LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Growing up in rugby-crazed New Zealand, Paul Lasike dreamed one day of sharing a stadium with the countrys powerhouse national team, the All Blacks.In New Zealand, man, the All Blacks -- thats the team, Lasike said. You see those guys on buses, on the television news, at the train stations -- you see their pictures everywhere. They are the idols that everyone looks up to.Lasike, 26, finally gets to fulfill his lifelong quest, albeit in roundabout fashion, when the All Blacks travel to Chicago for a match versus Ireland on Saturday.A one-time star rugby player at Brigham Young University, Lasike made the switch to American football while in college, a decision that proved wise.Lasike (pronounced luh-SEE-kay), a native of Auckland, is currently a fullback on the Chicago Bears practice squad. He recently completed a stretch on Chicagos active roster, but the team had to make room for a defensive player coming back from injury prior to the Bears Oct. 20 game.As luck would have it, the All Blacks will be in Chicago the same week the Bears have their bye. So Lasike plans to be front and center for the match at Soldier Field, the Bears home stadium.I was so pumped to find out the All Blacks were playing in Chicago, man, Lasike said. My dad is coming out [from Brisbane, Australia] for the All Blacks game. He is so excited. I got box tickets, so he and I are going there. Its going to be a blast.I brought the family over for a game last year when I was on the Bears practice squad. It was their first football game. They had no idea what was going on, but they enjoyed the American culture, like the big lights and the fireworks. Its Americas game, you know. So they enjoyed that experience.But for the Lasikes -- Paul is the ninth of 10 children in a Kiwi-Tongan household -- playing in the NFL isnt the ultimate accomplishment.My family would be more impressed if I was an All Black, Lasike said with a grin.They grew up with rugby. When I made the NFL for the first couple of weeks, I Skyped my parents, and they were like, Oh, thats great. It wasnt like they went, Wow, thats crazy. I dont think they realize how big of a deal it is. If I was an All Black, they would be blown away.Still, Lasike was no slouch on the rugby pitch. BYU rugby coach David Smyth called Lasike the hardest-working player he has ever coached. Smyth first laid eyes on Lasike after he left New Zealand to enroll as an exchange student at Highland High School, a U.S. rugby powerhouse in Salt Lake City, for his senior year.Hes a phenomenal rugby player, said Smyth, who has guided BYU to five national championships. He has natural ability and a great skill set. On top of that, hes as hard a worker as weve ever had at BYU. When you add work ethic to the natural ability and skill set he already had, that equals success.Theres no doubt in my mind he could have played professional rugby somewhere. Hes a fairly humble kid, but hes going to work and work and work. ... Trust me when I tell you that Paul is one of the nicest and most humble kids off the field, but on the field he will rip your head off if you are standing between him and what he wants.Lasikes path toward the NFL started when Jay Omer, then the BYU football strength and conditioning coach, approached Lasike in the Cougars weight room.Omer felt Lasike possessed the tools to play football, but Lasike was skeptical.I was nervous to play football at first, Lasike said. Football is like an ego sport ... so I was kind of nervous to meet the football players. It was a little scary at first. The culture is a lot different in rugby. Its a lot less hype in rugby. Its weird, man. Its a totally different type of camaraderie.Lasike used the movie Remember the Titans to explain.When we watched it growing up in New Zealand, we were like, Wow, the coaches yell at their players to get them going. I never had a rugby coach yell at me. They would just explain things. If you fumble the ball in football, its a huge deal. If you fumble the ball in rugby, its not such a big deal. Getting after players and coaching style are the big differences. And, of course, the conditioning. Im a lot heavier now than when I played rugby.When Lasike returned from serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints after his freshman year, Smyth and Omer brought him to meet Bronco Mendenhall, BYUs head coach at the time. Paul came out for the team and he was just impressive in his size and his speed, said Mendenhall, who is now head coach at Virginia. It appeared that since he was already used to carrying the football the running back position would be a good spot for him.He was a scout-team player to begin with when we were teaching him the rules. We were first, second or third in every defensive category that year, and our defensive players did not want to tackle him or hit him because he was wreaking havoc on them as he was so tough.Lasike found a role on BYUs offense in a matter of weeks.Heres the thing about Paul, Mendenhall said. Hes an amazing piano player as well. We used to have devotionals before the games, home or away, and he would play the piano beautifully by ear. He is so kind, and with that English accent, he is the absolute gentleman. But when he is on the field, he is just ferocious.Lasike ended his BYU career with 843 rushing yards in 38 games (19 starts). He went undrafted in 2015 but signed with the Arizona Cardinals before joining the Bears, where he patiently awaits his next opportunity.I never try to take how far Ive come for granted, Lasike said. I know it can be cut off at any time. I always approach every day in the NFL like it is my last, because I know how huge it is. Not many people get to be in this situation. I have friends and stuff who I grew up playing rugby with, and theyre like, Bro, I cant believe you are there and Im here. So it kind of makes me realize this is a cool deal.Darwin Thompson Chiefs Jersey . