EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- Los Angeles Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh said Monday that he and the team are frustrated by the lack of roughing the passer calls on Justin Herbert in recent weeks and have submitted plays to the NFL for clarification.

Harbaugh compared the hits on Herbert to how NBA players would foul Hall of Fame center Shaquille O'Neal, but he wouldn't receive calls because of his size.

"Does it sound like I'm complaining? Maybe? I could be," Harbaugh said. "I think he doesn't get some of those calls when they should be called."

No opponent has been flagged for roughing the passer on Herbert this season. Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Justin Fields leads the league with six such calls. Since Herbert entered the league in 2020, he has received the ninth-most roughing the passer penalties (13).

Herbert was sacked six times in Sunday's 27-10 win over the Cleveland Browns, all coming in the first half. Harbaugh said Herbert bouncing back from significant hits is "infectious" and energizes the team but that he should be receiving more calls. Harbaugh pointed to Herbert's 38-yard run against the New Orleans Saints in Week 9, when safety Tyrann Mathieu hit Herbert at the end of the run, which Harbaugh thought qualified as a helmet-to-helmet penalty.

He also noted another play in that Saints game, a fourth-quarter sack on which Saints defensive tackle Bryan Bresee appeared to pull Herbert's face mask but wasn't flagged. Harbaugh acknowledged he could understand referees missing that penalty because of the angle at which it happened but said that didn't make it any less frustrating.

"I've never seen him flinch one time, no matter what," Harbaugh said. "He'll come back the next play like it didn't happen."

Harbaugh also pointed to another play in Sunday's win, when Herbert completed a 10-yard pass to Ladd McConkey in the second quarter and was driven into the ground just after he released the ball.

"It's called most times, you know? Body weight on top of a quarterback," Harbaugh said. "It's incredible. It's almost Shaq-like."

The win over the Browns marked the sixth straight game the opponent sacked Herbert multiple times. The six sacks were the most in a game for Herbert in his career. He has been sacked 21 times this season, tied for the eighth most in the NFL. Harbaugh admitted that the amount of sacks Herbert has taken is concerning.

"I think about it probably more than I think about anything, and I think about a lot of things," Harbaugh said. "His protection? His safety? There's probably nothing I think about more than that."

Herbert typically doesn't complain about flags, and Harbaugh said a "lesser man" would, but he doesn't expect Herbert to. Harbaugh, instead, does it for him. He said he yells toward the officials when he feels that they have missed penalties, though he is unsure whether they ever hear him.

"I do more than Justin does," Harbaugh said. "I mean, I'm a lesser man. I'm not ashamed to admit that."

Asked about the sacks following the Browns game, Herbert took account of his role in the sacks, saying that he could throw the ball quicker and have a better understanding of the protection.

"We knew they had a great rush, so it's on me to be able to get the ball out and understand where our hots are, where our problems are," he said. "So, I'll have to take a look at it and keep moving forward."

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry was cleared to return and start against the Washington Wizards on Monday night.

Curry missed the previous three games with a strained peroneal in his left ankle. He got some work on the court at an optional shootaround on Monday morning and moved without a hint of pain. This came after he went through a workout on Sunday night during an optional light Warriors session at Georgetown University.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Curry's return would be based on how he felt on Monday following the work he did on the court.

Even with Curry sidelined since injuring his ankle on Oct. 27, the Warriors won three straight entering their game against the Wizards.

Curry returns just as the Warriors' schedule is about to stiffen. After Washington, the Warriors play at the Boston Celtics, Cleveland Cavaliers and Oklahoma City Thunder before returning home to face the Dallas Mavericks and Memphis Grizzlies over a daunting five-game stretch.

Cameron Norrie secured his first win on the ATP Tour since July as he came from behind to beat Roberto Carballes Baena at the Moselle Open in Metz.

British number two Norrie fought back from a set and a break down to win 3-6 6-4 6-3 in a rollercoaster match against the Spaniard.

It marks his first Tour victory since beating Jozef Kovalik in the first round of the Swedish Open nearly four months ago.

A forearm injury led to Norrie missing several tournaments over the summer, including the Olympics and US Open, before he returned last month.

"I was happy with the way I turned it around, and it's nice to get a win," Norrie said.

