Bears, Commanders await severity of QB injuries; Ole Miss passes LSU in CFP race

Plus MLB Power Rankings entering the regular season's final week

Sep 21, 2026 at 8:50 am ET • 7 min read

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🤕 Five things to know Monday

1. Quarterback injuries overshadowed Week 2 in the NFL. The Bears and Commanders both came out on the wrong end on the scoreboard, and they lost more than just their Week 2 games. Caleb Williams suffered a non-contact hamstring injury late in Chicago's 9-3 slog against the Vikings and awaits testing to determine the severity, and not long after, fellow 2023 first-rounder Jayden Daniels dislocated his elbow. Fortunately for Daniels, X-rays showed no fracture, but he will likely miss time considering he sat three games with a dislocated elbow last season.
2. Ole Miss entered the national championship race with a cathartic win over Lane Kiffin. The Rebels are up to No. 4 in the AP Top 25 following their 32-24 win over LSU, and there is a real argument to be made that they deserve the No. 1 spot. Only three AP voters ranked them first on their ballots, and they lagged behind in the Coaches Poll, but what's most important to the Rebels is that they spoiled Kiffin's return to Oxford. It has to be college football's most satisfying win in recent memory, and it was largely a product of Trinidad Chambliss putting on a Heisman-caliber show. On the other side, LSU's season now hinges on a November gauntlet, and the daunting matchups that lie ahead will be tougher with two key players on the shelf due to injuries. 
3. Joshua Van defended his flyweight title at UFC 331. Anytime Van steps into the Octagon, something exciting happens. He cemented his status as a superstar with a second championship defense and did so against Alexandre Pantoja, the man he defeated in 2025 to win the title in the first place. Earlier in the night, Sean Sharaf pulled off an incredible upset of Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson with a knockout 12 seconds into the bout, and Arman Tsarukyan also won by knockout when he elbowed Mauricio Ruffy. Looking ahead, Van looks poised to command even more compelling matchups at the top of the flyweight division, and the UFC 334 card is set with a men's heavyweight title bout and women's bantamweight championship fight locked in as the co-main event.
4. Half of the MLB postseason spots are still up for grabs. Two more teams punched their playoff tickets over the weekend with the Braves winning the NL East and the Red Sox claiming at least a Wild Card berth. Only one week remains until the field is set, and our latest bracketology outlines not only which teams we think will make the cut but also how they will fare on their path to the World Series. One major factor at play is the availability (or lack thereof) of Aaron Judge. The Yankees superstar is back on the injured list with a calf strain. We may (or may not) see him in the postseason, but we know for sure that we won't see the Nationals and Cardinals. Don't be surprised if they break through next year, though.
5. Two scoring records fell in the WNBA. It took all of two years for someone to outdo A'ja Wilson. Kelsey Mitchell became the WNBA's single-season leading scorer on Friday when she drained seven 3-pointers, extended her streak of 20-point games to 25 and reached 1,034 points for the campaign. Two days later, Olivia Miles etched her name in the record book when she reached 790 points in her first year. That total surpassed the rookie record Caitlin Clark posted in 2024.

⚾ Do not miss this: MLB Power Rankings

In a matter of seven days or less, the question will shift from which teams will reach the playoffs to which one will emerge as World Series champion. The structure of this year's bracket will make one narrative unavoidable: Can money buy a third consecutive title, or can clubs still win it all with a modest payroll?

The Dodgers and Brewers have been the two best teams in baseball (and the top two squads in our MLB Power Rankings) for nearly the entire season. They also represent two opposite methods of roster construction. The Rays are on one extreme end of the spending spectrum, too. Our Matt Snyder is already dreading how the postseason will shape this winter's narratives in collective bargaining negotiations.

• Snyder: "A Rays-Brewers World Series isn't proof that the league doesn't need a salary cap just as the Dodgers winning isn't proof that the league needs one, but narratives built in the public eye skew perception for the masses."

