New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees is expected to undergo thumb surgery as early as Monday that could sideline him about six weeks, league sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

Brees knew Sunday night that he needed surgery for ligament damage, sources told ESPN's Chris Mortensen. The quarterback was still deciding who would do the surgery and when.

The Saints have not indicated whether they will consider placing Brees on injured reserve, which would free up a roster spot but would require the quarterback to miss at least eight weeks.

New Orleans will turn to Teddy Bridgewater, who is the NFL's highest-paid backup quarterback on a one-year, $7.25 million deal.

Brees left Sunday's game late in the first quarter after his right throwing hand appeared to hit Los Angeles Rams defensive tackle Aaron Donald's hand at the end of an incomplete pass.

Brees had his right thumb and lower hand/wrist area taped by a trainer on the bench and remained on the sideline for the rest of the game in uniform.

After the game, he acknowledged that he was "concerned" about the severity of the injury.

With Brees likely to miss multiple games, the Saints are now 25-1 to win the Super Bowl at Caesars Sportsbook. Prior to Sunday's game, New Orleans had 8-1 odds at Caesars.

Bridgewater finished the game for Brees, going 17 of 30 for 165 yards in a 27-9 loss to the Rams. It was only the third time under coach Sean Payton, who took over in 2006, that the Saints failed to score a touchdown.

Brees, 40, has missed only one start because of injury since high school -- when he was ruled out of a Week 3 game against the Carolina Panthers in 2015 with a shoulder injury.

Brees' absence will end his streak of starting at least 15 games in 15 straight seasons -- the second-longest of its kind behind only Brett Favre, according to ESPN Stats & Information.

Brees said it was tough for him to watch from the sideline Sunday. When he missed that game in 2015 at Carolina, he actually stood on the sideline and mimicked breaking the huddle before each play.

"It's very difficult not to be playing," Brees said. "I'm not used to that. I don't want to get used to that."

The Saints have invested heavily in Bridgewater, the former first-round draft pick of the Minnesota Vikings. They initially traded a third-round pick to acquire him last summer from the New York Jets.

Dual-threat quarterback Taysom Hill is another option for the Saints while Brees is sidelined.

Payton showed his support for Bridgewater after the game, calling him a "pro" who was ready to go after Brees was hurt while blaming a lot of Bridgewater's struggles on the Saints' offensive line getting "whupped" up front and a slew of drive-killing penalties.

"I felt comfortable with Teddy and do feel comfortable with Teddy," Payton said.

ESPN's Mike Triplett contributed to this report.

We know you're not supposed to overreact to Week 1, but what about Week 2?

A two-game sample is twice as large as a one-game sample (math!), and besides, history tells us it absolutely can matter where you stand after the first two weeks. Since 1990, when the current playoff format began, NFL teams that have started 2-0 have made the playoffs 61.3% of the time. Teams starting 0-2 make it just 12.6% of the time.

So, yeah, let's go ahead and overreact to Week 2, shall we?

The Giants need to start Daniel Jones now

New York fell to 0-2 with a 28-14 home loss to Buffalo. Lame-duck veteran quarterback Eli Manning was 26-for-45 for 250 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. That isn't terrible when you consider the state of the Giants' wide receiving corps (Sterling Shepard hurt, Golden Tate suspended, Odell Beckham Jr. traded to Cleveland because the coaches didn't like him), but it's not very exciting, and it certainly wasn't enough to win.

The verdict: NOT AN OVERREACTION. The only argument you can make against this team bringing in its rookie first-round pick is that the Giants, with their ultra-permissive defense and shredded receiving corps, aren't a great situation to throw a rookie into at this point. But the 2018 Bills weren't a great situation to throw Josh Allen into, and look what he just did to the Giants on Sunday.

One of the Giants' biggest problems the past couple of years has been the front office's inability to accurately assess the state of its roster. This is clearly a rebuilding team, and it should be rebuilding around the quarterback it deemed good enough to select No. 6 overall. No reason to delay the inevitable. The team has one of the most exciting young players in the game in Saquon Barkley, and the smart thing to do with a star running back is to maximize these brilliant early years before he wears down and/or it's time to pay him.

If Jones is going to be Barkley's quarterback, there's no reason to waste any more of his rookie contract (or Barkley's) just because of some misguided perception that Manning makes them more competitive. They sure don't look very competitive, and what makes it all worse is that they aren't very interesting. Jones would be something that might excite the fans and let them imagine better days to come.

The Patriots are going 16-0

New England rolled into Miami and did what everybody expected it to do -- crushed a junior varsity Dolphins team 43-0, outgaining Miami 381 yards to 184 behind Tom Brady, Sony Michel and yeah, Antonio Brown, who caught a touchdown pass and was Brady's most targeted receiver in his debut. The Pats have outscored their two opponents 76-3 so far, and their defense appears to have picked up right where it left off in the Super Bowl.

The verdict: OVERREACTION. Just because it's really hard to go 16-0. The Patriots have done it, sure, but that was 12 years ago, so even they know it's easier said than done.

The schedule doesn't look too challenging until November, but in the second half of the season they'll play road games in Baltimore and Philadelphia, and home games against the Chiefs and Cowboys. Every team slips up at some point, and the Pats will be no exception.

Add in the high level of risk with which they've packed their roster -- Brown, Josh Gordon, a rookie quarterback backing up a 42-year-old starter -- and it's not hard to imagine a rough patch or two. New England looks like a solid bet to win the division for the 11th year in a row, but 16-0? Too soon to be thinking like that.

The Packers will win the NFC North

It hasn't been easy, but Green Bay improved to 2-0 with a 21-16 victory over Minnesota on Sunday. And they're not just 2-0 -- they're 2-0 in their division, with victories over the Bears and Vikings. Four of the Packers' next five games are at home, so you can imagine the hot start continuing. And for the second week in a row, the improvements they made on defense in free agency were a huge part of the win.

The verdict: NOT AN OVERREACTION. The Packers have won two games without their offense really clicking. Oh, it clicked in the first quarter Sunday, when they built a 21-0 lead on their first three possessions. But then it stalled, and the defense had to hang on. Those three drives and one in the opener in Chicago have really been the only times they've looked good on offense, and still they've managed to win both games.

The offense is only going to get better as Aaron Rodgers and coach Matt LaFleur jell, the offensive line gets more comfortable with the run-blocking schemes and everything runs more smoothly. "We've still got more to do," running back Jamaal Williams said after Sunday's game. "We're proud of how we started today, not proud of how we finished, but it's getting better and it will continue to get better." In the meantime, Green Bay continues to build confidence in its rebuilt defense, and that will continue to pay off down the road.

The Steelers will miss the playoffs

Pittsburgh is winless after season-opening losses to New England and Seattle. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger left Sunday's game because of an elbow injury. Running back James Conner left the game because of a knee injury. Neither returned, and the Steel City braces for news on both injuries early this week. Meanwhile, the defending division champion Ravens, who were supposed to be having a growing-pains year, are 2-0 and looking fantastic.

The verdict: NOT AN OVERREACTION. If Roethlisberger and Conner have to miss time, this roster starts to look awfully thin awfully quickly. Pittsburgh is already trying to figure out who the No. 2 receiver is behind JuJu Smith-Schuster -- not to mention whether Smith-Schuster is really a No. 1.

No offense to Mason Rudolph, who came in and did fine in relief of Roethlisberger on Sunday. But downgrading from Roethlisberger to Rudolph -- for however long they must -- is no way to help answer some of the key questions the Steelers still have to answer on offense.

The Saints are in huge trouble without Drew Brees

Brees is the other veteran star quarterback who couldn't finish his game Sunday, leaving in the first half of the loss to the Rams because of a thumb injury. Without him, the Saints couldn't get anything going offensively, and the Rams ran away from them in the second half. Brees is expected to undergo thumb surgery that could sideline him about six weeks, league sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The verdict: OVERREACTION. Wait, Graziano. How can you say the Steelers are in trouble but the Saints aren't? One team lost its future Hall of Fame quarterback and so did the other. What's the difference? Well, I'll give you a couple of differences.

First, there doesn't appear, based on early returns, to be a Ravens equivalent in the Saints' division. Carolina is off to a miserable start, and Atlanta looked terrible in its opener. Second, Teddy Bridgewater has been in the Saints' program for a couple of seasons now. And while the same can be said of Rudolph in Pittsburgh, I have a little more faith in Sean Payton and the Saints' coaching staff to develop and maximize a backup quarterback than I do in Pittsburgh's.

New Orleans' roster is deeper, it's better set up to lean on the run game, and I think Bridgewater will show more than he showed in relief Sunday. So that's why.

By now, we've learned to expect greatness from the New England Patriots. Winning is our default expectation for them. Bill Belichick & Co. have been favored in more than 90% of Tom Brady's starts since the future Hall of Famer returned from his torn ACL in 2009. They are 2-0 this season, and unless you firmly believed that New England was subject to some sort of Miami curse after dropping five of its previous six games on the road against the Dolphins, you're probably not surprised.

Even by the lofty standards set by the Patriots, though, they're off to a spectacular start. They followed a 33-3 win over the Steelers in Week 1 with a 43-0 shellacking of the hapless Dolphins in Miami on Sunday. They have outscored their two opponents by 73 points. If that seems like a lot, consider that the last time an NFL team outscored its opponents by 73 points or more during the first two weeks of a season was in 1975. Belichick's team is off to the third-fastest start for any franchise in NFL history.

This is about as good as any football team will play over a two-week span. Going back through the beginning of the Belichick-Brady dynasty in 2001, the Patriots have won back-to-back games by 30 points or more only once, back in 2012. (The second of those two victories was the Butt Fumble game.) The Pats haven't ever produced a plus-73 point differential over a two-week span; the closest they came was in 2007, when a 21-point win over the Dolphins and a 45-point victory over Washington got the Patriots to 8-0.

You probably remember that team, of course; the 2007 Patriots became just the second team in NFL history to go undefeated during the regular season, starting 16-0 before eventually losing to the Giants in Super Bowl XLII. The Patriots' first half of that regular season is still the most dominant two months of pro football I've ever seen, and it changed the league forever.