The 29-year-old, ranked 57th in the world, will play Bulgarian third seed Grigor Dimitrov in the second round on Wednesday.

Norway's Casper Ruud and Russian top seed Andrey Rublev are in action in the French city on Tuesday as they seek to secure places at the season-ending ATP Finals, which starts on Sunday in Turin.

With three places up for grabs, Novak Djokovic, currently ranked sixth, Ruud (seventh), Alex de Minaur (eighth) and Rublev (ninth) remain in contention.

Djokovic is not playing this week, having withdrawn from last week's Paris Masters, while De Minaur is top-seeded at the Serbia Open.

Former prop Cerys Hale hopes her ex-Wales team-mates have received their last apology from the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) after being "let down" again by the governing body.

WRU chair Richard Collier-Keywood and chief executive Abi Tierney pledged an apology for the way contract negotiations were conducted with the national women's squad.

In an email, seen by the BBC, players were threatened with withdrawal from WXV2 and, subsequently, next years World Cup as talks broke down.

They were issued with a "final offer" ultimatum on 2 August, saying if they did not sign within a three-hour deadline, planned matches against New Zealand, Scotland and Australia would not go ahead and the contracts would be withdrawn.

The new claims of sexism and inequality came less than a year after a damning independent review into the WRU's culture following a BBC Wales investigation.

Hale said she was surprised by the latest revelations, saying "fundamentally, the players have been let down.

But she accepts "the union have made strides to making things better".

Hale also acknowledged the governing body reacted "swiftly" to say sorry on this occasion, telling BBC Sport Wales: "It is frustrating to see them say that they have another apology to issue so hopefully it'll be the last."

BOSTON -- The Boston Bruins have signed forward Tyler Johnson to a contract that will pay him $775,000 for this season.

Johnson, 34, appeared in 67 games with the Blackhawks last year, when he had 17 goals and 14 assists. The 5-foot-8, 185-pound forward has 193 goals and 238 assists in 12 NHL seasons with Chicago and Tampa Bay.

The Spokane, Washington, native was undrafted originally and signed as a free agent by Tampa Bay in 2011.

Mario Balotelli made his first Serie A appearance in four years when he came on as a late substitute in Genoa's 1-0 win over Parma on Monday and earned a yellow card within five minutes.

Balotelli came on in the 86th minute and was booked in injury time for a foul.

The former Italy international signed with relegation-threatened Genoa last week, having last played in Italy's top division with hometown club Brescia in 2019-20.

Parma's winless streak reached nine games with the loss, even though the host had the best of the first half with Valentin Mihaila and Anas Haj Mohamed coming close to opening the scoring.

But Genoa took control after the break as Morten Thorsby had a goal disallowed after 49 minutes and Andrea Pinamonti hit the post shortly after. Pinamonti scored the winner with 11 minutes remaining when he slotted home the rebound from Jeff Ekhator's low shot.

It was Genoa's first win since beating Monza on Aug. 24 and moves it off the bottom of the standings and into 17th place. Parma is 15th.

Imagine a cursed franchise or suffering fan base -- say, the Cleveland Browns, to name one easy example. Now imagine that team putting together the best season in league history, rattling off 23 games without defeat.

What sounds unthinkable is reality for the Orlando Pride in 2024. The franchise that was once the laughingstock of the National Women's Soccer League is now the team everyone is chasing heading into the playoffs, and it is one of the best sports stories of the year.

"People wrote us off," Orlando coach Seb Hines said after his team clinched the NWSL Shield in October, marking its 23rd match without a loss. "People didn't want to come to the club. People had no hope with this club."

Hines isn't exaggerating. Waves of players have left Orlando in recent years amid ongoing tumult, and years of poor performances made the team an afterthought even in a small, 14-team league. That dire history is what makes this year's run even more remarkable. Among the Pride's league records are an eight-game winning streak this year and an unbeaten streak that reached 24 games including last year's finale. Their 18th win of the season on Saturday also set a record -- one that the Washington Spirit would match later that night -- as did reaching 60 points.

"Pride is a dangerous thing, so I don't want to talk about how proud I am of it, but I will say what this staff and group of athletes has accomplished is exceptional -- it's extraordinary," said Haley Carter, Orlando's VP of soccer operations and sporting director.

