NFL:
Jordan Howard has led the Chicago Bears to their first win in nine September games over three seasons under coach John Fox.
Howard had 138 of Chicago's 220 yards rushing and scored the winning touchdown in overtime to give the Bears a 23-17 triumph over the Steelers. He raced 19 yards for the game-ending TD 7:33 into the extra period after rookie Tarik Cohen initially appeared to score on a 73-yard burst. Cohen was ruled out of bounds at the Pittsburgh 37, but Howard's run dropped the Steelers' all-time record in Chicago to 1-13.
Ben Roethlisberger threw for 235 yards and a touchdown for the 2-1 Steelers.
Checking out the rest of Sunday's NFL schedule:
— Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins completed 25 of his 30 passes for 365 yards and three touchdowns in an impressive 27-10 triumph over the Raiders. The 2-1 Redskins piled up 472 yards, sacked Derek Carr four times and held Oakland to 128 total yards. Carr had thrown 112 consecutive passes before being picked off twice, one coming on the game's second play.
— Aaron Rodgers' 72-yard pass to Geronimo Allison set up Mason Crosby's 26-yard field goal in overtime to lift the Packers past the Bengals, 27-24. Green Bay trailed 21-7 in the second half until Jordy Nelson sandwiched a pair of TD receptions around a Crosby field goal. Rodgers was 28 of 42 for 313 yards, including a game-tying, three-yard scoring strike to Nelson with just 17 seconds left in regulation.
— The Chiefs are 3-0 after Alex Smith threw two touchdown passes in the first 9 ½ minutes of a 24-10 win against the Chargers. Terrance Mitchell had two interceptions and rookie Kareem Hunt scored on a 69-yard run to seal the outcome. Hunt had 172 yards on 17 carries in Kansas City's seventh straight win over the Chargers.
— The Patriots pulled out a 36-33 win over the Texans on Tom Brady's 25-yard scoring strike to Brandin Cooks with 23 seconds left. Brady finished 25 of 35 for 378 yards as New England won its fifth straight regular-season meeting with Houston. Texans rookie Deshaun Watson completed 22 of 33 passes for 301 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
— The Vikings got a nice performance from backup quarterback Case Keenum as he passed for a career-high 369 yards and three TDs without a turnover in a 34-17 verdict over the Buccaneers. Stefon Diggs had 173 yards receiving and caught two of Keenum's scoring throws to help the 2-1 Vikings drop Tampa Bay to 1-1. Trae Waynes and Harrison Smith each picked off Jameis Winston in the end zone, and Andrew Sendejo returned an interception 36 yards in the fourth quarter to set up one of two field goals by Kai Forbath.
— Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson passed for 373 yards and four TDs, but the Titans trumped that by scoring 21 straight points to beat the Seahawks, 33-27. Marcus Mariota threw for 225 yards and two touchdowns, while DeMarco Murray highlighted his 115-yard rushing day with a 75-yard TD run. Wilson pulled Seattle within 33-27 with an 8-yard TD to Paul Richardson with 1:50 left, but the Titans recovered the onside kick.
— Jake Elliott drilled a 61-yard field goal as time expired to give the Eagles a 27-24 victory over the 0-3 Giants. It was redemption for Elliott, who missed from 52 yards earlier in the game after failing to hit a 30-yarder and an extra point last weekend. The Eagles improved to 2-1 despite Eli Manning's three touchdown passes during a 5:21 span of the fourth quarter, which put New York ahead 21-14.
— Blake Bortles threw three of his four touchdown passes to tight end Marcedes Lewis as the Jaguars routed the Ravens, 44-7 in London. The Jaguars finished with 410 yards and handed the Ravens their worst defeat since a 37-0 setback at Pittsburgh 20 years ago. Only a six-yard pass from backup Ryan Mallett to Benjamin Watson with 3:24 remaining prevented the shutout.
— Drew Brees passed for 220 yards and three touchdowns as the Saints defeated the previously unbeaten Panthers, 34-13. Brees led six scoring drives and threw TD passes to Michael Thomas, Brandon Coleman and ex-Panthers wide receiver Ted Ginn Jr. as the Saints avoided an 0-3 start. Rookie Alvin Kamara's 25-yard TD run with 4:42 left sealed the outcome.