Those Pats never had a two-game stretch as dominant as the one we've just seen this team piece together to start the season. The parallels between the two aren't particularly subtle. The '07 Pats could do everything, but Belichick transformed his offense by adding impact wide receivers. The 2007 team retained Jabar Gaffney and added Donte Stallworth, Wes Welker and a mercurial star who had washed out in Oakland by the name of Randy Moss.

These Patriots, on the other hand, started with a much better returning wideout in Julian Edelman. They got Josh Gordon back from suspension in August and then added Antonio Brown once the Raiders ended their brief relationship with Brown before Week 1. New England also has first-round pick N'Keal Harry waiting in the wings, although the Arizona State product is on injured reserve and will miss at least the first half of the season.

We've only seen Brown, Edelman and Gordon on the field together for one game, and it was against a Dolphins team that might very well be one of the horrific NFL teams of this era. It wasn't the same sort of dominant passing day we saw from the 2007 Patriots, who seemed to respond to the Spygate scandal from Week 1 by lighting their opponents on fire. A dominant passing attack wouldn't be as much of a surprise as it was in 2007, when Brady leveled up and became one of the best passers in league history.

It's wild to predict that any team that starts 2-0 will eventually go 16-0, and I'm not trying to do so here. According to ESPN's Football Power Index (FPI), the Patriots have just a 1.9% chance of finishing the regular season undefeated. To put that in context, FPI gave the Dolphins a 14.1% shot of beating the Patriots outright on Sunday, while the money line at the Caesars Sportsbook implied Miami's odds were at 8.7%. You saw how unlikely Miami's chances actually were if you watched the game Sunday.

And yet, it's not too early to point out that there's the opportunity for something special to happen here. The Patriots are about as well-positioned to get off to a hot start as any team in recent memory. Given their current level of play, that could make things very scary for the rest of the NFL.

Reasons to get excited about 16-0

We knew things were expected to be easy for the Pats heading into the season. FPI projected them to enjoy the league's second-easiest schedule in 2019, with only the Jets going up against an easier slate. They already have one of their two Dolphins games out of the way, but their schedule -- especially during the first half of the year -- now seems easier than it did before the season began. Consider what their next few weeks look like:

• The Patriots play a Jets team in Week 3 that won't have Sam Darnold, who is out with mononucleosis. New York won't have C.J. Mosley and Quinnen Williams against the Browns and will be coming off a short week because it plays on Monday Night Football, so it's unclear whether Mosley and Williams will be ready for Sunday. Starting linemen Kelvin Beachum and Brian Winters are questionable, while Le'Veon Bell will play through some shoulder trouble. Would-be starters Quincy Enunwa and Avery Williamson are also out for the year.

• Week 4 will see the Pats face the Bills, who have looked dominant defensively in getting out to a 2-0 start. This is likely a tougher game than it seemed before the season.

• Seven days later, the Pats will face a Washington team that hasn't yet convinced star tackle Trent Williams to end his holdout and return to the organization. Jay Gruden's team has started 0-2 and has been outscored by 15 points; it might well be transitioning from Case Keenum to rookie Dwayne Haskins by Week 5.

• In Week 6, the Patriots host the Giants on Thursday night.

• After a long week, the Pats get the Jets again; while Darnold is expected to be back on the field by then, it's unlikely the second-year passer will be back at 100 percent after losing weight while recuperating.

• In Week 8, the Patriots host a Browns team that got blown out at home in its season opener after an offseason of hype. It's still way too early to count Cleveland out from contending, of course, but the Browns didn't impress in their first game under Freddie Kitchens as head coach.

After that, the schedule admittedly gets tough. Over a six-week stretch, the Patriots host the Cowboys and Chiefs and travel to face the Ravens, Eagles and Texans, with a bye week thrown in. They finish up by traveling to face a Bengals team that is already riddled with injuries before coming home for two final games against the Bills and Dolphins.

I don't like the check mark way of projecting a team's future record, which is the thing we all do when a team's schedule comes out and we run through their week-by-week slate. Too many unforeseen things happen. Every Browns fan on the planet would have expected to beat the Titans at home in their opener, and Cleveland lost by 30 points.

By FPI, though, the Patriots have a 30.1% chance of making it through the first half of the season undefeated. They have gone undefeated through their first eight games of the season only twice during the Belichick era. One of those seasons was 2007, obviously, while the other came in 2015, when they started 10-0 before losing to the Broncos. Denver then beat New England in their playoff rematch.

Likewise, there are reasons to think the Patriots are a much better team than we expected even as the preseason began. It wasn't clear whether they were going to get Gordon back at any point for the 2019 season, but he was allowed back into the NFL in mid-August after he applied for reinstatement over the summer. He's still likely not in football shape, but Gordon has shown an ability to strike up a connection with Brady. After his first three games in a Patriots uniform, Gordon averaged 74.5 receiving yards per game during his final eight appearances in 2018. He added 73 yards and a touchdown in the opener before a quiet day against the Dolphins. You can count the receivers in the NFL who have Gordon's athletic ability on one hand.

As unlikely as Gordon's presence in a Patriots uniform might have been, Brown was on another level. It would have been absurd to script his path to the Patriots over the past month, but the former Steelers star officially made his debut in a Patriots uniform Sunday. He took no time to make his presence known, catching three passes on the opening drive before adding a 20-yard touchdown later in the half. Brown would have had a second touchdown if it weren't for an uncharacteristic underthrow from Brady. He was targeted on eight of Brady's 28 pass attempts, a surprisingly large ratio for a wide receiver who is still realistically learning a complex Patriots scheme. The 31-year-old was targeted on 57.1% of the routes he ran, which seems at odds with the postgame suggestions from Belichick that the Patriots weren't trying to force Brown the football.

This was a team that was already expected to contend for a Super Bowl this season, even after losing Rob Gronkowski, Chris Hogan and Cordarrelle Patterson without signing any veteran replacements. Pats fans were talking themselves into guys like Maurice Harris and Jakobi Meyers in the preseason; now, they've upgraded with significantly more talented receiver options. New England's ceiling is unquestionably higher with Brown and Gordon at receiver.

Why 16-0 is unlikely

The Patriots have a better shot of going 16-0 than any other 2-0 team in recent memory. Those chances are still extremely small, even if I'm more optimistic than FPI's prescribed odds of 1.9%. So many things had to go right for those Patriots to go 16-0 in 2007. Counting on all of those things to happen again is a tall order:

The 2007 Patriots stayed healthy. No team can go all season without any injuries, but those Pats came pretty close. Richard Seymour started the year on the PUP list, and starting guard Stephen Neal missed time with a shoulder injury, but the only starter to hit injured reserve with an injury suffered during the season was Rosevelt Colvin, and he wasn't lost until Week 13.

The modern-day Patriots already have lost one starter for the season in center David Andrews, who was placed on injured reserve with blood clots. The offensive line is quickly becoming a concern, as right tackle Marcus Cannon missed the Dolphins game with a shoulder injury. The Pats signed veteran Marshall Newhouse on Wednesday and inserted him into the starting lineup; when left tackle Isaiah Wynn was ruled out with a foot injury, the Patriots then shifted Newhouse to Brady's blind side. If Wynn's foot injury is serious, they will have major concerns protecting Brady, no matter how good his receiving corps looks.

Their opponents weren't healthy. The Pats ran into five backup quarterbacks during their 16-0 season; Cleo Lemon started twice for the Dolphins, A.J. Feeley suited up for the Eagles, and Kyle Boller sat in for Steve McNair with the Ravens. J.P. Losman technically started the Week 3 game for the Bills, but he was knocked out after the opening series and replaced by Trent Edwards for the majority of the game. The Patriots beat the Feeley-led Eagles and the Boller-led Ravens by only three points each. They might very well have lost if the Eagles had Donovan McNabb or the Ravens had McNair. Brady also threw three interceptions in the AFC Championship Game against the Chargers, but the Patriots' defense held a Chargers team that lost LaDainian Tomlinson in the first quarter and had Philip Rivers playing through a torn ACL to 12 points.

Belichick is likely to face his first backup quarterback of the season on Sunday in the Jets' Trevor Siemian. It's impossible to project anything further beyond that point, but tough games down the line against teams such as the Chiefs, Eagles and Ravens wouldn't be anywhere near as difficult if their starting quarterbacks were injured.

The 2007 Patriots caught some breaks. As dominant as the Patriots were during the first half of the season, it's easy to picture a number of their games going the other way with a few small moments going the other way. In one of the games of the century against the Colts, Peyton Manning turned the ball over down 24-20 at midfield on a third-and-9 with 2:34 left. In the Eagles game, Feeley drove Philly to the Pats' 29-yard line with 3:58 to go, only to throw an interception to Asante Samuel.

The most memorable narrow victory was the 27-24 win over the Ravens, which included Ed Reed fumbling away an interception return in what would have been field goal territory at the end of the first half. With the Pats trailing 24-20 late in the fourth quarter, the Patriots false-started on a fourth-and-1 play that went for a loss. Brady scrambled to convert the ensuing fourth-and-6, then picked up a fourth-and-5 via a holding penalty. They scored on the ensuing play, and while Boller hit Derrick Mason on a Hail Mary on the final play of the game, Mason caught the ball at the 2-yard line and wasn't able to score.

The 38-35 victory over the Giants wasn't quite as close as people remember -- the Giants scored a touchdown with 1:08 to go to get within three -- but you can see just how little it would have taken for things to swing the other way and for the 16-0 season to turn into a 14-2 or 15-1 campaign. Even if the Patriots are as good as they seem right now, they'll have a game or two where they'll need a penalty flag at the right time or a gift from their opponents.

The receivers the Patriots have now might not be the receivers the Pats have in December. Moss' fit with the Patriots wasn't as rosy as it's been later depicted. There were rumors before Week 1 that the Patriots were about to release him after he struggled with a hamstring injury during preseason. That didn't happen, and Moss pieced together one of the best seasons from any wide receiver in league history. There are more significant concerns with New England's additions. Gordon has missed 59 games since the start of 2014 as a result of multiple suspensions. Brown's behavior on the field and in the facility over the past 12 months has been curious at best, and he was recently accused of sexual assault in a civil case. Even Edelman, who served a four-game PED suspension in 2018, would be subject to a 10-game suspension if he failed a second test.

