The unbeaten Texans and Vikings have each been bringing the quarterback pressure

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Vikings let Danielle Hunter leave as a free agent this year, deciding not to pay market price for a player who'd flourished into the franchise's latest in a long line of prolific pass rushers.

Hunter joined the Houston Texans instead, jumping at the opportunity to play in his hometown for an on-the-rise team. Two games in, the unbeaten Texans are the NFL leader in sack rate per pass play (16.1%) while boasting the 10th-year veteran Hunter on one end and Will Anderson Jr., the 2023 Associated Press Defensive Rookie of the Year, on the other.

The Vikings are still getting after those quarterbacks, though, by the design and to the delight of defensive coordinator Brian Flores.

Hunter's departure in March was stemmed by the acquisition of free agent edge rushers Andrew Van Ginkel (from Miami) and Jonathan Greenard (from Houston, coincidentally). Then in April, the Vikings selected Alabama star Dallas Turner in the first round after ensuring they got a quarterback, J.J. McCarthy. The Vikings also picked up ninth-year veteran Jihad Ward in the second wave of free agency.

Those four players combined have roughly the same salary cap charge this season as Hunter. The Vikings will put their roster-building strategy and pass-rushing prowess to another strong test when they host Hunter and the Texans on Sunday, tasked with taking down C.J. Stroud, the 2023 Associated Press NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.

“We've got a bunch of guys that can all play, and we’re really using those guys,” Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said.

The Vikings are undefeated themselves, fueled by the league’s second-best sack rate (14.1 percent). Their group of versatile edge rushers includes fourth-year backup Patrick Jones II, who has four of the team's NFL-most 11 sacks.

“Flo did a good job of bringing in guys that are smart, dependable, tough and love football,” Van Ginkel said. “When you’ve got that, you’ve got a recipe for success.”

In beating defending NFC champion San Francisco last week, Minnesota forced the 49ers into a 2-for-10 performance on third down conversions. On eight of those 10 plays, Flores called for his race car package that takes the heaviest guys off the field and puts four pass-rush specialists on the line of scrimmage.

“Those five players are a huge part of how we put together the weekly plan,” O'Connell said.

Not that the Vikings wouldn't still like to have a player such as Hunter, who's landed in a formidable starting lineup with Anderson Jr. on the opposite side.

“It's really special when you can have two ends who play the way they can play,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said, adding: “They don’t say much, don’t talk much outside, but they love football and that’s what they bond on. Two guys who are about playing the game the right way. They’re intense, they’re physical players, and they love getting after it.”

Texans wide receiver Nico Collins leads the NFL with 252 receiving yards, the only player in the league with two 100-yard games. Collins, who had a career-high 1,297 yards last season, formed a unique bond with Stroud since the Texans drafted the quarterback second overall last year out of Ohio State.

“Reps after reps after reps, you accumulate those things over time and wait for moments like this,” said Collins, who was a third-round pick from Michigan in 2021. “So we make it look easy.”

Vikings star wide receiver Justin Jefferson was forced out of the game late in the third quarter against San Francisco with a bruised quadriceps, but he has practiced on a limited basis this week and been trending toward being cleared for Sunday. Jefferson said on Thursday he'll play “for sure.”

Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold is fifth in the league in passer rating in a strong start to his reset season in a career that sent him to four teams in seven years since he was the third overall pick in the 2018 draft.

“I definitely feel very comfortable with the offense, with the system,” Darnold said. “I feel like I can continue to grow.”

Houston's Ka’imi Fairbairn was the AFC special teams player of the week after making all four of his field-goal tries against the Bears. He made three from 50-plus yards, including a 59-yarder that was the second-longest kick in franchise history behind his 61-yarder in 2021.

Fairbairn is 7 for 7 on field goals and 3 for 3 on extra points this season, with six makes from 50-plus yards.

“He’s always cool in the moment,” Ryans said. “He never gets too high or gets too low. He’s banging 59-yard field goals, and he still just comes to the sideline like, 'Hey, that’s what I do.’ So when you have that demeanor, I think it really helps you.”

The eight-year player has made a practice of meditation every morning.

“Just beginning each day, try to find that inner calmness,” Fairbairn said.

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Minnesota Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold (14) is sacked by San Francisco 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa (97) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud (7) scrambles away from Chicago Bears defensive back Kyler Gordon during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith)

San Francisco 49ers running back Jordan Mason (24) runs from Minnesota Vikings linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel (43) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) throws a pass as he is pressured by Minnesota Vikings linebacker Jonathan Greenard (58) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Minneapolis. The Vikings won 23-17. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, right, is grabbed by Houston Texans defensive end Danielle Hunter (55) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith)

Back-to-back hurricanes have jumbled the presidential campaign schedules of Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump.

Trump and Harris have separately gone to Georgia to assess hurricane damage and pledge support. Harris also has visited North Carolina, requiring the candidates to cancel campaign events elsewhere and use up time that is a precious resource in the final weeks before any election. Both Georgia and North Carolina are political battlegrounds.

Meanwhile, a recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that a solid majority of Hispanic women have a positive opinion of Harris and a negative view of Trump. Hispanic men are more divided on both candidates.

Follow the AP’s Election 2024 coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/election-2024.

Here’s the latest:

President Joe Biden said ahead of a Friday briefing about hurricane damage that estimates are the Hurricane Milton alone caused $50 billion of damage, while adding that his predecessor, Donald Trump, is “just the biggest mouth” for disinformation about the government’s response.