— Josh McCown heaved a 69-yard TD pass to Robby Anderson and the Jets stifled Jay Cutler and the Dolphins' offense in a 20-6 victory. McCown finished 18 of 23 for 249 yards for the 1-2 Jets, who also got a touchdown run from Bilal Powell and a pair of Chandler Catanzaro field goals. Miami managed just 225 total yards and didn't score until Cutler threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to DeVante Parker on the final play.
— Tyrod Taylor threw two touchdowns and the Bills intercepted Trevor Siemian twice in the final 19 minutes of a 26-16 victory against the Broncos. Taylor was 20 of 26 for 213 yards to help Buffalo overcome Denver's defensive performance on LeSean McCoy, who carried 14 times for just 21 yards. The Bills went ahead 20-16 on Taylor's six-yard pass to Clay with 6:20 left in the third quarter.
— Jacoby Brissett ran for two touchdowns and threw for another as the Colts outlasted the Browns, 31-28. Brisssett was 17 of 24 with 259 yards for the Colts, who took a 28-7 lead on Frank Gore's four-yard run with 2:41 left in the first half. Cleveland slowly trimmed its deficit but had a pair of second-half scoring chances snuffed out by Rashaan Melvin's interceptions.
— The Falcons were able to celebrate a 30-26 win over the Lions after Matthew Stafford's pass to Golden Tate in the final seconds was ruled to be just short of the goal line. The defending NFC champion Falcons overcame Matt Ryan's three interceptions and many other mistakes to improve to 3-0 and drop the Lions to 2-1. Ryan's second scoring pass broke a 23-all tie 10 seconds into the fourth quarter.
NFL-ANTHEM PROTESTS
A number of NFL players and teams used the national anthem to show their defiance to President Donald Trump's criticism of the league.
Many teams locked arms in solidarity, and at least three team owners joined their players. However, the Steelers, Titans and Seahawks remained in the locker room as the national anthem was played.
The Seahawks announced nearly 30 minutes before kickoff that they would not stand for the national anthem because they "will not stand for the injustice that has plagued people of color in this country."
MLB-SCHEDULE
The AL East and NL Central are the only division races still up for the grabs, but the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs took major steps on Sunday toward wrapping up those titles. The Bosox now enjoy a five-game lead over the Yankees in the AL East, while the Cubs are five games clear of the Brewers in the NL Central.
Mookie Betts spearheaded a four-run eighth that sent the Red Sox to their sixth consecutive win, 5-4 at Cincinnati. Betts tied the game with a three-run double and dashed home from second on Rafael Devers' infield single.
Devers also hit a solo homer as the Red Sox completed an 8-1 road trip and won for the 14th time in their last 17 games.
Boston padded its division lead when the Yanks absorbed a 9-5 loss at Toronto. Russell Martin's three-run double put the Blue Jays ahead 5-0 in the third inning. New York lost despite Aaron Judge's 47th and 48th home runs, leaving him one behind Mark McGwire's major league record for rookies.
The Cubs beat the Brewers for the third time in four days as Jose Quintana struck out 10 while firing a three-hitter in Chicago's 5-0 shutout at Milwaukee. Quintana was staked to a 1-0 lead until Ben Zobrist belted a two-run homer in the seventh inning. Anthony Rizzo added a two-run double and Kris Bryant doubled home a run as Chicago dropped the Brewers two games behind Colorado for the second NL wild card.
Elsewhere around the majors:
— The Diamondbacks clinched their first postseason berth in six years before completing a 3-2 victory against Miami. J.D. Martinez won the game with an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth, one inning after Daniel Descalso singled home the tying run. Arizona wrapped up a wild-card spot following Sunday's losses by the Brewers and Cardinals.
— Mark Reynolds drove in a pair of runs and the Rockies homered twice in the ninth inning to secure an 8-4 win at San Diego. Colorado led just 5-4 until Pat Valaika and Charlie Blackmon belted consecutive solo homers.
— Eduardo Escobar ripped a three-run homer and the Twins earned their fourth consecutive win by thrashing the Tigers, 10-4. Minnesota is 4 1/2 games ahead of the Angels, and 5 ½ games in front of the Royals and Rangers for the second AL wild-card berth.
— The Angels stopped a six-game skid as Luis Valbuena lined a tiebreaking, two-run double in the seventh inning of a 7-5 win at Houston. Brandon Phillips and Justin Upton homered against the Astros, who are 2 ½ games behind the Indians in the battle for home-field advantage throughout the AL playoffs.