Brady was 30 in 2007, and he's 42 now. As incredibly as Brady has aged, and as much as he has developed over that time frame, every single quarterback on the planet is going to be better at 30 than he is at 42. This doesn't mean that Brady has somehow become a liability or that I'm counting out his chances of accomplishing anything in 2019 whatsoever. (I'd like this on the record in case Brady busts out "everyone thinks we suck" again during his postseason interviews.) He is still an upper-echelon quarterback, of course, but it's going to be harder to throw and recover as the season wears on with 12 more years of wear and tear on his body. That's only going to be more difficult if the Pats can't keep their starting offensive linemen healthy.

The defense might not be as good as it seems. The Patriots finished 16th in defensive DVOA last season and then lost their best pass-rusher, Trey Flowers, to Detroit in free agency. They traded for defensive end Michael Bennett, brought back linebacker Jamie Collins, and drafted pass-rusher Chase Winovich in the third round, but Belichick didn't make any other significant additions on defense.

New England has now allowed three points through two weeks. It is the best defense in football after two games, and it has even chipped in 14 points on interception returns. Given that the Pats are relatively talent-neutral with a defense that was middle of the pack last season and haven't fielded a top-10 defense by DVOA since 2006, I don't think they're going to continue to be the best defense in football over the remainder of the season. We'll need to see them against a real offense to confirm this hypothesis, but the Pats might not go up against an above-average offense until they get the Browns in Week 8.

If I had to pick a record for the Patriots right now, I'd go with 13-3, even after this molten start. FPI, meanwhile, also projects them to win 13 games.

Does it actually matter?

The Patriots' legendary pairing of coach and quarterback usually isn't hard to read. They both want to win more than anything else, which is why Belichick opened the locker room to Brown and Brady literally offered the four-time All-Pro the option to stay at his house during the season. Nobody gets sick of winning the Super Bowl, and the Patriots enter every season in Super Bowl-or-bust mode.

I wonder, though, whether an undefeated season would mean more to Belichick and Brady now than it would have in 2007. What else do they need to prove? New England has won six Super Bowls during this dynasty. The Pats have more Super Bowl rings than any other coach (Belichick's eight) or player (Brady's six) in football history. The one thing they came close to accomplishing but failed to achieve was a perfect season. To call it a blemish on their record would be wrong, but it's also the one thing Brady and Belichick might look back and wish they had accomplished as a duo. Going 19-0 might have seemed impossible before 2007. Twelve years later, while it's still not likely, the Patriots know an undefeated season is possible.

PITTSBURGH -- As guard Ramon Foster walked out of the locker room after a second-straight loss for the Pittsburgh Steelers, he was asked about quarterback Mason Rudolph taking over the offense if Ben Roethlisberger's elbow injury keeps him sidelined.

His answer was blunt: Rudolph prepares like a mad man.

"He wants this," Foster added.

On Monday, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin announced that Roethlisberger will have surgery on his elbow and be out the remainder of the season.

The Steelers are sold on Rudolph for one prime reason: He grinds. They aren't worried about his preparation if he makes the start Sunday at San Francisco, which is crucial to avoid dropping to 0-3 and dwelling at the bottom of the AFC North.

No matter the results, they know he'll be ready for everything on the field. This is the same guy who wears his helmet on the sideline as the backup or used to mimic practice plays from the sideline as the third-stringer last season.

In Rudolph's NFL debut, he completed 12 of 19 passes for 112 yards, two touchdowns and one interception (not his fault coming off a Donte Moncrief drop) for a 92.5 passer rating. But guard David DeCastro cared less about the numbers and more about the command as Rudolph was mixing signals at the line of scrimmage.

"We like our chances," DeCastro said. "He’s a guy who cares a lot. That means a lot in this league."

Here's what to expect with Rudolph at the helm for the Steelers' offense.

Confidence to "let it fly," which is mostly good …

Rudolph said in the preseason, that in Year 2, he would hold nothing back, which eventually helped him beat Josh Dobbs for the No. 2 job. Rudolph delivered two touchdown strikes to Vance McDonald, who broke free for seven catches Sunday. Those were confidence throws.

Rudolph also isn't afraid to hold the ball in the pocket as routes develop or make intermediate-to-deep throws to tough spots.

"I am completely confident in myself, being a leader of a team, and playing games," Rudolph said. "That's what it all comes down to. If that's the case, I'm ready to roll."

But Rudolph has to make sure the timing is down on those tough throws. Rudolph said he needed to get the ball earlier to Diontae Johnson on a 17-yard sideline catch that required an acrobatic play to complete. On his interception on the two-point conversion attempt, Rudolph said surging defensive backs affected his vision.

These are good plays to experience entering a potential first start.

"He is going to throw the ball and make his reads," McDonald said. "I think he is very deliberate about that and that is something we can look forward to on offense."

More run-pass balance

The Steelers aren't a heavy play-action team, but Roethlisberger is most comfortable in the no-huddle offense and can use the short passing game to simulate runs. That helps explain his league-high 675 passing attempts a year ago.

The Steelers should support Rudolph with a stout running game to help set up the pass. James Conner and Jaylen Samuels combined for 39 rushing yards on seven carries (5.6 yards per carry) in the second half. That lessened the burden on Rudolph, who feels comfortable in play-action sets.

McDonald said the offensive line will set a tone in Week 3 and beyond, regardless of who's at quarterback.

"We rely on our big men up front to not only lead us but take charge as leaders of this team," McDonald said. "Just carrying us from week-to-week. Even with Ben up, they are our guys. We’ll rely heavily on them."

DeCastro is up to the challenge.

"We’ll see what this team’s made of," he said. "I don’t expect any drama. I expect guys to shut up and go to work.”

Creativity in the game plan

A 45-yard flea flicker to JuJu Smith-Schuster in the third quarter eased the tension for Rudolph and the offense, and everyone played loosely after that.

Surely offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner has some trickeration he hasn't used for a while. This might free him up to try some stuff.

And what helps Rudolph, college and NFL teammate James Washington says, is making extra time to throw with receivers during and after practices. There's not one pass-catcher in the offense that Rudolph doesn't know well, tendency-wise.

"He’s got a lot of weapons to play with," Washington said.

Make an imprint for the future

Rudolph now gets almost a full season to audition and, for the Steelers, this is his chance to inject clarity into the post-Roethlisberger succession plan. Roethlisberger is 37 and plans to play out the three years remaining on his deal, but the Steelers saw Rudolph as a first-round-caliber prospect in 2018.

"The reps in practice might change, but my [diligent] approach won't change," Rudolph said about how he prepares for this week.

Pittsburgh Steelers star quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will have surgery on his right elbow and miss the remainder of the season, coach Mike Tomlin announced Monday.

In a statement released by the team, Tomlin announced that Roethlisberger will undergo the surgery at some point this week after having an MRI on Sunday night.

The Steelers, who will place Roethlisberger on injured reserve, have not yet provided details about the injury, and there is no timetable for when the six-time Pro Bowler will be able to play again.

Roethlisberger was hurt late in the second quarter of Sunday's 28-26 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, grabbing his elbow after attempting a pass on the team's final drive of the half.

In Roethlisberger's absence, second-year quarterback Mason Rudolph nearly led the Steelers to a fourth-quarter comeback in his first career appearance, completing 12 of 19 attempts for 112 yards, two touchdowns and an interception.

Now the Steelers will have to rely on Rudolph, a third-round draft pick in 2018, to help them overcome an 0-2 start.

Roethlisberger, 37, is the Steelers' franchise leader in passing yards and touchdowns and has led Pittsburgh to two Super Bowl titles. He led the NFL with 5,129 passing yards last season, his 15th with the Steelers, and signed a contract extension this past March that runs through the 2021 season.

Steelers receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster tweeted Monday that he was "sad to hear the news" of Roethlisberger's injury.

Prayers up to my guy Ben on his upcoming surgery. So sad to hear the news, but we're gonna hold it down for you ✊??? pic.twitter.com/Neje7pNzZq

— JuJu Smith-Schuster (@TeamJuJu) September 16, 2019

The news of Roethlisberger's injury had an immediate impact on the Steelers' odds at Caesars Sportsbook, where they went from 40-1 to 100-1 to win the Super Bowl and 18-1 to 40-1 to win the AFC.

The Roethlisberger injury also affected the odds to win the AFC North at Caesars, which dropped Pittsburgh to 16-1 for the division title -- well behind the Baltimore Ravens (-200) and the Cleveland Browns (+170).

The Brooklyn Nets are hiring former Turner executive David Levy as chief executive officer, league sources told ESPN.

Levy worked closely with the NBA in his capacity overseeing Turner Sports' television coverage and has a strong relationship with commissioner Adam Silver.

Levy's appointment will become official shortly after the league's board of governors formally approves Tsai's ownership later this week in New York, league sources said.

Levy inherits a strong management and leadership infrastructure, including GM Sean Marks and coach Kenny Atkinson.

Levy is the chosen CEO of new owner Joe Tsai, who recently purchased majority ownership from Mikhail Prokhorov for $2.3 billion. Tsai had owned 49 percent of the Nets. Levy will replace Brett Yormark as CEO.

Levy joins the Nets at a historic franchise crossroads, which includes the summer free-agency signings of All-NBA players Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.

As the Toronto Raptors hoisted the Larry O'Brien trophy in June, they put a punctuation mark at the end of a wild NBA decade.

The 2010s will go down as one of the league's most successful periods, and the decade will be remembered for a couple signature trends: the rise of 3-point shooting and analytics. Shooting skills have always been vital in the NBA, but they became paramount this past decade.

The league leaned heavily into analytically correct shot selections that promoted 3-point shooting while minimizing midrange looks, resulting in an awakening that has reformed pro hoops. Most of the biggest shots of the decade came from beyond the arc -- Ray Allen's dagger from the right corner, Kyrie Irving's Game 7 step-back. Before Stephen Curry won his first MVP in 2014-15, no NBA MVP had led the league in 3-point scoring. Now, three of the past five winners have.

