MADISON, Ill. – Racing with a new team in 2019, Karen Stoffer already accomplished one major goal this season in qualifying for the Mello Yello Countdown to the Championship.

The Pro Stock Motorcycle veteran now wants something she hasn’t had since 2015: a win.

She’ll look to break that string at this weekend’s AAA Insurance NHRA Midwest Nationals at World Wide Technology Raceway after a strong showing to open the playoffs.

Stoffer advanced to the semifinals on her Stoffer Enterprises/Big St. Charles Suzuki at Maple Grove Raceway, which was the first of six playoff races. She fell to eventual winner, current points leader and White Alligator Racing teammate Jerry Savoie, but Stoffer moved up to fifth in points, just 46 points behind Savoie.

What she hopes is next is her first career vixtory at St. Louis, which would make that title talk a little more serious.

“I feel like I’m in a good spot,” said Stoffer, who has eight career wins. “I wish Reading turned out a little different, but I’m happy we’ve got a fast bike so I’m excited about St. Louis. Every rider out there is tough, so just being in the top 10 is phenomenal. I’m going into this with the hopes and ambition to continue to improve every race and hopefully that turns on win lights.

“It’s been a while since I won a race, but I really feel optimistic with the bike and equipment we have.”

Gateway is the 12th of 16 races during the Pro Stock Motorcycle season and continues the first year of Stoffer competing on the WAR team with Savoie, who has won back-to-back races to move into the lead.

There’s been an adjustment for Stoffer and the team, but it’s gone well on nearly every front. Stoffer has praised the work of crew chief Tim Kulungian, who has adapted to her riding style to give her a bike capable of performing well.

She advanced to the final round in Chicago earlier this year, but Stoffer admitted it took some time for everything to come together.

“Tim has found some good things for my style of riding,” Stoffer said. “There were some major differences and the bike reacts different, but I think he’s done a fantastic job. I’ve been pretty happy with how the season has gone. They’ve got great equipment and I’m proud to be part of the WAR team. We’re in a great spot in the Countdown and there’s still an opportunity to do something.”

To have a memorable weekend in St. Louis, Stoffer will have to get past the likes of defending event winner and world champ Matt Smith, who beat her in the final round in Chicago, Andrew Hines, who won seven races in the regular season, Eddie Krawiec, Savoie and Hector Arana Jr.

But as Savoie has showed the past two races, the team has bikes capable of winning races in the biggest moments. Stoffer’s confidence working with Kulungian has only grown as the season progressed, and she is confident that ascension will continue in St. Louis.

“I’ve never traditionally done well in St. Louis, but Tim has, so I’m excited about that,” Stoffer said. “Every race I learn something new and so does he. I think he’s done a fantastic job. We’re improving every race, so hopefully that continues this weekend.

“I feel like I’m riding well and the team is jelling, so we certainly have a good opportunity to keep that going.”

CONCORD, N.C. — When Roush Fenway Racing announced Chris Buescher would be returning to the organization in 2020, team co-owner Jack Roush felt like it was an opportunity to correct a mistake.

Buescher had been a part of Roush Fenway Racing through the 2015 season, winning the NASCAR Xfinity Series championship (2015) and ARCA Menards Series championship (2012) along the way.

However, after the 2015 season Roush was struggling to find a place for Buescher in his NASCAR program. As a result, Buescher departed Roush Fenway Racing to join Front Row Motorsports in 2016 before moving on to JTG Daugherty Racing in 2017.

Looking back on that decision, Roush admits he’d do things differently should he be given the chance to do it over.

“It’s not often in life that you have the chance to redo a mistake,” Roush said Friday afternoon at Charlotte Motor Speedway. “In 2015 when he won the Xfinity championship, he completed a lot of laps, led a lot of laps, he was a good points racer as well as a good closer.

“When we were going into 2016 and what we had in front of us in terms of challenges, I decided at that time I would dilute my existing programs more than I should by starting a program for Chris. I wish I’d done that differently.”

Luckily for Roush, the opportunity to bring Buescher back into the fold unexpectedly presented itself during the last seven days.

Buescher was in the midst of contract negotiations with JTG Daugherty Racing, but a set of circumstances that Roush Fenway Racing President Steve Newmark declined to discuss in depth opened the door for the team to sign the 26-year-old Texan to replace Ricky Stenhouse Jr. in the No. 17 Ford Mustang.

