Nov 8, 2012 3 min read

LAKE FOREST, Ill. – Chicago Bears star cornerback Charles Tillman says on Twitter that he will play Sunday against the Houston Texans, after all.

Tillman’s status had been up in the air after he told a Chicago radio station he might not be available because his wife, Jackie, is due to give birth.

But in a message to ESPN Radio’s “Mike & Mike In The Morning” show, he wrote “god, family, football… Baby is coming Monday don’t worry I’ll be there Sunday.”

Ivory hopes for more chances: Chris Ivory doesn’t know why he didn’t get his first chance to carry the ball until the eighth game of the season.

The Saints running back figured the best thing he could do during the first seven weeks of the season was simply stay sharp and focused.

It paid off when he had 10 carries for 48 yards – nearly 5 yards a carry – including a 22-yard touchdown in New Orleans 28-13 victory over Philadelphia Monday night.

One reason Ivory saw more action last week was because Darren Sproles was out with a broken bone in his left hand. Sproles did not practice Wednesday and could be out again this week, but the Saints are deep at running back, with Pierre Thomas and Mark Ingram .

Ponder struggling despite Peterson’s success: Adrian Peterson is only getting better as the season wears on, producing at a level that matches what he did before going down with a major knee injury last December.

The problem for the Minnesota Vikings is that all that success on the ground isn’t doing a thing for their passing game. While Peterson has topped 100 yards in three straight weeks, Christian Ponder has only gotten worse. In two of those games, Ponder failed to top 65 yards passing.

That flies in the face of the traditional thinking that a good ground game will open things up for big plays down the field.

Peterson missed practice on Thursday because of an illness, but is expected to play against the Detroit Lions Sunday.

NFL to hold regional combines: The NFL will hold 10 regional combines and a 2013 super regional combine beginning late in January.

The regionals are a supplement to the NFL’s national scouting combine.

Regional combines are conducted specifically for players eligible for the 2013 draft but not attending the Indianapolis combine; players with college playing experience who want to gauge their pro potential; and players with some professional playing experience but who have been out of the game for a period of time.

The regional combines will be at NFL facilities except for Honolulu (University of Hawaii) on Jan. 24-25 and Los Angeles (Orange Coast College) on Feb. 9-10.

The other sites are Houston on Feb. 16; Berea, Ohio, on Feb. 17; Florham Park, N.J., on March 2-3; Tampa on March 9; Lake Forest, Ill., on March 10; Flowery Branch, Ga., on March 16-17; Renton, Wash., on March 23-24; Owings Mills, Md., on March 23-24; and the super regional at Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.