This decade belonged to shooters, and these 10 were the very best. Although there's still no perfect metric to quantify shooting skill, the top shooters in the game are able to combine volume and efficiency in ways normal NBA players can't. These aren't simply the guys with the highest 3P%, eFG% or TS%. They created and converted thousands of difficult shots from all over the court at high rates.

In a decade obsessed with shooting efficiency, these fellas reformed the ways we look at scoring in pro basketball.

1. Stephen Curry

We have to start with Curry, arguably the best shooter the game has ever seen. In a decade that we'll remember for its 3-point awakening, Curry was the alarm clock.

Check this out:

• By sinking 2,025 3s in the 2010s, James Harden ranked second in the NBA in made triples. Steph was No. 1 by a country mile, hitting 458 more 3s than Harden.

• Curry's 3s were tough. No one has attempted more triples since 2013-14 -- the first year we have full player-tracking data via Second Spectrum -- and only four players took more difficult attempts when accounting for shot quality and defender distance. The gap between Curry's expected eFG (49.6%) and actual eFG (64.0%) on 3s is greater than any other player's.

That combination of perimeter volume and efficiency was simply unprecedented before Curry came along. But as Curry's stardom rose, the rest of the league took notes. He'll forever be associated with the dominant trends of this decade. His shot chart from the past 10 seasons shows a man who is very good at hurling airy leather orbs through metal rings from every angle.

Before the 2015-16 season, no NBA player had made more than 300 3s in a season -- not Larry Bird, not Reggie Miller, not Ray Allen, not Curry. That season, Steph went out and made 402, in large part because he unlocked the power of the unassisted 3-pointer. Curry's 2015-16 is probably the best shooting season ever. He became the only player in history to put up 50/40/90 numbers while scoring more than 30 PPG.

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Long-range scoring was a skill set reserved for catch-and-shoot specialists at the beginning of this decade, but Curry busted our shooting records by destroying those conventions. To this day, more than 80% of NBA 3s are assisted, but for Curry that number is just 62%. The dude creates and makes his own 3-pointers off the bounce better than anyone else we've seen:

• Since 2013-14, 57 players have attempted at least 500 off-the-dribble 3s. CJ McCollum ranks No. 2 within that group by making 37% of his attempts; Curry is at 40.7%, per Second Spectrum tracking.

• In that same time, 218 players have attempted at least 500 catch-and-shoot 3s. Curry ranks second in both made 3s and 3P%.

2. Kevin Durant

The race for second-best shooter of the 2010s was much closer than the race for the top spot, but it's still hard to argue against KD here.

Durant can score from anywhere against anyone. That's what makes him special. Shots near the rim remain the most efficient attempts in the game, and unlike the decade's other great jump-shooters, Durant is a monster at the basket as well as in the midrange. Looking at his shot chart, you see the breadth of his brilliance.

Durant won four scoring titles in the 2010s thanks to his amazing blend of size, skill, smarts and scoring instincts. No player in the league can get good looks with such ease. Plus, Durant launched more jumpers than anyone else this decade. In other words, the money was easy.

If we're tracking all shots since 2013-14, not just 3s, Durant had the second-biggest gap between his actual and expected eFG, per Second Spectrum's shot-quality metrics. His plus-9.82% was only slightly behind Curry's plus-9.92%, and no other player topped plus-7.54%.

Like Curry, Durant put up a 50/40/90 season, but unlike Curry, he did it mostly inside the arc.

3. LeBron James

Nobody scored more points in the 2010s than LeBron James, and he absolutely owned the paint.

Unlike the decade's other breakout superstars, James' scoring efficiency is mostly limited to one area. But that one area is the most vital spot in the sport. Despite the massive growth of 3-point scoring, shots around the rim still produce the biggest return on investment in the game.

Perhaps the decade's most staggering scoring stat reveals just how dominant the decade's best player was in the sport's most important zone. Check this out:

• James led the NBA in total paint scoring and ranked No. 2 in paint efficiency out of 227 players with at least 1,500 attempts the past 10 seasons.

Yep, that's crazy. While interior shooting is an entirely different skill from jump-shooting, James is the Steph Curry of close-range buckets:

• Dwight Howard ranked No. 2 in the NBA in the 2010s by converting a whopping 3,796 field goals within 8 feet of the basket. James made 4,434!

• During the 2010s, 152 NBA players converted at least 1,000 field goals within 8 feet of the basket. Of that group, James ranked No. 1 in FG%, converting a ridiculous 69.2% of his shots.

It's fair to say that James is just an average jump-shooter; he made only 38.3% of his shots beyond 8 feet during the 2010s. But it's impossible to argue that the decade's leading scorer has an offensive formula that's anything short of awesome.

4. Klay Thompson

Thompson has a case as the most terrifying heat-check shooter we've ever seen. Just utter his name around an Oklahoma City Thunder fan, and you'll see the terror he can strike in a fan base. If it weren't for Thompson's 11 3s in a must-win Game 6 of the 2016 Western Conference finals, the entire NBA landscape would be different today. That night, Klay and his triples saved Golden State's season, punctured the Thunder's potential title run and set the wheels in motion for Durant to land in Oakland later that summer.

Unlike almost any other catch-and-shoot specialist, Thompson has won games in huge moments with ridiculously efficient volume scoring. Who can forget the night in 2016 when he scored 60 points against the Pacers despite dribbling just 11 times and possessing the ball for a total of 90 seconds?!

Thompson made the third-most 3-point shots this decade, trailing only Harden and Curry. But what's incredible is that he did that as second or third banana on one of the era's most dominant teams.

5. James Harden

Love him or hate him, there's no denying that Harden is one of the most innovative scorers we've ever seen. While his shot chart reveals that he's an average shooter from the field, Harden achieves superstar efficiency levels by sticking to a ketogenic shot diet and getting to the line.

Harden began the decade as a young buck coming off the bench in OKC, but he ended it quarterbacking the most unique offense in the game. Even though his efficiency numbers might not compete with those of the other guys on this list, his volume, creativity and innovation are second to none.

Don't believe me? He's already the all-time NBA leader in unassisted 3s, and he just turned 30.

6. Dirk Nowitzki

The only player who has combined size, scoring and jump-shooting efficiency as well as Durant is Nowitzki. But Dirk began this decade at 31, and even though he led the Mavs to the 2010-11 NBA title, it's fair to say that many of his best seasons were in the 2000s.

Yet Nowitzki routinely built some of the hottest shot charts in the league well into his 30s by taking and making incredibly difficult midrange looks. Defenders knew what was coming, but it didn't matter. Thanks to his fadeaway, his high release and his high-arcing shot, Nowitzki routinely scored on even the league's most skilled defenders as he drained thousands of midrange Js.

There are few shooters in league history who can conjure an image in our heads as rapidly as Nowitzki. Even casual fans can imagine him posting up with his back to the basket before rising up for his patented one-leg fadeaway and releasing that illuminati jumper. We already know what his statue will look like.

But one sad thing about the decade is that post-up play and midrange shooting -- the exact things that made Dirk a household name -- are both rapidly falling out of favor. If present trends continue, those one-legged fadeaways will go extinct just like the sky hook.

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7. Chris Paul

Chris Paul is one of the best midrange shooters in the world. Who can forget the off-the-bounce game winner over Tim Duncan to send the Spurs packing in the 2015 playoffs? Paul developed an incredible midrange arsenal for 12 years in the NBA before he landed in Houston's Land-Of-No-Midrange.

No midrange, no problem. Paul quickly adapted his game for Moreyball and became a 3-point threat while almost completely abstaining from the kinds of elbow jumpers that made him famous.

In his first six seasons in the league with the Hornets, just 18% of his shots were 3-pointers. In his next six seasons with the Clippers, that number was 28%. But in his past two seasons, 3-pointers have represented more than 48% of his looks. It has been a remarkable late-career transformation and further evidence that the world's best shooters can thrive and adapt in ways normal shooters can't.

One of the most intriguing questions about Paul's next chapter in OKC: Will he go back to his beautiful midrange game?

8. Damian Lillard

If it weren't for Curry, Lillard would be revolutionary -- the greatest deep 3-point shooter we've ever seen. Along with Curry, Lillard is changing the way the league looks at acceptable shot distances. Both of these guys are comfortable pulling up from 30-plus feet, a distance that would have been laughable at the beginning of this century. Nobody's laughing now, as Lillard is using those deep triples to great effect.

Lillard has made huge shots in huge moments with monster game winners against Houston in 2014 and Oklahoma City in 2019. The OKC shot will go down in history as the boldest game winner in playoff history. The cool, calm 37-footer that ended the Westbrook era in OKC would've been a terrible shot for most NBA shooters, but Lillard isn't most shooters. During the 2018-19 season, Lillard made more than 39% of his attempts from between 30 and 40 feet.

9. JJ Redick

Redick has jumped around his whole career. The New Orleans Pelicans will be his fifth team since he entered the league in 2006. But as Redick entered his prime, the NBA began a love affair with 3-point shooting, and Redick has the checks to prove it, as teams have continued to value his unique ability to knock down shots in all sorts of predicaments.

Along with Curry and Thompson, Redick is one of the few NBA players who can come off of a curl, set his feet and get a high-efficiency shot off in traffic.

10. Kyle Korver

Korver has bounced among five organizations during his remarkable 16-year NBA career. While his uniform has changed a lot in that time, his jumper has remained incredibly consistent.

Among the 200 NBA players who tried at least 1,000 3s in the 2010s, nobody was more accurate than Korver, who made 44.5% of his attempts. He's the only one on that list looking down at Curry.

The only reason Korver isn't higher in our rankings? He can't create his own shots like the guys above him can.