“It did come together pretty quickly, this wasn’t something we’d been planning for quite some time,” Newmark explained. “We were alerted to something from Chris and his representatives about a residual option that Roush Fenway had retained from many years back. Through some circumstances that arose between JTG and Chris, that option came about.

“The way the situation evolved was he had his contract with JTG. That was his contract. We didn’t have a right of first refusal, it was only if certain circumstances came out where he was no longer under that arrangement with JTG that he essentially had to notify us and let us know his status.”

For Buescher, the chance to rejoin Roush Fenway Racing to take the wheel of the No. 17 was an opportunity to return home in a manner of speaking.

“For me it’s going to be an opportunity to have a homecoming in a lot of senses,” said Buescher, who has one Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series victory on his résumé. “It’s a place I spent a really long time. I have a ton of friends that are still at Roush Fenway Racing and in the entire Ford camp. I would say through the craziness that has come up the last couple of days, it’s been incredible to hear from so many people that have so many well wishes and congratulations.”

Roush compared Buescher to two other drivers who have carried the No. 17 — Darrell Waltrip and Matt Kenseth, saying that he’s looking forward to the team building its program around Buescher beginning next year.

“He certainly exemplifies and compliments the No. 17 car number that Darrell Waltrip ran initially, and Matt Kenseth more recently had used for stock cars,” Roush said. “Not that he’s in Darrell Waltrip’s fold, but Matt Kenseth raced the way Chris likes to race. I think it’ll work out very well with Ryan Newman’s attitude toward racing with what he does with his car and the way he approaches the sport in general.

“We’re real excited to build the program around him.”

PLYMOUTH, Ind. – The opening night of the Inaugural Hoosier Autumn Classic from Plymouth Speedway has been cancelled due to heavy rains and thunderstorms.

Friday night’s portion of the Hoosier Autumn Classic will not be rescheduled.

Saturday, the second night of the Hoosier Autumn Classic will run as scheduled with a $12,000 to win, 50 lap main event for the American Ethanol Late Model Tour. The AELMT race format will feature qualifying, heat races, last chance races and the 50-lap A-main.

Thunder Stocks and Compacts will also be in action.

Saturday at Plymouth, pit gates open at 2 p.m., general admission seating opens at 4 p.m., and the American Ethanol Green Flag waves with hot laps at 6:30 p.m.

General admission tickets are $30, and pit passes are $40.

The Winnipeg Jets and right winger Patrik Laine have agreed to a two-year, $13.5 million contract, the team announced.

Laine, who was a restricted free agent, was on pace for superstardom and a huge payday after two seasons in the league. But last season raised some questions.

The 21-year-old had 36 goals and 64 points in his rookie season and 44 goals and 70 points in 2017-18. Last season, he finished with 30 goals and 50 points but had only nine goals after Dec. 1 and didn't have more than four goals in any month other than November.

His first three seasons also saw his plus-minus go from plus-seven to plus-eight to minus-24, and his Corsi percentage go from 48.7 to 50.2 to 46.2.

Adding up his three seasons, however, Laine is only 21 points behind the man taken ahead of him in the 2016 draft, Auston Matthews, who signed a five-year, $58 million contract in February.

Tiger Woods' recovery from knee surgery has taken a step forward.

During an interview with Good Morning America's Michael Strahan earlier this week, Woods revealed that he had been cleared for "full practice" after undergoing arthroscopic surgery last month to repair minor cartilage damage in his left knee.

“I got the clearance last week to start full practice, and so I played nine holes the other day,” Woods told Strahan, who joined Woods at Liberty National for the Nexus Cup, Woods' new golf event that supports his foundation. “It’s sore, yeah, but now I can start lifting and getting my muscle back and getting my weight up."

Woods announced the news of his surgery – the fifth knee procedure of his career – via Twitter on Aug. 27, adding that he expected to make a "full recovery" and compete in next month's Zozo Championship. Woods remains on track to play in the Oct 24–27 event in Japan, as well as a new skins tournament the Monday before alongside Rory McIlroy, Jason Day and Hideki Matsuyama.

According to Golf Digest, Woods didn't hit any full shots during the Nexus Cup, but he did look "spry." Woods also beat Strahan in a putting contest, which was shown in the GMA video.