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Kansas City Chiefs Jerseys . Once again, DeLaet finished tied for second at a PGA Tour stop on the weekend, this time at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. The pride of Weyburn, Sask. http://www.prochiefsauthentic.com/Youth-Joe-Montana-Elite-Jersey/ . Kyle Denbrook, a soccer player from Saint Marys University, took the CIS male athlete of the week honour. Stanley, a fourth-year business administration student from Charlottetown, scored both goals in a 2-0 win over Dalhousie on Friday and tallied again in a 1-0 win over Saint Marys on Sunday. Harrison Butker Chiefs Jersey . Meanwhile, there were huge victories for Sunderland and West Ham over fellow relegation rivals, leaving the battle to avoid the drop up for grabs with the bottom 11 teams separated by just six points. Eden Hazard and Fernando Torres scored second-half goals to seal a fourth straight victory for Chelsea, which climbed above Arsenal and Manchester City in the standings ahead of their games on Monday and Sunday respectively. Khalen Saunders Womens Jersey . The Masters champion and winner of last weeks Australian PGA has a three-round total of 14-under 199 at Royal Melbourne. "Im in a really good position for tomorrow," Scott said.EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Andy Dalton and the Cincinnati Bengals missed another chance to get a statement win.A road game on Monday night against a winning team was an opportunity for the Bengals to reach .500 for the season.The Bengals faltered in the fourth quarter, though, and lost to the Giants 21-20 to fall to 3-5-1.The Bengals dropped to 11-23 on Monday night, including 4-7 in the Marvin Lewis era. The Bengals havent won a road game on Monday night since the 1990 season, which was also the last season the team won a playoff game.The loss also continues the Bengals struggles against the leagues better teams in 2016. They also have lost to Dallas, Denver, New England and Pittsburgh.Weve got to find a way to flip the switch and get these games turned into wins rather than a tie in London and a one-point loss here tonight, Dalton said.Weve got to take a good hard look at what were doing and correct the things that are hurting us.Penalties, an inconsistent offense and an inability to contain Eli Manning and Odell Beckham Jr. combined to foil the Bengals.Dalton was 16 of 29 for 204 yards with a TD pass to A.J. Green and an interception.The Bengals finished with only 12 first downs and 264 yards.The defense, which entered the game ranked 25th in the league, allowed 351 yards, and the Bengals were penalized nine times for 60 yards.Trailing 21-20 early in the fourth quarter, Dalton was intercepted by Landon Collins. George Iloka intercepted Manning on the next play, but the Bengals were unable to take advantage as they failed to get a first down. The Bengals were forced to punt on their next two drives as the Giants sacked Daltonn twice.ddddddddddddThe fourth-quarter struggles overshadowed a strong start to the second half.The Bengals used Alex Ericksons 84-yard second-half kickoff return to get back in the game. Jeremy Hill had a 9-yard TD run and the Bengals later added Mike Nugents 38-yard field goal for a 20-14 lead in the third quarter.But the defense couldnt hold the lead as the Giants went for it on fourth-and-goal from the 3 and scored on Mannings third TD pass of the game early in the fourth quarter to retake the lead at 21-20.Late in the second quarter, the Bengals missed an opportunity when they only mustered a field goal after Dre Kirkpatricks interception gave them the ball at the 7. They were held to a 25-yard field goal by Nugent for a short-lived 10-7 lead.We have opportunities on offense to put more points on the board and we end having to kick field goals and that ended up probably being the difference in the football game, Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said. If we get a touchdown, particularly from the 7-yard line there.Manning then led a drive that ended with a touchdown pass to Beckham for a 14-10 lead at the half.With no team in control of the AFC North, the Bengals fell further behind in their hope to reach the playoffs for the sixth consecutive season. They host the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.Were trying to figure out what we need to do to have these outcomes be different and theres not one explanation for it, Dalton said.---For more NFL coverage: http://www.pro32.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP-NFL ' ' '