— Jameson Taillon picked up his eighth win and the Pirates' bullpen accounted for four no-hit innings to lead a 4-1 win against St. Louis. Starling Marte slammed a tiebreaking, two-run blast in the fifth and Jordan Luplow added a solo shot to help Pittsburgh slide the Cardinals 2 1/2 games behind the Rockies for the final NL wild card.
— Cleveland won for the 29th time in 31 games as Corey Kluber gave up a pair of unearned runs while fanning 10 over seven innings of a 4-2 decision over Seattle. Jose Ramirez homered and Jason Kipnis drove in two as the Indians moved closer to wrapping up home-field advantage through the American League playoffs.
— The Dodgers knocked off the Giants, 3-1 as Clayton Kershaw scattered eight hits over eight innings to improve to 18-4. Yasmani Grandal furnished a two-run homer and a sacrifice fly in the Dodgers' NL-leading 99th win.
— Trea (tray) Turner unloaded a go-ahead, two-run homer and Jose Lobaton provided the eventual game-winning single in the Nationals' 3-2 verdict over the Mets. Max Scherzer is 16-6 after holding New York to a Brandon Nimmo homer and just two other hits while striking out 10 over six innings.
— Khris Davis drove in a pair with his 41st home run as the Athletics thumped the Rangers, 8-1.
— The White Sox also cruised to an 8-1 rout of the Royals as Avisail Garcia provided a two-run homer and an RBI double.
— The Phillies were 2-0 winners in Atlanta as Maikel Franco homered and Nick Pivetta scattered five hits over six innings.
— J.J. Hardy launched a tiebreaking, two-run homer and Chance Sisco added a two-run shot in the Orioles' 9-4 rout of the Rays.
PGA-TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP
Xander Schauffele won the battle and Justin Thomas won the war.
Schauffele sank a three-foot birdie putt on the final hole to earn a one-shot victory over Thomas in the Tour Championship. Schauffele closed with a 2-under 68 to become the first PGA Tour rookie to win the Tour Championship since it began in 1987.
However, Thomas played well enough to claim the FedEx Cup and the $10 million bonus. Thomas earned five victories this year, including his first major at the PGA Championship.
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS- PEBBLE BEACH
Bernhard Langer birdied three straight holes on the back nine at Pebble Beach and cruised to a three-shot victory at the PURE Insurance Championship.
Langer closed with a 67 for a three-day total of 198 in his fifth PGA Tour Champions win of the year and 34th in the over-50 circuit.
Jerry Kelly pulled even with Langer with a birdie at the par-3 12th before finishing second.
NASCAR-NEW HAMPSHIRE
Kyle Busch earned a berth in the second round of NASCAR's playoffs with a dominant victory at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Busch slipped through smoke from a multi-car crash on the backstretch that ended Martin Truex Jr.'s run at a second straight win. Truex won the playoff opener at Chicagoland last weekend and led 112 laps early at Loudon until he was caught up in a wreck that ended his shot at a sixth win.
Playoff drivers filled the top five spots, with runner-up Kyle Larson followed by Matt Kenseth, Brad Keselowski and Truex.
The field will be cut from 16 drivers to 12 following next week's race at Dover International Speedway.
T25-COLLEGE FOOTBALL POLL
The top five remain the same in the latest AP college football poll.
Top-ranked Alabama claimed 52 of 61 first-place votes, while No. 2 Clemson took eight. Oklahoma is third, followed by Penn State and Southern Cal.
Washington, Georgia, Michigan, TCU and Wisconsin round out the top 10.
Oklahoma State fell nine spots to 15th.
Florida State dropped all the way out of the rankings for the first time in 106 poles since 2011 after starting 0-2.
NHL-PENGUINS-WHITE HOUSE
The Pittsburgh Penguins say they've accepted an invitation from President Donald Trump to go to the White House after winning the Stanley Cup.
The Penguins released a statement Sunday saying they respect the office of the president and "the long tradition of championship teams visiting the White House." The Penguins were honored by Barack Obama after winning the Stanley Cup in 2016 and previously by George H.W. Bush in the early 1990s.
Trump revoked the White House invitation to the NBA champion Golden State Warriors Saturday, after the team had said they might not accept.
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