Carter joined the club in early 2023 and helped map out a long-term plan to revive its fortunes. Without question, Orlando is ahead of schedule. Now comes a test that many more seasoned teams have failed: Ahead of Friday's quarterfinal with the Chicago Red Stars, can the Pride back up the best regular season with a championship?

Years of futility, followed by an overhaul

Maybe Orlando was not cursed, but the team endured numerous low points on and off the field in the years since its launch in 2016. They were a perennial doormat, finishing in the bottom three of the standings in all but one season of the team's existence (2017, Orlando's only previous playoff appearance) prior to 2023. The Pride's last-place finish in 2019 was marked by 53 goals conceded in 24 games, which is still tied for a league record.

The following year brought trouble off the field, too. As the NWSL became the first team sports league in the U.S. to return to play from the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown, Orlando was the lone squad in the league to watch from home.

Five days before the scheduled start of the tournament, several Pride players tested positive (or, in some cases, inconclusive in the early days of retesting) for COVID, forcing the team to withdraw from the tournament. The spread of the virus throughout the team came following multiple groups of players visiting crowded social establishments in Orlando.

The locker room was fractured by the incident. By the time former general manager Ian Fleming was hired in the 2020-21 offseason, his first order of business was to handle a series of trade requests.

Fleming said shortly after he was hired that "the name value" of players didn't matter if they weren't producing on the field. Orlando was the oldest team by minute allocation in 2021 and had long boasted marquee names such as six-time world player of the year Marta, and United States veterans Alex Morgan, Sydney Leroux, Ali Krieger and Ashlyn Harris.

In December 2020, before his official announcement as GM, United States defender Emily Sonnett was transferred to the Washington Spirit less than a year after arriving in Orlando.

Angel City FC and San Diego Wave FC were entering the NWSL as expansion teams in 2022, and were attractive destinations for players across the league. Morgan and former first-round pick Taylor Flint (nee Kornieck) were traded to San Diego Wave FC in late 2021. Krieger and Harris were also moved to NJ/NY Gotham FC. A few months into the 2022 season, Leroux was traded to Angel City.

Orlando received $665,000 in combined allocation money from those deals alone, in addition to draft picks and players, which led the Pride to rack up over $1 million in additional spending above the cap. That money served as the fuel for their ongoing rebirth.

Only Marta and defenders Carrie Lawrence and Carson Pickett remain on the roster now from spring 2020. Pickett left later midway through 2020 and returned in a mid-season trade this year. "This club is like a whole different club to me now," Pickett told ESPN, noting how many teams across the NWSL have improved.

Making it come together on the field

Success didn't come to Orlando overnight.

Amanda Cromwell was a splashy head-coach hire from UCLA ahead of the 2022 season, but her tenure lasted only seven regular-season games before she was suspended and eventually fired for alleged retaliation and harassment. Hines, who had served as an assistant for the Pride under three different full-time head coaches, took over on an interim basis.

The seeds of this season's success were first planted in summer 2022 as Hines & Co. rattled off a seven-game unbeaten streak. A six-game winless streak followed as the Pride finished 10th of 12 teams, but Hines had instilled belief in the team and in ownership, earning him the coaching job full-time.

Orlando was markedly improved last year -- especially defensively -- and won 10 games. The Pride missed the playoffs as the odd team out of a three-way tiebreaker. There were holes in the roster, including the lack of a go-to scorer, but over the course of the season, Orlando became a team that nobody wanted to play.

"I think it was a blessing how we didn't make playoffs, because we used that fuel going into this year, and we continued that momentum all the way to winning the Shield," Hines said recently. "So, you look at it, you think it's a quick fix, but it certainly hasn't been. We've gone through dark times."

Carter and Hines made savvy roster additions in the offseason, like signing midfielder Angelina in free agency. The big splash came in March when Orlando paid $740,000 -- the second largest global women's transfer fee in history -- to sign Zambian forward Barbra Banda. Her four-year contract is worth around $2.1 million including bonuses, with all that stacked up allocation money from previous years being put to use. Orlando had its star striker.