LA Galaxy's Zlatan Ibrahimovic remains the league's highest paid player, with an annual base salary and guaranteed compensation of $7.2 million, after the MLS Players Association announced revised salary numbers for the 2019 season.

The revised figures released on Friday reflect teams' activity during the league's summer transfer window.

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The top five is rounded out by Toronto midfielder Michael Bradley ($6m base, $6.5m total), TFC striker Jozy Altidore ($4.9m base, $6.3m total), LAFC forward Carlos Vela ($4.5m base, $6.3m total) and Chicago midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger ($5.6m base and total).

Giovani dos Santos, who had previously ranked second, is no longer on the list following the buyout of his contract by the LA Galaxy and subsequent move to Liga MX side Club America.

D.C. United forward Wayne Rooney, who will leave the club after the season to take a player-coach role at Derby County, has a total compensation of $3.5 million.

Among players who arrived during the summer, the New England Revolution's Gustavo Bou was the highest paid player, with a base salary and guaranteed compensation of $2.1 million. He's followed by Montreal Impact midfielder Bojan Krkic ($1.23m base, $1.53m total), Portland Timbers striker Brian Fernandez ($1.2m base, $1.27m total), LA Galaxy midfielder Cristian Pavon ($1.2 base and total) and Toronto FC defender Omar Gonzalez ($918,000 base, $1.19m total).

The average base salary fell a bit to $371,538 from compared to the June mark of $376,174. The same was true for the average guaranteed compensation figure which fell to $411,996 from the June figure of $417,643.

In a sign of the disparity in player salaries, the median base salary is $163,750, while the median guaranteed compensation is $179,498.

Based solely on the guaranteed compensation numbers, Toronto is the team with the highest payroll at $24.3 million, followed by the LA Galaxy ($19.6m), the Chicago Fire ($17.1m), LAFC ($13.8m) and the Seattle Sounders ($13.7m).

The Vancouver Whitecaps had the league's lowest payroll at $8.1m followed by the Colorado Rapids (8.6m), the New York Red Bulls ($8.7m), the Houston Dynamo ($8.7m) and FC Dallas ($8.8m).

If you drive west around Madrid, the city's very own wacky racetrack, the M30, still takes you underneath the main stand at the stadium that was Atletico Madrid's home for 50 years. The rest of it, though, has almost gone. Walls have been torn down, cables ripped out, a digger standing on the rubble of the old place where the pitch used to be. The bar that celebrated the double has gone, shutters down, and so has Resino's place.

Soon they will start on the main stand, too, where the sign is already rusting and windows have gone, and then there will be nothing. It is a sorry sight but it is progress, or so they say, and most are pretty happy with their new stadium, over 20 kilometres away on the other side of the city.

Everything feels different now, including Atlético themselves, which means that the derby does, too. Especially this year. This, after all, the game that they liked to portray as the people against the power. It wasn't entirely true, of course, but it was an attractive story, one that gave them a moral dimension -- this game means more -- and there was something in it. On the Madrid Monopoly board, the road that the Bernabéu stands on, the Paseo de la Castellana, is dark blue: their Park Lane. Atlético's stadium doesn't have a street on the board; it stood at the end of Melancholic's Way, which was appropriate then and, walking around the ruins of the old stadium, even more appropriate now.

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Today, though, it is Atlético's stadium, a new arena with 64,000 seats that has just hosted the biggest game in club football, a place that Liverpool fans consider partly their own, having beaten Spurs in the European Cup final there. It's not where Atletico fans wanted it to be, right out by the airport, but it is impressive. And this summer Atlético Madrid's manager Diego Simeone told La Nación: "We're no longer the people's team; we have an extraordinary stadium and next year we will have a training ground at the level the club deserves."

On one level, that is something to celebrate, of course, but there was also a sense of loss, a reluctance to let go of what they were, to be too much like the rest, and especially like their rivals: The response to that comment showed how far Atlético fans embraced that identity, built over years. Simeone stepped back a little, but only a little. "We have a wonderful stadium and we signed Joao Felix for €126 million, so economically we're not the people's team," he said, "but socially, morally and emotionally we are, because we still draw on our roots and that doesn't change, however much the club grows economically."

On Saturday, the derby comes and while Atlético long ended the days when Real Madrid's fans could hold up a mock advert asking for "a worthy rival for a decent derby," this time more than any other time is when they most embrace that difference. One of the many things that Atlético expressed for years, and still do, was not being Real Madrid. Beating Madrid is another matter. For 25 games, Atlético couldn't defeat them and then one day in the Copa del Rey final at the Bernabéu, it changed (except in Europe), and boy, do they have decent derbies these days.

