AROUND THE NFL
BUCCANEERS 32, PANTHERS 6
Tampa Bay won its first NFC South title since 2007 when Tom Brady threw for 232 yards and a touchdown and Antonio Brown made a grand return to the NFL in a rout of Carolina. In his first game since Oct. 13, Brown saw a prominent role on offense with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin sidelined by injuries, catching 10 passes for 101 yards while being targeted 15 times by Brady. Ronald Jones carried 20 times for 65 yards and a touchdown filling in for the injured Leonard Fournette. Tampa Bay also got big offensive contributions from unheralded players Ke’Shawn Vaughn and Cyril Grayson. Carolina went with a dual-quarterback approach, starting Cam Newton (7 of 13 for 61 yards and ran for 42 yards) and finishing with Sam Darnold, who went 15 of 33 for 190 yards.
RAMS 30, VIKINGS 23
Brandon Powell returned a punt 61 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter to lift Los Angeles into the playoffs with its win over Minnesota. The victory also sent the Rams’ NFC West rival Cardinals into the postseason. Sony Michel rushed for a season-high 131 yards and a score for the Rams, while Matt Gay made three field goals, and the Aaron Donald-led defense did its part, keeping the Vikings out of the end zone on two first-half trips inside the 10-yard line. Matthew Stafford had his first three-interception game since Sept. 10, 2018, when he was picked off four times for Detroit against the Jets.
BENGALS 41, RAVENS 21
Joe Burrow threw for a franchise-record 525 yards and four touchdowns, and Cincinnati took sole possession of first place in the AFC North by beating a COVID-depleted Baltimore team. Burrow, the second-year QB who broke Boomer Esiason’s team record of 522 yards, was 37 of 46 and threw two touchdown passes to Tee Higgins and one each to Tyler Boyd and Joe Mixon as the Bengals swept the Ravens for the first time since 2015. Higgins had 12 receptions for a career-high 194 yards. Josh Johnson, who was signed off the Jets practice squad, started at quarterback for the Ravens.
COWBOYS 56, WASHINGTON 14
Dak Prescott threw four touchdown passes, DeMarcus Lawrence returned an interception for a score and the Cowboys celebrated their clinching of the NFC East title before kickoff with a rout of Washington. The Cowboys tied the franchise record for points in a first half while taking a 42-7 lead and frustrating Washington to the point that Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne scuffled on the sideline.
BEARS 25, SEAHAWKS 24
Jimmy Graham caught a 15-yard touchdown pass from Nick Foles with 1:01 remaining, Damiere Byrd made an acrobatic reception for the 2-point conversion, and the Bears beat Seattle. Making his first start since last season, Foles led the Bears 80 yards in the closing minutes, capping the drive with his TD toss to Graham, who spent three seasons with the Seahawks. Graham posted up a pair of smaller defensive backs to make the catch in the corner of the end zone. On the 2-point attempt, Foles threw late, but Byrd got his knee down in the end zone with defenders trying to push him over the line.
RAIDERS 17, BRONCOS 13
Josh Jacobs rushed for 129 yards and Las Vegas came from behind to defeat Denver and stay relevant in the AFC playoff picture. With the win, the Raiders severely damaged the postseason chances for AFC West rival Denver, which dropped its third game in the last four.
FALCONS 20, LIONS 16
Matt Ryan threw a tiebreaking 12-yard touchdown pass to Hayden Hurst early in the fourth quarter as Atlanta held on late to beat Detroit — and preserve its slim playoff hopes. Foye Oluokun’s interception of Lions fill-in quarterback Tim Boyle’s pass at the Atlanta 1 with 33 seconds remaining preserved the win. It was the first interception of the game for Boyle, who
made his second career start as Jared Goff remained on the reserve/COVID-19 list.