Banda has scored 13 goals this season, a club record that would have won the NWSL Golden Boot in several previous seasons. Marta, meanwhile, is 38 years old and playing like she is a decade younger, putting in her best campaign since arriving in Orlando. The big names are delivering for the Pride this year, though Orlando is also greater than the sum of its parts. Emily Sams has arguably been the best defender in the league this year, which earned her a spot at the Olympics and a gold medal before her first cap. Center-back partner Kylie Strom is the epitome of the NWSL's ethos as an every-game starter who fought her way back to the league after being waived by the Boston Breakers in 2017 and going to Europe.

Haley McCutcheon has been a workhorse as a holding midfielder. Julie Doyle is a dynamic winger entering her prime who can play off the shoulders of Banda. Goalkeeper Anna Moorhouse set a single-season NWSL record with 13 clean sheets. Everyone in every position is performing at their peak.

"I can tell you guys, I don't think you're going to have [this] again, with this team or another team," an emotional Marta said after the team clinched the NWSL Shield. "I'm sorry, but it's so special, and the way that we did it was incredible."

Can this success be sustained?

The thing about curses -- or consistent futility, for the less superstitious -- is that they usually end at some point. The Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox eventually won another World Series despite the Steve Bartman incident and the Curse of the Bambino. England's men's national team did, eventually, win a penalty shootout again.

Orlando's unprecedented run this season is a clear indication that times have changed for the Pride. This isn't a decent team that finally slogged its way to the playoffs; it is dominant and unrecognizable to the franchise's past.

However, the harsh reality in American sports is also that history remembers who wins in the playoffs. Many -- supposedly cursed -- teams in other sports have managed to put together strong campaigns only to fall flat in the postseason, further perpetuating the narratives that doom is always lurking around the corner.

Pride players and staff are readily aware of the task at hand. With the playoffs expanded to eight teams for the first time, they are the first Shield winners in league history tasked with winning three knockout games to secure a league title. The unbeaten season ended with two losses following that Shield-clinching victory at home, an understandable letdown from the high of celebration and in the context of roster rotation and a jarring travel week due to an impending hurricane landing on Florida.

Still, the fairy-tale campaign will still go down as arguably the best in league history alongside the 2014 Seattle Reign (who went 16 games unbeaten to start the season) and the 2018 North Carolina Courage, who only lost once in 24 matches. The 2024 Pride bested North Carolina's previous points record by three, albeit in two extra games.

There is a distinct difference between those two Shield winners: the 2014 Reign fell short in the NWSL Championship, while the Courage backed up its dominant regular season with emphatic playoff victories and a title. How will the Pride be remembered?

"Reality is, we've got to win a championship," Hines said ahead of the regular-season finale.

Whatever happens over the coming weeks, the success of this season finally looks like the turning point for a much-maligned franchise on and off the field.

The team is gaining relevance locally after years of playing mostly in front of empty purple seats at home. On Sept. 28, the team defeated the Houston Dash in front of 17,087 fans, the most since its inaugural game in 2016 in a larger stadium down the road.

Facilities have improved through the years, and players want to be there. The Pride took over and renovated the training grounds of the co-owned Orlando City SC in 2020, giving them their own practice fields, gym, and facility. Pickett left the Pride right when those were being opened. She remembers sharing facilities with the men's team and youth clubs, and dodging divots on the fields as they trained.

"I think overall, the NWSL is moving in a really positive direction," Pickett said. "To stay at the top and to hold the standard that we've created, you have to continue to move forward. And if you're lacking, then no one's going to want to go to your club and you're going to suffer from that.

"So, I think the whole trajectory of NWSL is moving forward and getting better. And that's what I feel like Orlando had to do."

It all adds up to a culture shift in Orlando. Carter admits that "culture" is a "buzzword," but she sees the tangible shift in it from players who are "proud to play for the badge" for the first time. Pickett describes a locker room free of egos despite its success.

Consistency is a challenge in the NWSL, a league where winds shift quickly, and team fortunes can yo-yo drastically from season to season. Last year's champion, Gotham FC, finished in last place in 2022 amid a record 12-game losing streak. Last year's Shield winners, San Diego Wave FC, finished 10th of 14 teams this season.

"Building something great takes time," Carter said. "It's exceptional to see the kind of success that we're seeing in the kind of timeline that we're seeing it in. But keeping that moving forward, the focus is not on wins and losses -- and it's never been on wins and losses. It's been on doing things the right way and making sure that we have the right people in place that are going to support the vision."