This is first vs. third, after all: two teams who are genuine candidates to win the league. Atlético have finished above Real for two years in a row. And they have spent too this time. A lot.

Here are the subplots and currents running under the season's first Madrid derby.

The "people's team" finally splash the cash

This summer, Atlético spent more than they ever had before: €244m. That's just €54m below what Real Madrid spent. As Simeone suggested, a team that spends €126m on Joao Felix can't really play the pauper card. They splashed almost €100m on defenders alone and they even bought Marcos Llorente from Real for €30m, although as it turns out, he's not played much so far.

Atlético's spending was driven by the departure of players who left, some of whom they were powerless to stop: Rodri, Lucas Hernandez and Antoine Griezmann all departed after their new clubs unilaterally paid the buy-out clause, three players alone raising €270m, most of which was reinvested. Most, but not all. Atlético actually made a €44m profit. Well, €44,000,300 now.

The Spanish Federation has just fined Barcelona for their approach to Griezmann. It cost them €300. As Marca handily pointed out, you could get fined more than twice that for urinating in the street.

The derby's new British connection

No, not Gareth Bale (although him, too). Kieran Trippier has become an unexpected hero at Atlético, pressed very high and very wide, with so much of their play passing through him. The full-backs are vital for the team to function, allowing the midfield to turn inside, leaving them with the wing to themselves.

Left-back Renan Lodi is an attacking threat with his speed and willingness to run beyond people; on the other side, Trippier is more about the passing and delivery, usually from a little further back. He's more likely to sneak in behind players than run beyond them. He takes no risks, rarely loses the ball and plays the right pass almost every time: prepared to come back inside with a simple ball if the cross is not on.

No one in the Atlético team has put as many balls into the box as Trippier -- he's way, way ahead of the rest -- and they look for him early and often, playing long diagonal passes to seek him out. If he goes, he relies heavily on Koke to cover and combine: There's a neat partnership developing there. Koke's work, responsibility and positioning is fundamental. Watch how often Trippier is further forward than the captain.

(All that said, Santiago Arias played well enough in Mallorca to pose the question of whether Trippier, resting on Wednesday to be fit for this, is quite the guaranteed starter he appeared to be.)

The new, improved Atlético?

Griezmann, Rodri and Lucas all left, but they weren't the only ones. Diego Godin, Lucas Hernandez and Juanfran all brought their Atlético careers to an end. Half of their starting XI went; Atlético had to start again. It's true that Saúl, Koke and Jan Oblak are still there, while they managed to keep Alvaro Morata too, but this wasn't just changing players; it was changing play.

First things first here: Despite the enthusiasm, this probably is a slightly weaker team than it was. But it is strong, and certainly stronger than many feared as players started to depart, and it's exciting, too. It's also different. As Koke put it in an interview with AS: "There's been a huge change. We want to play a bit more, play a bit better, change a bit. Maybe you can see it in the way that we have a bit more possession." That's part of the question: How soon will it all fit into place, how committed will they be to this idea, which appears to break a little with who they were, how well will it work?

So far, they're optimistic, but cautiously so. There's definitely a shift: Before Mallorca, they had conceded two goals a game for three straight games, which is not like them.

Speaking of Koke... how about Casemiro?

Casemiro. That is all. Madrid need him to impose himself on the game, possibly more than they need anyone else right now.

Who will be Atletico's 11th man?

Ten of Saturday's starting XI seems reasonably clear although the make-up and order of the middle shifts sometimes: Saul, Koke, Thomas Partey in midfield, maybe even Hector Herrera. The question is the 11th man. Angel Correa, Vitolo, Lemar? Or maybe even an extra central midfielder?

And where does Joao Felix line up? He starts, for sure, but he's played right, left and middle, sometimes in the same game.

As for Madrid, their lineup seems pretty clear, with Nacho likely filling in for Ferland Mendy and Marcelo (who's back in training) at left-back: Thibaut Courtois, Dani Carvajal, Sergio Ramos, Raphael Varane, Nacho, James Rodriguez, Casemiro, Toni Kroos, Bale, Karim Benzema and Eden Hazard.

Luka Modric is back, too. It's not impossible, though unlikely, that he immediately returns to the team.