Here is where those three teams stand in our MLB Power Rankings and how they stack up in payroll:

1. Dodgers (largest payroll)
2. Brewers (19th-largest payroll)
3. Rays (23rd-largest payroll)

🏈 NFL Week 2 takeaways

• Grades: A win is a win, right? We gave the Packers a "B-" for their 20-17 overtime victory over the Jets, but that's about as high as we could go for a team that showed lots of sloppiness. Coach Matt LaFleur deserves scrutiny for an uninspiring 1-1 start to the campaign.
• Overreactions: Maybe we're just prisoners of the moment, but maybe it's not actually an overreaction to say Deshaun Watson looked like a capable starting quarterback on Sunday. The Browns are reportedly set to reevaluate their lineup heading into Week 3, and with Watson's strong showing in a weather-impacted win over the Buccaneers, he might get to start the home opener after all.
• Game balls: We're giving Ja'Marr Chase the game ball after the Bengals' win over the Texans. How could you not? He hauled in an early contender for catch of the year.
• Milestone: Cowboys legends were on hand to celebrate Dak Prescott after he became the franchise's all-time passing touchdown leader.
• Injuries: Aside from those aforementioned QB injuries, Packers receiver Jayden Reed took a hit to the head and was carted off the field on a spine board, Saints first-round rookie Kelvin Banks Jr. left on a cart with an ankle injury and Colts receiver Alec Pierce sustained a heel injury just a couple of weeks after returning to the field from offseason ankle surgery.

🏈 College football Week 3 takeaways

• Winners and losers: Individual standouts stole the show this week and made early cases for the Heisman Trophy. Jeremiah Smith, for one, is among the greatest winners of Week 3 due to his record-breaking performance in which he became Ohio State's all-time leading receiver. On the flip side, no team lost in worse fashion than NC State. A miraculous last-second end zone fumble recovery put Vanderbilt on top for one of the craziest endings to a game this century.
• Grades: One national championship contender might have flunked out of the race. Texas A&M received a failing grade on the Week 3 report card for the egg it laid on defense. Kentucky stunned the Aggies, 31-21, with 28 consecutive points in what was an early signature win for first-year coach Will Stein.
• Playoff picture: It's a good week to be the SEC. The conference boasts four teams in our newest College Football Playoff projections, including two newcomers. That doesn't even include the squads teetering on the bubble, nor does it factor in Mississippi State, which looks ready to play the role of spoiler.
• Pressure index: Lincoln Riley will not be in hot water so long as he keeps winning, but he does need to produce more convincing results than USC's surprisingly close 42-35 win at Rutgers. The pressure on the Trojans will be at its highest on Saturday when Oregon comes to town.

👍👎 The best (and not-so-best) of the rest

• Alex Bregman took the Cubs on a field trip. The star third baseman's horse won a race at Churchill Downs, and his entire team was there to watch it.
• Utah's Keyonte George and Detroit's Ausar Thompson agreed to rookie-scale extensions on Friday, and these fellow 2023 draftees are next in line for big contracts.
• The Steelers say they are not actively shopping Joey Porter Jr., but at least five teams would make logical trade partners as the star cornerback seeks a new contract.
• The Senate's latest draft of the Protect College Sports Act significantly softens conference realignment rules.
• Colts wide receiver Keenan Allen reportedly faces a minimum three-game suspension for his arrest on two misdemeanor charges.
• J.J. Spaun made history as the third American to win the BMW PGA Championship.
• The field conditions at Maracanã Stadium are a concern ahead of Sunday's Cowboys vs. Ravens game in Rio de Janeiro.
• 19-year-old defender Noahkai Banks is permanently ineligible for the USMNT after he accepted a spot on Germany's U-21 squad. Coach Mauricio Pochettino shifted his focus to players with "no doubt" about their commitment to the United States.
• Arsenal's perfect start to the season is over. The Gunners' loss to Brighton might have exposed a real weakness.
• Sami Zayn retained his WWE title against Kevin Owens but faced a post-bout attack from CM Punk.
• Watch USMNT star Christian Pulisic score his first goal of the season for AC Milan.
• Real Madrid's 2-1 loss to Atletico Madrid showed why Los Blancos are mired in a period of disappointment.

📺 What we're watching Monday

⚾ Blue Jays at Orioles, 6:35 p.m. on ESPN Unlimited
🏀 Dream at Liberty, 8 p.m. on NBC Sports Network
🤼 WWE Raw, 8 p.m. on Netflix
🏈 Giants at Rams, 8:15 p.m. on ABC
⚾ Twins at Giants, 9:45 p.m. on MLB Network
🏀 Wings at Mercury, 10 p.m. on USA Network