Orlando's 23 games without defeat this season is a record that will likely stand for a long time. What's next is the question, and reverting to the past cannot be the answer.

TAMPA, Fla. -- If there's ever a time when the mettle of Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield will be tested, it is now. Over the past two seasons, the former No. 1 pick has created one of the NFL's best redemption arcs in recent memory.

Mayfield, 29, found himself a home in Tampa, led the Bucs to a division title in 2023 and entered Week 9 leading the NFL with 21 touchdown passes and 23 total touchdowns.

Yet, in the midst of the most arduous stretch of their season, the Bucs (4-4) have lost three of their past four and face what Mayfield called a "critical game" against the Kansas City Chiefs -- the league's last unbeaten team -- on Monday (8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN/ABC). And they'll be without the franchise's all-time receiving leaders in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.

Mayfield didn't mince words the night that both were injured in Week 7, having already gone to the training room to comfort them before telling reporters, "This absolutely sucks."

Still, Mayfield is determined to make this work. You could see it in his face, as he spent the majority of that postgame news conference despondent and in disbelief. And then his voice picked up, as if he suddenly found his resolve.

"There is no other way around it," Mayfield said. "[We're] going to have to look this thing in the face and take it head on."

The injuries to Godwin and Evans happened in one fell swoop, hosting the Baltimore Ravens on "Monday Night Football." Godwin sustained a dislocated left ankle and underwent surgery last week, with a glimmer of hope that he could return for the postseason.

"That was really tough. That was a hard thing to see," left tackle Tristan Wirfs said. "We love them to death. ... Our hearts are broken for him. But we've got to move forward."

Evans sustained what coach Todd Bowles called a "moderate" hamstring strain and is expected back after the Week 11 bye -- a timeline Evans and the team said is on track.

"We have to come together as a team, and obviously in an environment like we're heading into on a Monday night in Kansas City, we know what we're going to get," Mayfield said. "It's execution, do the little things right, play the field position game and see what happens. We have the veterans, we have the leadership we need to make this thing work and that's -- [the] season is not over. We're not even halfway done."

THE BUCS ARE 1-4 since 2017 in games in which neither Evans nor Godwin played, a troubling trend for a team vying for a fourth straight division title. They are trying to get beyond the divisional round of the playoffs as well, which they haven't done since their Super Bowl season in 2020. It's something the team talked about all summer. It's also something Mayfield has yet to do in his career.

They could rely on a late-season push like the one they made last season, but they got help from a weak NFC South and a tiebreaker over the New Orleans Saints. It also doesn't help that they've already been swept by the division-leading Atlanta Falcons.

"It was a hard thing to do, but we came out of it," Wirfs said of last season. "We could have easily been like, 'Yeah, the season's over.' But we didn't. We rallied together, fought back, scratched and clawed and made a playoff push."

Rookie center Graham Barton said he's leaning on the veterans and what they gleaned from last season and in prior years.

"This is a resilient group," Barton said. "We're just going to put our heads down and go back to work. That's all we know. That's all we're going to do."

There have been no upgrades for Mayfield on the offensive side of the ball ahead of Tuesday's trade deadline, as the Bucs have stood pat with the young players on their roster.

In their 31-26 loss to the Falcons last week, Mayfield relied heavily on screens and the ground game with his running backs. Bucky Irving, Rachaad White and Sean Tucker caught a combined 13 passes for 90 receiving and a touchdown from White, while the group -- which included a 17-yard pickup from rookie receiver Jalen McMillan -- rushed for 93 yards.

Tight end Cade Otton has picked up the slack in the passing game. He caught nine of 10 targets for 81 receiving yards and two touchdowns in Week 8.

Mayfield will likely lean on Otton again this week, as the Chiefs' 80.86 yards given up to opposing tight ends is the most by any team in the league coming into the week.

"When we have Mike and Chris out there, the offense just looks different," Mayfield said. "You're scheming things up for those guys. And Cade does a lot of the dirty work and so right now, Cade's being able to showcase his physical talent, and he's such a smart football player, unselfish guy. ... You're seeing him thrive because of that."

Offensive coordinator Liam Coen said he thought Mayfield "handled it really well."

"I mean, if you look at him, he's throwing an out-cut to Cade as a single receiver on a third down -- we hadn't done that much this year; that wasn't something we really dialed up," Coen said. "We had those routes back there in the past, but it wasn't really part of our thought process, but he goes and he just takes it."