Madrid look different while staying the same

On the day that Madrid played their first home game of the season, there was only one player who hadn't been at the club back in 2014 -- and that was the goalkeeper. So much for the French revolution. So much for "there will be changes."

Zidane hadn't got all the players he wanted -- Paul Pogba, basically -- and didn't want all the players they could get him. It was tempting at that point to say, though, that the best thing that could happen to him was that he didn't get what he wanted: James and Bale, two footballers who weren't in his plans, suddenly appeared as his signings. Neither was happy, neither felt entirely wanted, but both look set to play key parts and determined to make a point. James is running like he's never done before.

While there's little cover in midfield, there have been some changes, too: Hazard is fit now, while both Vinicius and Rodrygo scored in midweek. The latter took his goal superbly. He'd only been on the pitch 94 seconds of his debut. Vinicius is unlikely to start on Saturday -- it will be Bale, Benzema and Hazard up front -- but he may play a part. Rodrygo wasn't named in the squad.

It's too early to be completely convinced, and there's no great tactical shift or dazzling displays, but slowly things seem to be falling into place. Including them:For the first time in two years and four months, Real stand alone at the top. And even if this had happened a week ago, after the disaster in Paris, that's no reason for Atlético to be optimistic.

Koke knows this. "People give them up for dead and that's a big lie," he said.

The Jose Mourinho effect?

Zidane complained about a "lack of intensity" after Madrid were destroyed by PSG in the Champions League. It's too often a catch-all explanation for everything, a cliche that doesn't really explain anything while avoiding deeper questions and proper analysis, but there's a kernel of truth in it.

The Real boss was under pressure and the talk was of Mourinho. And suddenly, there it was in Seville: the intensity Zidane demanded. Time to do the "tongue in cheek" emoji here, but was that threat all it took? Magic. Lads, Mourinho might come: time to pull our fingers out!

There is a broader question, though, raised by Jorge Valdano: Madrid fought in Seville, taking their defensive responsibilities very seriously, aware of the pressure they were under and the threat from an opponent who had beaten them four years running. Can they always do that? Should they, in fact?

"They can't do what they did today consistently," said Valdano. "Bale, Hazard and James have to go forward, not back."

Courtois, Morata face their old friends

Outside the Metropolitano, there is a plaque for every player who has played at least 100 games for Atlético. That means that there is a plaque for Courtois. Last time he came, it was scratched, covered in rubbish, mud and the lid from a tin of biscuits with a picture of a stag on it: a sign of infidelity. There were also loads of cuddly toy rats; fans even threw some at him during the game.

He's not the only one in the two squads but he may be the only one on the pitch in the end: Atlético didn't get James Rodríguez, even though at that point in the summer they, and he, wanted it to happen. Marcos Llorente, signed from Madrid for €30m, has not played a major role and probably won't start. Morata is suspended after he came on in Mallorca and was sent off again eight minutes later, having picked up two yellow cards in barely 60 seconds following a confrontation with Xisco Campos and Salva Sevilla.

They're still arguing now over what was said. Sevilla says he called Morata a "daddy's boy." Morata won't say what he heard, but that it was far worse. Atlético have appealed, but don't expect it to succeed.

Could Diego Costa contribute?

Six months later, Diego Costa scored for Atlético in Mallorca. "Forwards need goals; they live by them," Diego Simeone said. "This is very good for him, and very good for the team."

He's scored six times in four games against Madrid since returning to Atlético, which sounds amazing, but handle those figures with care: They were scored in the European Super Cup last summer and in this summer's 7-3 win in preseason. In La Liga, it's been 1-1 and 0-0 and he hasn't scored.

Oh, and he has a friend waiting for him: "I want to play against Costa," said Hazard, his former teammate at Chelsea.

Watch out for Benzema

Almost 10 years later, he has become a goalscorer. He always was, of course, just not quite like this. After a decade facilitating things for Cristiano Ronaldo, a brilliant player if not a No. 9 as such, he has now taken responsibility for himself. He's top scorer in Spain and one of the league's outstanding players so far. He started to get a lot of goals consistently last season, particularly after Zidane's return.