All season long, the Dodgers and Astros have been dueling for the top spot in our rankings, with the Dodgers winning out more often than not, having finished No. 1 in 16 of the first 23 weeks since Opening Day. But the Astros just won their eighth week at the top slot. Our voters aren't so sure they can hold it, though -- the Astros received only two of five first-place votes, with the Yankees gaining two more and the Dodgers the last. Could the Bombers sneak in and bust up the Astros-Dodgers reign atop our rankings in the final two weeks of the regular season?

Outside the shakeup at the top, this week's rankings didn't see many major changes. The Diamondbacks' three-spot slide was the biggest drop for any team, while eight teams notched a single-spot advance to tie for the largest improvement. This close to the end of the year, things seem pretty set -- except as far as the wild-card races are concerned.

The competition for wild cards will provide most of the drama during the season's remaining days. The fade of the National League's top wild-card seed, the Nationals, is hurting them here as well, as the Brewers and Mets have put the pressure on the Nats and Cubs among the NL's wild-card wannabes. Meanwhile, of the American League's trio of teams aiming to get to the play-in game, the A's and Rays have ceded nothing to the Indians as Cleveland tries to keep up before time runs out.

For Week 24, our panel of voters was Bradford Doolittle, Christina Kahrl, Eric Karabell, Tim Kurkjian and David Schoenfield.

Previous: Preseason | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 | Week 7 | Week 8 | Week 9 | Week 10 | Week 11 | Week 12 | Week 13 | Week 14 | Week 15 | Week 16 | Week 17 | Week 18 | Week 19 | Week 20 | Week 21 | Week 22 | Week 23

1. Houston Astros
   2019 record: 98-53
   Week 23 ranking: 2

   Give outfielder George Springer much credit. Everyone knew he had power, as he averaged 28 home runs over the past three seasons, but he also hit .269 in that span -- better than league average, but not special. This season, Springer has made major strides in his hard-hit percentage, and he is striking far more pitches inside the strike zone. Springer could also reach 100 runs scored for the fourth consecutive season, quite a feat since he has missed more than 20 games in each of the past three. He is one of the top leadoff hitters in the sport and we know what he can do in the World Series. -- Eric Karabell

   ICYMI: Greinke's eight pitch types keeps 'em guessing

2. Los Angeles Dodgers
   2019 record: 97-54
   Week 23 ranking: 1

   The Dodgers clinched their seventh straight division title, but the good news over the weekend was that Clayton Kershaw and Hyun-Jin Ryu snapped mini-slumps with strong starts against the Mets. Kershaw gave up two runs and four hits in 6⅓ innings, and Ryu gave up two hits in seven scoreless innings -- lowering his MLB-best ERA to 2.35. He has given up zero runs in nine of his 27 starts and two or fewer 21 times. Gavin Lux also hit his first two major league home runs as he makes a bid for the postseason roster. -- David Schoenfield

   ICYMI: Judge Dodgers on NL West dynasty, not WS title they're still chasing

3. New York Yankees
   2019 record: 98-53
   Week 23 ranking: 3

   The injury bug continues to strike. Gary Sanchez is out for at least a few days because of tightness in his left groin, and Edwin Encarnacion is out because of an oblique injury, with a hopeful return before the end of the regular season. Giancarlo Stanton comes back this week with limited time to ramp up for the postseason. Meanwhile, 36-year-old Brett Gardner continues to rake, with seven home runs in September. His total of 25 home runs is four more than his career high, and his .500 slugging percentage is well above his previous best of .428. -- Schoenfield

   ICYMI: Why unlikely ace German might be in Yanks' October pen

4. Atlanta Braves
   2019 record: 93-58
   Week 23 ranking: 4

   The Braves took two of three from the Nationals -- that's five of seven against their NL East rivals this month -- as Mike Soroka outdueled Max Scherzer on Friday with six one-hit innings, and Mike Foltynewicz continues to pitch his way into the postseason rotation as he gave up four hits and one run in six innings Saturday. Nick Markakis also returned from his fractured wrist and went 2-for-4, 4-for-5 and 1-for-4 in the three games. Ronald Acuna Jr. watch: He's at 39 home runs and 36 stolen bases after picking up two of each this week. -- Schoenfield

   ICYMI: Why Markakis could be October difference-maker

5. Minnesota Twins
   2019 record: 91-58
   Week 23 ranking: 5

   Catcher Mitch Garver continues to amaze. He will not accrue enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title, but you will not find another player with 30 home runs in fewer than 300 at-bats this season. In a baseball world of extreme power, Garver leads the way in home runs per at-bat, topping sluggers such as Mike Trout, Joey Gallo and Christian Yelich. The Yankees' Gary Sanchez probably will lead all catchers in home runs this season, but Garver, who entered 2019 with seven big league homers in 387 career PA, is the brightest surprise at the position, and a key to Minnesota's postseason success. -- Karabell

   ICYMI: Buxton out for year after shoulder surgery

6. Oakland Athletics
   2019 record: 90-60
   Week 23 ranking: 6

   With former All-Star closer Blake Treinen struggling badly enough to lose his ninth-inning gig, Liam Hendriks has come up big in the second half for the A's, notching 17 saves since the break while striking out an incredible 50 of 106 batters faced. If Treinen could only regroup from his command issues, the A's pen could be the sort of shutdown unit that helps a long-odds playoff team far exceed expectations. -- Christina Kahrl

   ICYMI: What the A's need to do to win a wild card

7. Tampa Bay Rays
   2019 record: 89-61
   Week 23 ranking: 7

   The Rays' playoff push continues unabated even as the roster returns to a semblance of health. Tyler Glasnow has been dominant in short stints since returning from his long stay on the injury list. This week, Tampa Bay is expected to welcome back reigning AL Cy Young winner Blake Snell, who is slated to start Tuesday against the Dodgers. Center fielder Kevin Kiermaier, who has been out because of a bad back, returned to the starting lineup in a win against the Angels on Saturday. The returns couldn't be more well-timed: Not only are the Rays neck-and-neck with the A's in the race for the top wild-card spot, both with a growing buffer over the Indians, but the schedule turns mean. Tampa Bay has a two-game set at Dodger Stadium before flying home to face the Red Sox and Yankees at the Trop. -- Bradford Doolittle

   ICYMI: Wander Franco, Luis Robert or Gavin Lux? Law's 2019 Prospect of the Year is ...

8. St. Louis Cardinals
   2019 record: 83-66
   Week 23 ranking: 9

   An upcoming weekend series against the Cubs, whom they play in seven of their final 10 games, gives the Cardinals a chance to lock in an NL Central title. Cardinals pitching has been thoroughly dominant in September, leading the majors in ERA (2.86) and quality starts (nine). In the past 30 days, four of the Cardinals' five regular starters -- Jack Flaherty (1.38), Dakota Hudson (1.67), Michael Wacha (2.36) and Adam Wainwright (2.51) -- all have sub-3.00 ERAs. -- Tristan H. Cockcroft

   ICYMI: Do Cards have a shot at any HR records in Year of the Home Run?

9. Washington Nationals
   2019 record: 82-66
   Week 23 ranking: 8

   The Nats finished 7-12 against the Braves -- and 7-12 against the Mets. Thank goodness for the Marlins (they're 13-3 against them). The Nationals' lead in the wild-card race is suddenly not such a lock as they're just 1½ games ahead of the Cubs and 2½ ahead of the Brewers. You know who's having a remarkable season? Howie Kendrick, who turned 36 in July. In a part-time role, he's hitting .336/.386/.559. He has hit .321 over the past three seasons. -- Schoenfield

10. Cleveland Indians
    2019 record: 87-63
    Week 23 ranking: 10

    Getting swept in a doubleheader by the Twins on Saturday dealt a near-mortal blow to the Indians' AL Central hopes in a series not made any easier by closer Brad Hand's absence because of an arm injury. Salvaging a win from the series Sunday gave them a 10-9 lead head-to-head against the division leaders while keeping their wild-card hopes alive. Cleveland has to hope it keeps feasting on the Tigers in its opening series of the week after running up a 15-1 record over Detroit so far. -- Kahrl

    ICYMI: Who will step up for Indians in wild-card push?

11. Chicago Cubs
    2019 record: 81-68
    Week 23 ranking: 11

    Despite growing panic in Chicago and rampant speculation on the future of manager Joe Maddon, the Cubs have managed to cling to a playoff position, with both a division title or home-field advantage in the wild-card game still on the table. If one of those things happen, we might point to the club's decision to recall infielder Nico Hoerner from Double-A in the wake of injuries to Javier Baez and Addison Russell as the season-saving moment. Hoerner, 22, has added to this season's list of dazzling debuts in baseball with an OPS over 1.200 in his first week in the majors. He'll get a chance to further embed himself in the hearts of Cubs fans this week, as Chicago finishes out its home schedule with a three-game set with the Reds followed by a huge four-game series against the NL Central-leading Cardinals. -- Doolittle

    ICYMI: Cubs' hopes ride on Darvish

12. Boston Red Sox
    2019 record: 79-70
    Week 23 ranking: 13

    With a huge offseason looming, the first order of business for the Red Sox, of course, is replacing Dave Dombrowski as head of baseball operations. Two obvious names with deep Red Sox ties can be crossed off fans' wish lists. Mike Hazen is off the board after the Diamondbacks GM signed an extension with the team last week. And Cubs GM Jed Hoyer probably isn't going anywhere either. Hoyer and his family bought a house on the North Side this summer and told the Chicago Tribune, "I didn't want [anyone] to think we're leaving. We're happy here and hope to be here for a long time." Theoretically a late-season meltdown that sees the Cubs miss the playoffs could lead to massive housecleaning at Wrigley, but that's highly unlikely. -- Steve Richards

    ICYMI: Red Sox face $13 million-plus luxury tax bill

13. Milwaukee Brewers
    2019 record: 80-69
    Week 23 ranking: 14

    The always-resilient Brewers have managed to stick in the thick of the NL wild-card chase even after losing reigning NL MVP Christian Yelich to a fractured kneecap. Their schedule is favorable, as Milwaukee hosts a pair of second-division clubs this week, San Diego for four games and Pittsburgh for three. The Brewers finish on the road against two more sub-.500 teams in Cincinnati and Colorado. According to rest-of-season schedule strength calculations at baseball-reference.com, Milwaukee has the easiest slate remaining among NL wild-card contenders. -- Doolittle

    ICYMI: Can Brewers keep wild-card hopes alive without Yelich?