The Bucs also got contributions in the second half from receiver Rakim Jarrett, who had three catches for 58 receiving yards in his season debut after being sidelined by offseason knee surgery. In his return he showed he can be a true downfield threat for Mayfield.

"We're not just Mike and Chris replacements -- we're NFL players too, and we're trying to go make a name for ourselves," Jarrett said. "Obviously we're not going to take the roles on as Mike and CG did -- but I think we have playmakers that people just haven't heard about.

"That's probably why people are saying what they're saying about us right now, so we just got to go out there and keep proving them wrong."

Like Mayfield, Jarrett thrives on adversity.

"I was undrafted," Jarrett said. "It was 250 picks, and I wasn't one, so I look at it as me being in the NFL, I am counted out, so we just take it day by day and go out and do our jobs."

And McMillan, one of the Bucs' two third-round draft picks this year, continues to try and step up after a quiet start -- which included missing two games because of a hamstring strain. He's now catching 150-160 passes each day after practice with a Jugs machine, a routine Godwin gave him.

In the second quarter, he was wide open on what would have been a touchdown as the Falcons had a coverage bust. McMillan said it was his error.

"That was on me," McMillan said. "I was running that route off steps. I was supposed to go far from outside. We just didn't connect on it. That just comes with reps and confidence. We'll get it right. We have gotten it right, and I just can't wait for the next rep we get on that same play."

MAYFIELD'S INTERCEPTION NUMBERS have gone up, as he enters Week 9 tied for the most at nine with the Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes and Green Bay Packers' Jordan Love.

"There's always a fine line of balancing the aggression and protecting the football, and when you have your shots, you got to take advantage of them," Mayfield said. "But if they're not there, do the same thing, check it down, get out of the play, move on to the next down and live to play another down.

"It pisses me off. I don't want to turn the ball over. To me, that's shooting our whole team in the foot."

On top of losing Evans and Godwin, Mayfield faces more pressure because of the defense's recent struggles. After the Bucs started the season 3-1 and did not allow an opponent to score more than 26 points in a game, they have surrendered 27 points or more in each of their past four games.

"We're making strides, and we can make 62 good plays and five bad plays and it goes haywire," Bowles said. "We got to cut out the bad plays. We understand that. We're working on it daily. If you cut out the bad plays and play the rest of the game, we'll be OK. We just got to cut out the bad ones."

At their worst point last season, the Bucs were 4-7. They won five of their last six games. Evans had four touchdowns in those games, and he and Godwin combined for 823 receiving yards.

Mayfield squeaked to the finish line with some badly bruised ribs before exploding into the playoffs with a 32-9 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. The Bucs lost to the Detroit Lions in the divisional round 31-23. In those two postseason games, Evans had 195 receiving yards, Godwin had 85 and Otton added 154, with all three scoring touchdowns.

Of course, they've got to get there first if they want to try and replicate or exceed that, with tougher odds this go around. But they're all prepared to rally around their leader and each other.

"We all have to make a decision when adversity hits -- you either fall apart or come together and do whatever you can to get past it," Otton said. "I think the guys on this team -- whether it's life or football -- are no strangers to adversity. We have to be willing to face it and work hard through it -- that's the only way. I know we're going to do it."

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The Kansas City Chiefs didn't bill their recent game against the New Orleans Saints as Turn-Back-the-Clock Night, but it had that look.

It looked like 2018 when running back Kareem Hunt scored a touchdown and ran for more than 100 yards for the Chiefs for the first time in six years. It looked like 2022 when JuJu Smith-Schuster led the team's wide receivers with seven catches and 130 yards. It looked like 2019 when Mecole Hardman caught four passes.

But it's 2024 and the 7-0 Chiefs, seeking an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl championship, are the NFL's last remaining unbeaten team heading into Monday night's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (8:15 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN/ESPN+) at Arrowhead Stadium. They are getting significant contributions from former stars who left for other teams only to return as if time stood still.

"Coach [Andy] Reid has a knack for putting in plays that suit the player,'' Hardman said. "He gave me some quick screens to get the ball in my hands to make something happen. He got the ball to JuJu across the middle, which he's good at.