The truth was that few of them were truly important, the season was over and the doubts remained, but now they matter. His five include the winner in Seville. Mind you, he's never been about goals and maybe still shouldn't be: His best moment remains that bit of skill in the derby at the Calderón in the Champions League. On the spot where he produced that bit of magic, there's just dust and broken concrete now. He'll miss it, too.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- When the New England Patriots decide to go for it on fourth down, or attempt a two-point conversion, how much does head coach Bill Belichick rely on analytics?

"Less than zero," Belichick said Friday morning.

Belichick, who is preparing his 3-0 team for a road game against the 3-0 Buffalo Bills on Sunday, was asked the question in the aftermath of a notable decision by Philadelphia Eagles head coach Doug Pederson on Thursday night. Pederson elected to go for a two-point conversion with 9:12 remaining in the third quarter. The attempt failed, with the Eagles going ahead 27-20 en route to a 34-27 victory over Green Bay.

Also, last Sunday, Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh elected to go for a two-point conversion three times in a 33-28 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The Ravens also converted three of four chances on fourth down.

Belichick was asked, then, if his decisions are based on his gut.

"I'm not saying it's a gut thing. It's an individual analysis based on the things that are pertinent to that game and that situation," he said. "I don't really care what happened in 1973 and what those teams did or didn't do. I don't really think that matters in this game -- or '83 or '90, pick out whatever you want."

Belichick then smiled and said, "It's not really my thing. And I like math, too, by the way."

The Patriots rely on analytics for other parts of their football operation, such as technology, scouting and contracts. Ernie Adams, one of Belichick's longtime confidants, serves as the team's football research director.

On Friday, Belichick's thoughts on in-game analytics were sparked by a question on older players, such as Bills running back Frank Gore, 36, continuing to have success in the NFL. Belichick was asked whether his view of players and their age has changed due to advances in conditioning, exercise science and nutrition.

"It's a really good question," he said. "Personally, I just try to take everything based on what I see, and not try to maybe read too much into other numbers and so forth. As you know, analytics is not really my thing. I don't know if there's any set formula or model for what it is today or what it was some other year. I'm sure you could go to some analytics person and they'd be able to give you a great numerical answer on that."

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- The Jacksonville Jaguars aren't willing to shut the door on the possibility of cornerback Jalen Ramsey playing Sunday just yet.

Ramsey hasn't been with the team since Wednesday because he was in Nashville for the birth of his second daughter, but the team listed him as questionable for the game at Denver. In addition to the personal leave, Ramsey also is dealing with a lower back issue.

"First of all, congratulations to Jalen and his family on the birth of his second daughter," coach Doug Marrone said Friday. "Both mom and baby are healthy, and obviously that's important. We've been in communication and we'll just see [if Ramsey will be available to play], and if anything comes up I'll make sure you're aware of it."

Ramsey has not missed a game since the team drafted him fifth overall in 2016. Marrone is hopeful that the streak continues.

"It's not something to joke around with, but obviously when you say your level of hope [is that Ramsey will return to play], you're hoping that every player is going to play from injury," Marrone said. "When he gets back, we'll see how he's doing."

If Ramsey does not play, his replacement would be second-year player Tre Herndon, who made the team as an undrafted rookie last season.

"'If we don't have Jalen, we still have to go out there and it is what it is," nickelback D.J. Hayden said. "We still got to go out there and we still have a game to win. So I feel 100% confident [in] anybody we got on our team and on this defense and still feel like we're going to go out there and not skip a beat."

It has been an eventful two weeks for Ramsey, who asked the team to trade him after being chastised by Jaguars executive vice president of football operations Tom Coughlin following the Jaguars' 13-12 loss at Houston on Sept. 15. Ramsey got into a sideline shouting match with Marrone after Marrone refused Ramsey's request to challenge a completion to DeAndre Hopkins.

Ramsey played against Tennessee on Sept. 19 but did not practice Monday because of an illness. He also missed Wednesday's practice with a back injury, which created its own drama. Three hours after Marrone said he didn't know when Ramsey suffered the injury, the team released a statement saying Ramsey did report back soreness to the team's medical staff during the fourth quarter of the Titans game.

After Ramsey sat out Wednesday, league sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter that it was considered unlikely that Ramsey would play Sunday. Earlier Wednesday, Marrone said he thought the two-time Pro Bowl cornerback would be able to play against the Broncos "if he has the ability to play."

On Wednesday night, the team announced that Ramsey would return to his hometown for the impending birth of his second child and released a statement from Marrone that Ramsey "will return to the team when he's ready."