The president added that the disinformation is a “permanent state of being for some extreme people,” but that he believes the country as a whole wants facts and bipartisan cooperation to address natural disasters.

“I think those who have been spreading these lies to try to undermine the opposition are going, gonna pay a price for it,” Biden added.

Donald Trump has been running a decidedly “bro-y” campaign.

But he will try to expand his appeal with women as he participates in a Fox News town hall focusing on issues impacting women

Fox News Channel announced that host Harris Faulkner will moderate the discussion in front of an audience of women.

“Women constitute the largest group of registered and active voters in the United States, so it is paramount that female voters understand where the presidential candidates stand on the issues that matter to them most,” Faulkner said said in a statement.

Trump’s campaign has aggressively courted men — especially younger men of color — with appearances on podcasts and sporting events popular with the demographic.

Polls have repeatedly shown he is seen more favorably by men than by women.

The Trump sit-down will be taped Tuesday and air the next day, Oct. 16th.

Fox says it has extended a standing invitation to Vice President Kamala Harris to participate in a town hall as well.

A trio of Wisconsin conservatives declared Friday that they support Democrat Kamala Harris rather than Donald Trump in the Nov. 5 election.

Charlie Sykes, a former conservative radio talk show host from Milwaukee; former Republican state Senate Majority Leader Dale Schultz; and former Republican state representative and appellate judge David Deininger told reporters that Trump lacks the character and moral fiber to serve as president.

Sykes said the election is a referendum on constitutional values that the country had always taken for granted before Trump’s political ascendance.

“Republicans have decided winning or staying in power is more important than standing up for these values, which used to be fundamental,” Sykes said. “I’m going to be voting for Kamala Harris for president and it’s not a difficult choice for me. It’s absolutely essential to keep Donald Trump out of the White House.”

Schultz said the country needs real leadership.

“I continue to consider myself a good Republican but it’s time to put the good of the country ahead of the party,” Schultz said.

Deininger said Trump has lied to Americans “about just about everything.”

“A second Trump term would be far worse and far more dangerous,” Deininger said. “If he regains power, he won’t have guardrails to restrain him.”

Doug Emhoff, Kamala Harris’ husband, says Donald Trump won’t debate his wife again because he was badly beaten in their first encounter.

“He’s afraid that that’s going to happen again,” Emhoff says in an interview for the MSNBC show “Morning Joe.”

The husband of the Democratic nominee says Trump would rather spread “this fog of misinformation and disinformation and gaslighting” than face Harris directly.

Emhoff says he doesn’t have the time to be angry at Trump’s criticisms of him and his wife, because that would be a “distraction” and the focus of the Democratic ticket is on campaigning to win the Nov. 5 election.

Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is firing back at Donald Trump in Michigan for insulting Detroit while campaigning in the city.

Trump said Thursday that if Vice President Kamala Harris wins the White House, “The whole country will be like — you want to know the truth? It’ll be like Detroit.”

Walz was to use a campaign event in nearby Warren, Michigan, to attack Trump’s record in the battleground state, according to prepared remarks shared by the campaign.

“Maybe if he ever spent any time in the Midwest, he’d know Detroit is experiencing a great American comeback. Crime is down. The city is growing. Factories are opening again,” he was to say. "But all these guys know about manufacturing is how to manufacture bulls—-.”

Walz plans to quote Trump campaigning in the state in 2016 promising that they “won’t lose one” automotive plant if he’s elected. ”I guess, technically, that wasn’t a lie — because he lost 6 of them across the country,” Walz was to say.

Walz also plans to reassure the auto-heavy state that Harris was not trying to ban gas-powered vehicles.

Vice President Kamala Harris will participate in a town hall hosted by Charlamagne tha God on Tuesday, the influential radio host announced on his show Friday.

The appearance comes as Harris’ campaign is looking to shore up support among Black men for her candidacy.

The announcement comes a day after former President Barack Obama delivered a forceful call for Black men to support Harris during a campaign swing in Pennsylvania.

Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz says, “I don’t know if any of us do everything right,” as he tried to draw some distance between the Democratic ticket and President Joe Biden.

Speaking to ABC’s "Good Morning America,” Walz was asked whether he and Vice President Kamala Harris would have done anything different over the last four years.

“Look, I don’t know if any of us do everything right,” he replied. “But I can tell you he’s done everything in the best interests of the American public.”

Harris drew fire from former President Donald Trump when she told “The View” earlier this week that she couldn’t think of a difference with Biden — before saying she would put a Republican in her Cabinet if elected.

Walz also used the interview to try to walk back his call at a fundraiser this week to eliminate the electoral college. Harris’ campaign quickly stated it doesn't support such a move and Walz told ABC, “My position is the campaign’s position.”

Democratic vice presidential nominee Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz greets supporters after speaking at a campaign event, Friday, Oct. 11, 2024, in Warren, Mich. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

Republican vice president nominee Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, speaks during a campaign event in Greensboro, N.C., Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)

Democratic vice presidential candidate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz speaks to the crowd during an early voting rally at Palo Verde High School in Tucson, Ariz., Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2024. (Kelly Presnell/Arizona Daily Star via AP)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris poses for a photo with a supporter after speaking at a campaign event Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, on the Gila River Indian Community reservation in Chandler, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a meeting of the Detroit Economic Club, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2024, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)