"We've been with him before so he knows what we can do. No matter if it's one, two or three plays, he's thinking about how he can get everybody involved.''

Hunt, despite not playing until Week 4, leads the Chiefs in rushing with 308 yards. Smith-Schuster, despite not signing until training camp was over, had more receiving yards against the Saints than any Chiefs player in any one game this season. Hardman was the Chiefs' biggest threat in their Week 7 win over the San Francisco 49ers, accumulating 55 yards rushing and receiving, scoring a touchdown and returning a punt for 55 yards.

Another Chief, defensive tackle Mike Pennel, who played on their Super Bowl LIV-winning team in 2019, left in 2021 for two seasons and then returned in time to help the Chiefs win Super Bowl LVIII last season.

"It's the atmosphere,'' Pennel said of why he and others look to return to the Chiefs after leaving. "Coach Reid, he demands success out of everyone. There's no vet days [off from practice] here, so that's why you see older players here playing at a high level because there are no shortcuts.

"All of that plays into coming back to Kansas City."

FOR THE CHIEFS' part, it's no coincidence they've brought back so many former players. A fifth former Chief, tight end Jody Fortson, helped Kansas City win Super Bowl LVII in 2022 before leaving for the Miami Dolphins and returning this season. He is on injured reserve after hurting his right knee in last week's win over the Las Vegas Raiders.

Hunt, Smith-Schuster and Fortson returned this year. None went to training camp with the Chiefs. Hardman and Pennel came back last season with neither participating in camp and Hardman wound up catching the winning touchdown in overtime of last year's Super Bowl win. In all cases, the Chiefs were looking for players who they could plug in and play in a quick time frame.

"We know how to use Mecole and I think Mecole knows that we know how to use Mecole in his best way,'' Reid said. "He's got an idea of how things work, he's smart, he knows the routes and the ins and outs of the routes and he's a good communicator so he's able to talk to the guys and then he's working his tail off. I give him credit for how he's approaching [everything].

"They [all] kind of know how we operate. They know the offense. They're comfortable with it. Kareem obviously had been away for a while, but he was able to pick everything up quickly and he and Pat [Mahomes] are very good friends. They've stayed in touch throughout the years here, so he was welcome back in.''

Hardman said when he was acquired last year in a trade from the New York Jets, it felt like he was coming home. Reid never had to explain expectations, the pace at which the Chiefs practiced, the location of the cafeteria at the practice facility or anything else.

The Chiefs at the same time knew how to best utilize Hardman with screen passes, jet sweeps and other open-field plays designed to help make use of his speed.

"I knew exactly what they wanted from me, what was going on,'' Hardman said. "As soon as I got here I was plugged in. They just said, 'Let's go to practice.' I got here Thursday or Friday and I was playing Sunday. It was all second nature.''

Hardman was a free agent at the end of last season but never gave serious consideration to playing elsewhere before re-signing a one-year deal worth about $1.1 million.

"I had a few options but I guess this one made more sense,'' Hardman said. "Just more comfortable being here my whole career. I know the system, I know the coaches and I'm very, very familiar with the scheme of everything going on. I think Coach Reid has a good way of putting me on the field and using me in certain situations.''

Hunt's history with the Chiefs is more complicated. He led the NFL in rushing as a rookie in 2017 and was having another big season in 2018 but was released in November of that year after a video surfaced showing Hunt shoving and kicking a woman outside of his Cleveland residence. No charges were filed against Hunt, but he was placed on the commissioner exempt list and suspended by the NFL for the first eight games of the 2019 season.

He signed with the Cleveland Browns after his return, playing six seasons there. But he said he never stopped wishing he could come back to the Chiefs, which happened in September after they lost their starting running back, Isiah Pacheco.

The Chiefs at the time also had a former starting running back, Clyde Edwards-Helaire on the non-football injury list. Edwards-Helaire has since returned to the active roster.

The Chiefs felt comfortable bringing Hunt back, saying he had matured and deserved a second chance.

"I was thrilled,'' Hunt said of the phone call he received from Reid telling him the Chiefs wanted him back. "Words can't even describe how happy I was. They've got the same philosophy and everything like that. I know what to expect and they know what to expect out of me.

"I feel like I never really left. It feels amazing to be a part of this again.''

