game winning streak since Sept. 1. Cody Bellinger hit two homers and knocked in six runs. It still feels like Bellinger has the slight edge (and it's worth noting that Yelich does have a small lead in FanGraphs WAR).

How about the Cy Young races?

The battle between Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole will go down to the wire. Verlander won his 20th game on Sunday, improving to 20-6 with a 2.53 ERA and 288 strikeouts in 217 innings. Cole is 18-5 with a 2.61 ERA and 302 strikeouts in 200 1/3 innings. He's riding a string of seven consecutive double-digit strikeout games. Cole is scheduled to pitch on Tuesday and then in a final tuneup start on the final day of the season, while Verlander has just one start remaining. Verlander, however, has already made two more starts and has those 17 additional innings. Edge: Verlander.

I don't know if Jacob deGrom has completely separated himself from the pack, but don't blame him when the Mets fall short of the postseason. He has the most well-rounded season of dominance among NL starters, with a 10-8 record, 2.51 ERA and 248 strikeouts in 197 innings. He's second in the NL in ERA (Hyun-Jin Ryu is at 2.41, but has pitched 21 fewer innings), first in strikeouts, third in innings, first in lowest OPS allowed, and he has finished strong (he owns a 1.55 ERA in the second half).

Any other milestones/races to watch?

Yes! Pete Alonso has 50 home runs and is two away from tying Aaron Judge's rookie record. He also has a two-homer lead over Eugenio Suarez for the major league lead. Three Mets have led the NL in home runs -- Howard Johnson, Darryl Strawberry and Dave Kingman -- but no Mets player has led the majors.

• Tim Anderson of the White Sox leads DJ LeMahieu in the AL batting race, .334 to .329. If Anderson wins, his .258 career average entering 2019 would be the lowest ever for a batting champ at the start of the season. LeMahieu is trying to win the title in both leagues after leading the NL with a .348 average with the Rockies in 2016.

• Jorge Soler is tied with Trout for the AL lead with 45 home runs. Trout is out and Soler has a five-homer lead over Nelson Cruz. He's trying to become the first Royals player to lead the AL in home runs.

• The NL batting race is interesting because the co-leaders are Yelich and Ketel Marte of the Diamondbacks at .329, but both are out the rest of the season with injuries. Yelich has the edge in going to a fourth decimal point: .3292 to .3286. Rendon is third in the race at .325.

• Ronald Acuna Jr., of course, is still in pursuit of that 40-40 season. He's at 41 home runs and 37 stolen bases.

• Then there's my favorite stats chase of the season: Nicholas Castellanos of the Cubs has 58 doubles as he tries to become the first player since 1936 to reach 60 doubles.

Any final goodbyes?

CC Sabathia said goodbye to Yankees fans with a ceremony on Sunday, wiping away tears more than once. Sabathia is expected to make the Yankees' postseason roster, although he may be limited to a relief and/or mop-up role.

Felix Hernandez's contract is up in Seattle, and he'll make one final start at home on Thursday. He will finish his 15 seasons in Seattle without a playoff appearance, and while he hasn't announced his retirement, this will be his final game in a Mariners uniform. If he pitches in 2020, it will be somewhere else. With a 6.51 ERA, the phone won't be ringing off the hook.

The Red Sox finish at home against the Orioles. Could these be Mookie Betts' final games with Boston? He has one year remaining until free agency, but the trade rumors around him are already heating up as the Red Sox may look to deal him in the offseason.

The last game of the season in San Francisco against the Dodgers promises to be an emotional affair. It will be Bruce Bochy's final game as manager, after 13 seasons and three World Series titles. Next stop: Cooperstown. The scheduled starter that day: Madison Bumgarner, a free agent. Next stop: Who knows?