14. New York Mets
    2019 record: 77-72
    Week 23 ranking: 15

    Right-hander Marcus Stroman entered Thursday with one quality start in seven chances since arriving from the Blue Jays, then stymied the Diamondbacks with six innings of shutout ball until running into mild trouble in the seventh. It was his best outing as a Met, and Stroman surely will be tested this week with a start at Coors Field, and then figures to face the Marlins and Braves in the final week, and each game is critical. Stroman is among the bottom 20 for qualified starting pitchers in strikeouts per nine innings, and home runs have not been an issue, so he needs his defense behind him. The Mets need good innings. -- Karabell

    ICYMI: You gotta believe ... in Pete Alonso

15. Arizona Diamondbacks
    2019 record: 76-74
    Week 23 ranking: 12

    The D-backs seem to finally be out of the playoff conversation for good, but they made a big statement about their future by signing GM Mike Hazen to a contract extension, assuring he won't be leaving for a return to Boston to fill the Red Sox vacancy. Hazen has drawn a lot of praise for balancing being competitive in the present while building up the farm system for the future. Two Arizona assistant GMs, Amiel Sawdaye and Jared Porter, also have deep Boston roots and could be candidates for a position in Boston or elsewhere. -- Richards

    ICYMI: Could Ketel Marte snag NL MVP award?

16. Philadelphia Phillies
    2019 record: 76-72
    Week 23 ranking: 16

    Scott Kingery was one of the worst players to qualify for the batting title a season ago, producing a ghastly .605 OPS over 484 PA. His second season has gone considerably better, with more than 50 extra-base hits and an OPS more than 200 points better. He has done this despite starting 30 or more games at center field and third base, neither his primary position. Kingery is not drawing walks as once expected, but this more aggressive version rakes at pitches in the strike zone, and he is a Gold Glove-caliber second baseman should the Phillies move him there. This is a future All-Star. -- Karabell

17. Texas Rangers
    2019 record: 74-77
    Week 23 ranking: 17

    A change of scenery has suited prospect Nick Solak, who was acquired by the Rangers from Tampa Bay for right-hander prospect Peter Fairbanks in July. The 24-year-old Solak, a second-round pick of the Yankees in 2016, made his big league debut Aug. 20 and has a slash line of .322/.433/.529 with 18 runs, 15 RBIs and four home runs, including one off Fairbanks last Thursday. -- Richards

    ICYMI: One HR record the Rangers could reach

18. Cincinnati Reds
    2019 record: 70-80
    Week 23 ranking: 18

    The Reds' elimination from postseason contention is unavoidable, but they've been focused on their 2020 auditions this September. Michael Lorenzen's experiment as a two-way player, à la Shohei Ohtani, has been interesting. Lorenzen has made a pair of starts in center field this month, is a .276/.333/.586 hitter in 64 plate appearances between this and last season, and has contributed a 3.12 ERA, six saves and 20 holds in his 69 appearances on the mound. -- Cockcroft

19. San Francisco Giants
    2019 record: 72-78
    Week 23 ranking: 19

    Getting Johnny Cueto back in action was good to see, but it's also a reminder of the Giants' lasting commitments going forward. Cueto and battery mate Buster Posey are both signed through 2021 (with club options for '22), Brandon Belt and Brandon Crawford are also signed through 2021, and Evan Longoria through 2022. Salaries for those five players alone adds up to more than $91 million on the 2020 payroll, which might deter making free agent Madison Bumgarner at least a qualifying offer unless they find a taker for the last year of their commitment to Jeff Samardzija at $19.8 million. -- Kahrl

    ICYMI: Cueto dazzles in 2019 debut

20. San Diego Padres
    2019 record: 68-81
    Week 23 ranking: 21

    Chris Paddack has significantly boosted his performance over the past couple of weeks, despite it being a time when he's being discussed as an imminent shut-down candidate. He hasn't given up more than one run while pitching at least 5⅓ innings in each of his past three turns, with his next outing -- and perhaps his last of 2019 -- set for Tuesday at Milwaukee. Paddack won't win the National League's Cy Young award, but he should steal some votes in the race and gives the team a bona fide future ace. -- Cockcroft

    ICYMI: Don't forget Tatis among top NL rookies

21. Los Angeles Angels
    2019 record: 67-82
    Week 23 ranking: 20

    It is hard to believe, but the Angels entered the weekend still lacking a pitcher with 100 innings pitch for them this season. How can that be possible? Well, injuries and poor performance have been a problem. Right-hander Trevor Cahill should get there in his middle relief role, and starter Andrew Heaney could if he remains in the rotation until season's end, but this highlights how pitching has let the club down in 2019. The team ERA could finish a run higher than the previous two seasons, when it was 4.15 and 4.20. Unfortunately, things might not be much better in 2020. -- Karabell

    ICYMI: Ohtani can hit, pitch -- and keep teammates laughing

22. Pittsburgh Pirates
    2019 record: 65-85
    Week 23 ranking: 22

    After how poorly this team had performed with the bat immediately after the All-Star break, would you believe that since Aug. 24 the Pirates have been the NL's highest-scoring team? Since that date, the team boasts the majors' batting average leader in Kevin Newman (.429) as well as the No. 6 hitter in that same category in Adam Frazier (.382), with Newman chipping in 23 runs and 15 RBIs as well. -- Cockcroft

    ICYMI: Crick out for year after fight with teammate Vazquez

23. Colorado Rockies
    2019 record: 65-85
    Week 23 ranking: 24

    A strong week at Coors Field was a bit too little, too late for the already eliminated Rockies, but it did include another hot streak for Nolan Arenado. Arenado has belted six home runs in September alone, his current .315/.380/.595 slash lines would each set new personal bests if they stick, and he's within striking distance of his previous career highs of 42 home runs and 133 RBIs. -- Cockcroft

24. Chicago White Sox
    2019 record: 65-83
    Week 23 ranking: 23

    The stakes might not be high at the moment for the White Sox, but after a season full of flashes, rookie Eloy Jimenez has settled into a nice groove down the stretch. Jimenez is hitting .333/.387/.684 in September, while cutting his strikeout rate to 19%. That has been a season-long trend for the young powder keg. Jimenez struck out at least 29% of the time in each of the first three months of the season, cut that to 25% by August and has continued that improvement this month. It's no coincidence that Jimenez has averaged a homer every 11.4 at-bats during September. -- Doolittle

    ICYMI: Where Luis Robert ranks among Law's Prospects of the Year

25. Seattle Mariners
    2019 record: 61-88
    Week 23 ranking: 25

    Welcome to the majors, Kyle Lewis. Promoted from Double-A Arkansas, where the outfielder hit 11 home runs in 457 at-bats, he homered in his first three major league games -- only the second player in major league history to do so, after the Rockies' Trevor Story did it in 2016 (Story homered in his first four). The Mariners honored Ichiro Suzuki on Saturday with a special Mariners Franchise Achievement Award and Ichiro thanked the fans with a six-minute speech -- in English. "You welcomed me with open arms and you have never stopped," Ichiro said. -- Schoenfield

    ICYMI: M's rookie Lewis homers in first three games

26. Toronto Blue Jays
    2019 record: 59-91
    Week 23 ranking: 26

    Rookie wunderkind Vladimir Guerrero Jr. might have hit the proverbial wall. He had the month of his season in August -- .341/.406/.571 for a .977 OPS that was more than 150 point higher than his next best month -- but has slumped badly in 11 September games, slashing .167/.217/.238. Even so, it has to be considered a successful debut season for Vladdy. -- Richards

    ICYMI: Where does Vladdy Jr. rate among top AL rookies?

27. Kansas City Royals
    2019 record: 55-95
    Week 23 ranking: 28

    The Royals need to finish over .500 the rest of the way to avoid their second straight 100-loss season and sixth in franchise history. The franchise record for losses -- 106 in 2005 -- appears to be safe, barring a complete collapse over the last couple of weeks. Unfortunately, Kansas City confronts contenders the rest of the way, as the Royals get Oakland, Minnesota, Atlanta and Minnesota (again), in order. -- Doolittle

    ICYMI: Royals owner says selling difficult, but it's 'right time'

28. Miami Marlins
    2019 record: 52-97
    Week 23 ranking: 27

    With free agency probably around the corner for Starlin Castro -- the team has a $16 million option for 2020 with a $1 million buyout -- he has chosen the right time to heat up at the plate, hitting a team-best 13 home runs since the All-Star break. Since the entire roster has managed only 60 in the second half, he has been one of the few hitters to keep those unhappy few Fish fans entertained. -- Kahrl

29. Baltimore Orioles
    2019 record: 49-100
    Week 22 ranking: 29

    We could focus on Baltimore reaching 100 losses for the second straight season, but we'd rather emphasize the positive, such as it is. How about Trey Mancini? In addition to hitting a career-high 32 home runs, the Orioles slugger has 11 opposite-field homers, second in the AL to New York's Aaron Judge. -- Richards

    ICYMI: The state of MLB's terrible teams as the two worst meet

30. Detroit Tigers
    2019 record: 44-104
    Week 22 ranking: 30

    With Niko Goodrum probably shelved for the rest of the season, what little good news there might be from the lineup involves middle infielder Jordy Mercer (team-best .366 wOBA since the All-Star break) and a healthy Christin Stewart getting back out in left field and posting a .284/.343/.484 slash line in the second half. At 25, Stewart is one of the few guys in the lineup with a chance of playing for a future Tigers team above .500. -- Kahrl

We have two weeks left in the regular season. Four of the division races are over (or virtually over), the Indians are clinging by their stirrups in the American League Central, and only the National League Central, with the Cardinals, Cubs and Brewers separated by three games, looks to promise us those "What's the score in the other game?" moments the rest of the way.

So let's check on what to watch for over the final 14 days -- starting with two key injury updates from Sunday.