Before signing Hunt, the Chiefs were looking at having to use several players to try to replace Pacheco. One of their other backs, Samaje Perine, was signed mainly to play on third downs. The other, Carson Steele, is an undrafted rookie who lost a couple of fumbles and didn't look ready for a full role.

Hunt gave the Chiefs an immediate lift, much as he did when he arrived as a third-round draft pick in 2017.

"I was here with him in '17 and he reminds me a lot of that same player,'' offensive coordinator Matt Nagy said. "We love where he's at. He's physical and usually when we ask him to get 3 [yards], he gets us 4. When we ask him to get 4, he gets 5.''

SMITH-SCHUSTER PLAYED one season for the Chiefs, in 2022, but was their leading wide receiver. He was a free agent after the season and the Chiefs wanted him back, but he signed instead with the New England Patriots.

He missed out on winning a second Super Bowl championship last year but said he has no regrets over leaving. He did show how he felt about the Chiefs as a fit for him by rejoining them after his training camp release from the Patriots.

"Just very familiar with the offense,'' Smith-Schuster said. "Very familiar with Andy Reid, Pat and the guys. Just being in this facility kind of makes your job a lot easier than going to somewhere new where you've kind of got to learn everything pretty quickly. I think the hardest part for an offensive player is going into a new system and having to study a whole new playbook.

"[Reid] just knows how to put guys in position. He knows how to basically use their strength on the field and he [utilizes] that and I think that's something that being here I was able to do that.''

Smith-Schuster rejoined the Chiefs before they lost Rashee Rice for the season with a right knee injury. But even then, the Chiefs were looking for a receiver who could complement tight end Travis Kelce in the middle of the field.

General manager Brett Veach didn't have to wonder how Smith-Schuster would fit. He had already seen it.

"Some of the intermediate stuff that he does well with Travis, we thought JuJu did better than other players,'' Veach said. "He's a bigger player than some smaller guys. Then with some of the intermediate route running, I think he had maybe a little bit better feel.

"JuJu's experience in that offense and that feel for that position gives us the ability to kind of sub these guys out, give them blows and hopefully still match that kind of production."

Hunt, Hardman and Smith-Schuster were top players for the Chiefs at different times. Hunt was initially with the Chiefs before Hardman or Smith-Schuster arrived.

Hardman joined in 2019, when he had career highs for touchdowns (seven) and yards per catch (20.7). He was injured during much of the 2022 season, when Smith-Schuster played.

Even though they never starred at the same time, it doesn't necessarily feel that way to them. When it was mentioned to Smith-Schuster after the Saints game that former stars like himself, Hunt and Hardman had played a big role, he nodded and smiled.

"It's pretty cool getting the guys back," he said. "It's like the band is back together."

A game-worn Michael Jordan jersey from the Chicago Bulls' 1996-97 season has sold for $4.68 million via Sotheby's.

The jersey was worn in at least 17 games during the season, including the game in which rookie sensation Allen Iverson crossed Jordan over.

It's the fourth-most expensive NBA jersey of all time behind Jordan's $10.1 million "Last Dance" jersey; a signed Kobe Bryant jersey worn in his lone MVP season in 2007-08 which sold for just over $5.8 million; and a 1972 NBA Finals jersey worn by Wilt Chamberlain during the Los Angeles Lakers' first NBA title run ($4.9 million) -- all of which sold via Sotheby's. The 1996-97 Jordan red jersey is the only MeiGray Authenticated red jersey from Jordan's first five championship seasons.

According to Sotheby's, "The jersey has remained in private hands since its sale from the team."

The jersey was one of five lots from Sotheby's "Colossal | The Ultimate Jordan Collection" auction, which included a game-worn and signed jersey from Game 1 of the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs during the 1998 "Last Dance" season (sold for $840,000); a University of North Carolina practice set of jersey and signed sneakers ($132,000); a set of game-used jersey and shorts from the 1988-89 season, including playoffs ($1.08 million); and a 1992 Summer Olympics "Dream Team"-signed American flag ($1.8 million) worn during the gold medal ceremony.

In total, the Jordan auction raked in $8.5 million. The "Dream Team" American flag, possibly due to the lore behind it -- Jordan notably covered the Reebok logo with the flag out of loyalty to Nike -- prompted a bidding war of 45 bids.