MEN OF STEAL
Big Ben & Co. put end to slide, rally past Colts to grab division title
CALL THEM the Stealers, and call them the AFC North champions for the first time since 2017. The Colts seemingly had Pittsburgh headed for its fourth straight loss following an 11-0 start, but Ben Roethlisberger engineered three second-half touchdown drives to erase a 17-point deficit — and clinch the division title — with a 28-24 win over Indianapolis at Heinz Field.
The 38-year-old Roethlisberger connected with Diontae Johnson, Eric Ebron and JuJu Smith-Schuster for touchdowns in the final 18 minutes — the last a 25-yarder to take the lead with 7:38 remaining.
“Sometimes you need a little shock to yourself to believe again,” said Roethlisberger, who f inished with a season-high 342 passing yards after managing just 98 through two quarters.
The Steelers (12-3) donned AFC North champion hats and T-shirts and posted dancing videos from their postgame locker-room celebration.
“We’ve been waiting for a few weeks to put them on, man,” said Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin, who declined to say whether he’ll rest Roethlisberger or other starters in Week 17 against Cleveland. “We’ll ponder those possibilities in the morning. Tonight, we’ll wear our hats and T-shirts.”
Colts quarterback Philip Rivers (270 yards) was intercepted at the Steelers’ 12-yard line on the ensuing drive for the Colts, who are tied with Tennessee atop the AFC South but behind on tiebreakers entering the final week.
The Colts (10-5) are in a four-way tie with Miami, Baltimore and Cleveland for the three wild-card spots in the AFC, but they fell to the eighth seed and could be eliminated even if they post their 11th win next week against Jacksonville.
“Very disappointed. When we had everything to play for, we just didn’t have all the answers in the second half of a game we had to have,” Colts coach Frank Reich said. “I’m not doubting the coaches or the players. We had a bad game, a bad half and we weren’t able to finish it off. We’ve got to learn from it, get better next week and get some help.”
KC IS THE SUNSHINE BAND
The road to the Super Bowl in the AFC once again will go through Kansas City.
The Chiefs had a tougher than expected time moving the ball Sunday against the Falcons — posting their lowest offensive output of the season — but they clinched the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye in the AFC with a 17-14 victory in Atlanta.
“I think it was just a bad day for the offense, starting with me,” Patrick Mahomes said after registering his lowest single-game passer rating (79.6) of the season. “I think the offense will figure it out.”
The Chiefs (14-1) hadn’t scored fewer than 23 points in any of their first 14 games, but the 28thranked Falcons defense held the league’s No. 1 offense to a 7-7 tie at halftime.
Mahomes flipped a 25-yard touchdown pass to Demarcus Robinson with 1:55 remaining, and Pro Bowl kicker Younghoe Koo pushed a potential game-tying 39-yard field goal wide right in the closing seconds for the Falcons (4-11). Koo had entered the game with just one miss on 36 attempts this season.
NO LONGER PLAYING DEAD
The Bears remain one of the NFL’s streakiest teams, winning their third in a row following a
six-game losing streak to position themselves for an NFC playoff berth with a 41-17 win over NFL-worst Jacksonville (1-14), which clinched the first-overall pick in the 2021 draft.
The Bears (8-7) will earn an NFC wild-card spot with a win next week over Green Bay or a loss by Arizona (also 8-7) to the Rams.
Mitchell Trubisky had 265 passing yards and two scoring throws to Jimmy Graham — and he ran for another TD — as the Bears scored at least 30 points in a fourth straight game for the first time since 1965.
SILENCE OF THE RAMS
The Seahawks (11-4) held Sean McVay without a touchdown to clinch the NFC West for the first time since 2017 — while also keeping alive their chance for the No. 1-overall seed in the NFC — with a defensive-minded 20-9 win over the Rams (9-6).
Los Angeles would have clinched a wildcard spot with a win, and still can do so if it defeats Arizona (8-7) in Week 17.
Russell Wilson (225 passing yards) had a 4-yard scoring run in the third quarter and found Jacob Hollister in the end zone from 13 yards out for an 11-point lead with 2:51 remaining for the Seahawks, who will face San Francisco in their season finale.
A PACK MENTALITY
MVP front-runner Aaron Rodgers connected with Davante Adams on three of his four TD passes — improving his league-high total to 44 — in NFC-leading Green Bay’s snowy 40-14 win Sunday night over Tennessee.
Adams finished with 11 receptions for 142 yards and AJ Dillon ran for 124 yards and two scores for the Packers (12-3).
THE HURT LOCKER
Rams quarterback Jared Goff suffered a broken thumb, according to NFL Network, on Seahawks defensive end Benson Mayowa’s helmet on a second-half pass attempt. Goff finished the game, but his availability for next week against Arizona appears in question.
Other injuries around the league: Chiefs WR Sammy Watkins (calf ), Eagles DT Fletcher Cox (stinger), Texans OT Laremy Tunsil (foot) and G Brent Qvale (concussion), Jaguars FB Bruce Miller (concussion), Bengals CB William Jackson (concussion), Ravens C Patrick Mekari (back), Browns LBs Tae Davis (ankle) and Sione Takitaki (ankle).
POST PATTERNS
Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce set the singleseason record for receiving yardage by a tight end with 1,426, breaking George Kittle’s mark (1,377) set in 2018. Kelce (105 receptions) also became the first tight end in history with multiple 100-catch seasons. … Rivers’ TD pass to Zach Pascal tied him with Dan Marino for fifth on the all-time list with 420. … Bengals quarterback Brandon Allen registered 371 passing yards and two scores as Cincinnati (4-10-1) posted its second straight win, 37-31, over Houston (4-11). … Chargers rookie quarterback Justin Herbert surpassed 4,000 passing yards and tossed his 28th TD pass to break Baker Mayfield’s rookie record (27 in 2018) as Los Angeles (6-9) posted a 19-16 win over Denver (5-10).
AFC PLAYOFF SCENARIOS
The Chiefs have clinched the first-round bye, while Pittsburgh and Buffalo (11-3) have clinched division titles. Tennessee (10-5) would clinch the AFC South with a win Sunday at Houston, but a loss and an Indianapolis win over Jacksonville would give the Colts the division crown.
Miami, Baltimore and Cleveland (all 10-5) would clinch playoff berths with wins in Week 17, and Indianapolis would need a win against the Jaguars and one of the others to lose to earn a wild card.
The Dolphins own tiebreaker advantages over the other 10-5 teams, the Ravens control them over the Browns and Colts, while the Browns would advance if tied with Indianapolis. All other AFC teams have been eliminated.
NFC PLAYOFF SCENARIOS
The NFC playoff order still remains unclear, but the Packers (12-3) would clinch the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage with a Week 17 win over Chicago. The Saints (11-4) already have clinched the NFC South and the Seahawks (11-4) sewed up the NFC West, and both are still alive for the top seed if the Packers falter. Washington (6-9), Dallas (6-9) and the Giants (5-10) all still have a shot to win the NFC East.
The Buccaneers (10-5) have clinched one NFC wild card, while the Rams (9-6), Bears (8-7) and Cardinals (8-7) are vying for the final two spots. The winner of the Rams-Cardinals game Sunday will clinch one of them. Chicago owns the tiebreaker over Arizona if both lose next week.