Cubs' Anthony Rizzo leaves because of sprained ankle

Rizzo was injured fielding a bunt in Sunday's win over the Pirates, seriously enough that the team took X-rays to make sure there wasn't a fracture. There wasn't, but Rizzo will have an MRI on Monday and we'll learn about the length of his absence.

Obviously, losing Rizzo would be a big blow to a Chicago offense that just erupted for 47 runs in a three-game sweep of the Pirates -- the most runs the Cubs have scored in a three-game series since 1900. The Cubs have a lot of defensive flexibility throughout the roster, but they don't really have a backup first baseman -- Ian Happ replaced Rizzo in Sunday's game, and Victor Caratini and Kris Bryant have started a few games there. Rizzo leads the Cubs with a .404 OBP and his absence combined with Javier Baez being out because of a hairline fracture in his left thumb leaves Chicago scrambling a bit in the infield.

The Cubs do have depth (although Addison Russell also is out right now because of a concussion) and rookie shortstop Nico Hoerner has provided a surprising lift since his call-up, hitting .379/.438/.655 in seven games. The Cubs can still go with Bryant at third, Hoerner at shortstop, Ben Zobrist at second and Happ at first, with David Bote in reserve, but with seven games still left against the Cardinals, they'll miss Rizzo.

Mike Trout out for remainder of season: AL MVP up for grabs?

After Trout missed his eighth game in a row Sunday, the Angels announced he would have season-ending surgery for a nerve issue in his right foot, something called Morton's neuroma (a thickening of the tissue around a nerve leading to the toes, creating pain in the ball of the foot). So Trout's final numbers: 134 games, .291/.438/.645, 45 home runs, 110 runs, 104 RBIs. He leads the AL in home runs, OBP, slugging and WAR. His lead over Alex Bregman in WAR entering Sunday was 8.3 to 7.4 (Baseball-Reference) and 8.6 to 7.3 (FanGraphs). Bregman went 1-for-3 on Sunday and is hitting .295/.420/.579 with 36 home runs, 114 runs and 104 RBIs.

Does Bregman have a chance to pass Trout in the MVP race? Working in Bregman's favor: Trout plays for a bad team and won't play at all the final two weeks. MVP voters don't give as much weight to playing on a playoff team as they used to, but they still give some weight. Also, Trout's 136 total games would be low for an MVP winner, although not unprecedented. Mookie Betts played 136 last year and beat Trout in the voting. Bregman's triple-slash line won't match Trout's, but with a strong final two weeks, Bregman will have impressive counting numbers, will be close to Trout in WAR -- and will play for a division winner.

National League MVP race: Up for grabs?

With Christian Yelich out for the season because of a fractured right kneecap, we still have a two-man (or three-man race). Or, heck, even a four-man race, as we don't want to completely dismiss Yelich:

Cody Bellinger: .304/.407/.625, 44 HRs, 112 R, 108 RBIs, 6.08 WPA

Anthony Rendon: .332/.416/.625, 33 HRs, 112 R, 118 RBIs, 5.51 WPA

Ketel Marte: .327/.387/.590, 32 HRs, 96 R, 91 RBIs, 3.81 WPA

Yelich: .329/.429/.671, 44 HRs, 100 R, 97 RBIs, 7.86 WPA

WPA is win probability added, sort of a proxy for "clutch." Yelich, Bellinger and Rendon ranked first, second and fourth in the majors heading into Sunday (via FanGraphs). With Yelich done compiling counting stats, and Marte probably fourth on the list right now, it looks like a two-man race between Bellinger and Rendon (although Yelich does lead in FanGraphs WAR, WPA and triple-slash line). Rendon has the momentum as he's finishing strong, while Bellinger has a sizable lead in Baseball-Reference WAR thanks to his defensive metrics. This looks like a close vote that could go in either direction.

OK, that NL Central -- and wild-card -- race

We've tried to bury the Cubs. We've tried to bury the Brewers. It's not over yet, with Ryan Braun's go-ahead grand slam Sunday that lifted Milwaukee to a dramatic win over St. Louis tightening the race. The Cardinals are two up on the Cubs and three up on the Brewers, but consider:

• The Brewers have the easiest remaining schedule of any playoff contender in terms of opponents' winning percentage (four against the Padres, three against the Pirates, three at Cincinnati and three at Colorado).

• The Cubs and Cardinals play those seven games against each other, so that might help the Brewers. The Cardinals have three against the Nationals, four at Wrigley, three at Arizona and then host the Cubs for three to end the season. The Cubs have seven at home against the Reds and Cardinals and then six on the road against the Pirates and Cardinals.

This is a good moment to remind everyone of the three-team tiebreaker rules. Teams are given A, B and C designation, with the team having the best winning percentage against the other two teams having first choice. Right now, the Cubs are 16-15, the Brewers are 19-19 and the Cardinals are 15-16. It's possible all three teams end up 19-19 against each other. In which case the tiebreaker becomes overall division record.

Anyway, Club 1 (the Cubs, as of now), would pick their designation in the following scenario: Club A hosts Club B. The winner of that game then hosts Club C.

Of course, all of this is complicated by the possibility that we could end up in a three-way tie for the NL Central with another club also tied for a wild card. For example, imagine these final standings:

Nationals: 89-73 (7-7 rest of way)
Cardinals: 88-74 (5-8 rest of way)
Cubs: 88-74 (7-6 rest of way)
Brewers: 88-74 (8-5 rest of way)
Mets: 88-74 (11-2 rest of way)

The Nationals win the first wild card, but then we have a four-way tie with the Mets. The NL Central teams are sorted by A, B and C, and the Mets would be Club D. A hosts B and C hosts D. If D (the Mets) wins, they are the second wild-card team and the winner between A and B would be the NL Central winner. If Club C beats the Mets, then the winner of A and B would play C. The winner of that game would be the division winner and the loser would be the second wild card.

We also could end up with a five-way tie if the Nationals fall back. As of now, MLB has no tiebreaker scenarios in place for a five-way tie. The simplest would be the three Central teams playing out their scenario for the division title and one wild-card spot and then the Mets and Nationals playing a game for the other wild-card spot.

By the way, as of now, the NL wild-card game is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 1, with the AL game on Wednesday, Oct. 2, so that will have to change if we end up with two days of tiebreaker games.

AL wild-card race

The A's have won six in a row to build a 1½-game lead over the Rays, with the Rays 1½ games up on the Indians. The remaining schedules:

• Oakland: vs. KC (3), off day, vs. TEX (3), off day, at LAA (2), at SEA (4)

• Tampa Bay: off day, at LAD (2), off day, vs. BOS (4), vs. NYY (2), off day, at TOR (3)

• Cleveland: off day, vs. DET (3), vs. PHI (3), off day, at CHW (3), at WAS (3)

Anything could happen here. The A's are red hot and have an easy remaining schedule; FanGraphs gives them a 95.6% chance of making the playoffs. The Rays have the tougher schedule, but they're already in L.A. after playing the Angels this weekend and will benefit from three off days. The Indians get the Tigers and White Sox and fading Phillies before finishing with the Nationals, who might have clinched a spot by that final weekend.

Chase for best record and home-field advantage

The Yankees and Astros are tied at 98-53 with the Dodgers one game back. The Yankees' biggest worry right now is getting everyone healthy: Gary Sanchez is dealing with a sore groin, Edwin Encarnacion has an oblique issue and Giancarlo Stanton is supposed to return this week. (Dellin Betances threw eight pitches in his season debut Sunday.) The Astros are still waiting on Carlos Correa. The Astros finish with the Rangers, Angels, Mariners and Angels again. The Yankees get the Angels, Blue Jays, Rays and Rangers. The Astros won the season series over the Yankees, so Houston holds the tiebreaker edge.

Home run crown chase

With his otherworldly second half, Eugenio Suarez has tied Pete Alonso for the major league lead at 47 home runs. In 60 games since the All-Star break, Suarez has hit .304/.386/.724 with 27 home runs. Insane. At the break, he was 11 home runs behind then-leader Yelich. If Suarez does win the home run title, it would be the second-largest gap at the break overcome by a home run champ. Jimmie Foxx trailed the leader by 12 home runs in 1935 and ended up tied for the MLB lead with 36 home runs.

AL Cy Young race

Maybe the best awards race over the final two weeks is between Astros teammates Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole. Verlander tossed a no-hitter on Sept. 1 and has double-digit strikeout games in nine of his past 11 starts. Cole has given up three runs in his three September starts and is on a run of six consecutive double-digit strikeout games. He also has won 13 straight decisions. Season stats:

Verlander: 18-6, 2.58 ERA, 206 IP, 123 H, 38 BB, 275 SO, 34 HR

Cole: 17-5, 2.62 ERA, 192.1 IP, 130 H, 45 BB, 292 SO, 27 HR

Wow. Who ya got?

Italy tops medal table on home soil and GB is third as European Masters Championships comes to a close

Britain won 14 golds on the final day of the European Masters Championships in Venice to go over the 100 mark but that was dwarfed by Italy who won 26 titles on the day.

Most of those were team titles where the home nation has a huge advantage as they have the greatest number of athletes to choose from and Italy pipped Germany at the top of the table with 127 golds to Germany’s 119.

For Britain, Wendy Laing won in the field and there was further success for the relay squads, who again were in record-breaking form.

Clare Elms won her sixth gold and seventh medal – the most by any runner in Venice – as she easily won the 10km to follow her gold medal successes at 1500m, 5000m, 10,000m, cross-country and cross-country team.

Her time was 37:56, which would have won the W45 title, put her top of the UK rankings and she won by three minutes from Italian Elena Giovanna Fustella.

Alastair Walker arrived late at the championships and only had time to win the 5000m before again dominating the M60 age group.

The Scot won in 35:28 to win by over a minute from Tore Axelsson from Sweden.

Alastair Walker wins M60 gold at 10km by a minute in 35:28. British M60s had already won the 100,200, 400, 800, 1500, 5000, 10000 and 100 hurdles @emacvenice2019 pic.twitter.com/aOBIVh4IF9

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) September 15, 2019

Simon Baines won the M45 title in 32:30 to win by 19 seconds from Sweden’s Kristian Nedregaard and go one place better than he did in the World Masters race in Torun earlier in the year.

The other British gold medallist was slightly lost among the masses but M75 Victor Shirley, already a winner at 1500m and 5000m, won his third individual gold in 45:44, 22 seconds ahead of Spain’s Emilio de Carrera.

Lisa Palmer-Blount, who had been fourth in the W40 5000m, went one better in the 10km after picking up in the latter kilometres when Elms encouraged her to keep going.

The overall 10km was won by Spain’s M40 Manuel Angel Penas in 31:00 though Italian Said Boudalia’s 31:20 to win the M50 gold having battled with Penas for 8km, was arguably a better performance.

The 51-year-old has a 64-minute half-marathon PB from 2008.

Belgian W35 Mieke Gorissen was first woman in 34:43 to follow her successes in the cross-country and 5000m.

Britons found the half-marathon, which was held after the 10km started and therefore in even warmer conditions, a much tougher proposition but the British numbers were much greater as there was no team event at 10km but there was in the longer event and it attracted some athletes who have the opportunity of team medals.

Some did enjoy individual success, however.

Paul Mingay won M60 gold in the event to complete astonishing dominance in the age group in Italy.

British M60s won the 100m, 200m, 400m, 800m, 1500m, 5000m, 10,000m, 100m hurdles, 10km and half-marathon!

The world champion in Malaga obviously likes the Mediterranean climate as he ran 2:47:40 in Seville earlier in the year, just a minute outside the British record.

He also won a M60 team bronze as Italy won.

There was also a win for M65 Paul Whelpton in 1:26:08.

Whelpton, who was third in the World Masters at this event and second at 10km last year, won by two minutes for his best ever victory and had the added bonus of leading Britain to a 10-minute team win.

Anthony Whitehouse took bronze in 1:30:34.

Angela Copson, who chose a curious 800m and half-marathon double, was after her impressive 800m win, surprisingly well beaten in the longer road race.

The race was won by Germany’s Gudrun Vogl in 1:46:24.

Copson was a distant second in 1:51:26 while Penny Yule won her fourth medal of the championships with a bronze in 1:53:08.

The pair also won a team gold with sixth-placer Carolyn Gale.

Alison Bourgeiois, who dominated the world indoor 800m, 1500m and 3000m, also moved up in distance here as she is focussing on an autumn marathon.

Despite an excellent 1:36:50 though, she was beaten by Italy’s Silvia Bolognesi’s 1:32:51.

Ireland’s Paul Moran won the M55 title in 77:20 with Ben Reynolds taking the bronze in 80:09 after Steve Watmough faded in the heat in the second half after being in a clear medal position at halfway but he was in the winning team as Britain won by two minutes from France.

Britain’s W55 team finished second.

Spain’s Francisco Martinez, a M40, was fastest man in 68:55 and W45 Sandra Morchner (77:13), the fastest woman.

In the field, the star UK performance came from Laing.

The world indoor high jump champion was on a different level to her W55 opponents and had first time clearances all the way up to 1.47m before failing at 1.50m.

She won by six centimetres from Frauke Viebarn of Germany.

Steve Peters and Caroline Powell won their fifth gold medals of the championships as they added the 4x400m to their collection.

Peters’ title was a formality as they had no opposition in their age group and alongside Simon Barrett, Adrian Essex and Ian Broadhurst, they ran 4:10.87 in the combined M65 and M70 race and there were curiously five over-70 teams.

With Peters in the team, it wouldn’t have mattered who showed up in the M65s and even without any pressure their 4:10.87 was less than two seconds outside the European record.

It was also hardly any surprise that Powell won the 4x400m title. Having the new European record-holder in any team gave them a head start but as they could also count on W65 runner-up Joylyn Saunders-Mullins the previous W65 champions Caroline Marler and Ros Tabor, a former winner of the European Indoor W65 event.

Despite a lack of opposition – they won by almost two minutes – the team set a European record 5:00.12 by five seconds.

Saunders-Mullins, who followed Powell home in the three sprints, won her fifth medal while W70 Tabor won her sixth.

The race was in the combined W60 and W65 race and it was the British W60 team that followed them.

The team of Louise Jeffries, W70 Copson a few hours after her half-marathon, Hilary West and double hurdles champion Jane Horde ran 5:06.68 to also win gold and defeat Germany by three seconds.

There was also a walk-over for the W55 team, which meant 400m and 800m champion Virginia Mitchell won her third gold.

However, the lack of opposition did not affect them as Mitchell teamed up with double hurdles champion Julie Rogers, 800m and 1500m medallist Christine Anthony and 400m silver medallist Janice Ellacott.

Their 4:27.33 time broke the world record.

John Wright, who won the three individual M60 sprints, lost out on a medal in the relay when his team were disqualified for moving positions after the incoming runner had passed 200m. Germany won in 4:07.39.

The closest race of the day was unusually the M75s as Germany won again in 5:11.73 from Britain’s team of Victor Shirley (who won the 10km gold earlier in the day), Mel James, Anthony Treacher and Winston Laing, who ran 5:11.97.

Half of the winning 4x100m W40 team (Susie McCloughlin and Karen Burles) returned to run the longer relay alongside Becky Selvey and Sharon Dooley and they finished second in 4:15.86 behind Germany’s 4:10.83.

In Peters’ race the M70 team of Albert Eland, Bruce Hendrie, Victor Novell amd David Spencer were second in 4:38.54 to Italy’s 4:18.72.

There were bronze medals for the M45 team (3:59.07) of Julian Ions, Ciaran Harvey, Nick Lauder and Samuel Nash.

And also the W45 team of Amanda Broadhurst, Jane Pidgeon, Janet Dickinson and Lisa Thomas who ran 4:36.15.

Germany’s M85 team took 27 seconds off the world record with 7:23.31.

Medal table

1 ITA 127 106 104 Total: 337
2 GER 119 110 88 317
3 GBR 103 70 74 247
4 ESP 43 53 48 144
5 FRA 38 50 47 135
6 FIN 35 25 17 77
7 SWE 22 23 20 65
8 POL 20 27 24 71
9 NED 18 12 17 47
10 AUT 16 15 13 44
11 POR 16 15 12 43
12 EST 15 8 3 26
13 NOR 14 14 9 37
14 IRL 12 12 8 32
15 CZE 11 22 18 51

Britain’s gold medallists

6
Clare Elms: W55 1500m, 5000m, 10,000m, 10km, XC, XC team

5
Evaun Williams: W80 shot, discus, hammer, javelin, weight pentathlon
Steve Peters: M65 100m, 200m, 400m, 4x100m, 4x400m
Caroline Powell: W65 100m, 200m, 400m, 4x100m, 4x400m
Ian Richards: M70 5000m walk, 10km walk, 20km walk 10km team walk, 20km team walk

3
Ian Broadhurst: M65 300mH, M65 4×100, M65 4×400
Don Brown: M55 100m, 200m, 100mH
Jean Fail: W70 80mH, 200mH, W65 4x100m
Paul Fletcher: M60 800m, 1500m, 10,000m
Jane Horder: W60 80mH, 300mH, 4x400m
Virginia Mitchell: W55 400m, 800m, 4x400m
Julie Rogers: W55 80mH, 300mH, 4x400m
Victor Shirley: M75 1500m, 5000m, 10km
John Wright: M60 100m, 200m, 400m
Angela Copson: W70 800m, W60 4×400, W70 HM tm=

2
Noel Blatchford: W70 10km walk, 20km walk
Jonathan Browne: M35 100m, 200m
Mike Coogan: M45 200m, M45 4×100
Penny Forse: W70 XC, W70 HM tm
Lucy Elliott: W50 XC, XC team
Anthony Treacher: M80 200m, triple jump
Alastair Walker: M60 5000m, 10km
Joanne Willoughby: W55 long jump, triple jump

1
Joe Appiah: M45 110mH
Daniel Awde: M35 110mH
Simon Baimes: M45 10km
Matt Barnes: M40 1500m
Ed Betts: M45 400mH
Dominic Bokor-Ingram: M50 800m
Tony Bowman: M80 80mH
Guy Bracken: M55 1500m
Gintas Degutis: M45 shot
Nisha Desai: W35 400mH
Zoe Doyle: W40 1500m
Cath Duhig: W60 20kmW
Tennyson James: M60 hurdles
Irie Hill: W50 pole vault
Iris Holder: W75 triple jump
Andrea Jenkins: W40 Weight
Wendy Laing: W55 high jump
Winston Laing: M75 800m
Andrew Leach: M55 10,000m
Paul Mingay: M65 HM
Guiseppe Minetti: M50 200m
John Moreland: M60 Discus
Ana Ramos-Villaverde: W45 2000sc
Andrew Ridley: M55 800m
Mark Symes: M50 1500m
Alex Swiecicki: M70 2000sc
Ros Tabor: W70 1500m, W65 4x400m
Lisa Thomas: W50 2000sc
John Watts: M80 discus
Paul Whelpton: M65 half-marathon
Sue Yeomans: W65: pole vault

Team gold medallists not included above
Karen Rushton/Sue Ridley: W50 XC
Christine Anthony/Jane Pidgeon: W55 XC
Peter Boszko/Roger Mitchell: M70 10km walk
Peter Boszko/Roger Mitchell: M70 20km walk
Karen Burles/Susie McCloughlin, Naana Adusei, Joanne Frost: W40 4×100:
Anthony/Janice Ellacott: W55 4×400
Louise Jeffries/Hilary West: W60 20km walk tm
Anne Wheeler/Judy Howard: W60 2kmW tm
Joylyn Saunders-Mullins, Caroline Marler: W65 4×100
Caroline Gayle: W70 HM
Saunders-Mullins, Marler: W65 4×400:
Alan Robertson:, Domonic Bradley, Andy Parkin, Michael Barugh M40 4×100
Ben Reynolds, Mark Halls, Watnough: M55 HM
Simon Barr, Adrian Essex/Ian Broadhurst: M65 4×100
Walwyun Franklyn/Broadhurst/Barrett, M65 4×400
David Proffit/Anthony Whitehouse: 20km walk tm