Packers bump Bears; Browns, Ravens clinch
Aaron Rodgers threw for four touchdowns, breaking his franchise record for scoring passes in a season, and the Green Bay Packers clinched the No. 1 seed in the NFC by beating the playoff-bound Chicago Bears 35-16 on Sunday.
The Packers earned a bye while winning their sixth in a row and beat Chicago for the 19th time in 22 games.
The Bears are headed to the playoffs for the second time in coach Matt Nagy’s three years despite the loss because Arizona fell to the Los Angeles Rams. Cleveland 24, Pittsburgh 22: Cleveland is back in the playoffs, qualifying for the first time since 2002 by surviving a late Pittsburgh rally.
The Browns (11-5) nearly blew a 15-point lead in the fourth quarter, but stopped Pittsburgh’s 2point conversion attempt and then recovered an onside kick with 1:22 left to hold on.
A week of COVID-19 disruptions concluded in celebration as the Browns ended what had been the NFL’s longest postseason drought. Their reward: Another game against the AFC North champion Steelers, in Pittsburgh next weekend.
Tampa Bay 44, Atlanta 27: Tom Brady threw for 399 yards and four touchdowns, helping playoff-bound Tampa Bay clinch the fifth seed in the NFC.
The victory, which means the Bucs will face the NFC East champion, Washington or the Giants, on the road in the club’s first postseason game in 13 years, may have come with a steep cost.
Star receiver Mike Evans was carted to the locker room with a left knee injury late in the first quarter and did not return.
Baltimore 38, Cincinnati 3: Baltimore used a club-record 404 yards rushing to clinch a playoff spot as Lamar Jackson threw three touchdown passes and became the first NFL quarterback to rush for more than 1,000 yards in two consecutive seasons.
The Ravens rolled up 525 total yards, and the 404 rushing yards were the most surrendered by a Bengals defense. Rookie J.K. Dobbins rushed for 160 yards and two touchdowns, including a 72yard scoring romp in the third quarter.
Minnesota 37, Detroit 35: Kirk Cousins threw for 405 yards and three touchdowns, lifting Minnesota to a win over Detroit in a matchup of teams finishing disappointing seasons.
The Vikings failed for the fourth time in a decade to make two straight trips to the playoffs. They won five of six midway through the season to return to the postseason race, but dashed hopes by losing three straight before closing with a win at Detroit. The Lions lost their last four games.
L.A. Chargers 38, Kansas City 21: Justin Herbert threw for 302 yards and accounted for four touchdowns against a team of mostly Kansas City backups, and the Chargers rolled to victory Sunday as the Chiefs turned their attention to the postseason. The Chiefs already had wrapped up the No. 1 seed and the AFC’s lone first-round bye, so coach Andy Reid chose rest over reps for his best players.
Seattle 26, San Francisco 23: Russell Wilson connected on two fourth-quarter TD passes to Tyler Lockett and Seattle rallied past San Francisco to end the season on a four-game winning streak.
Seattle had a chance to earn the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs but stayed at No. 3 after the New Orleans Saints and top-seeded Green Bay Packers both won. The Seahawks will host the division rival Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round next weekend.
L.A. Rams 18, Arizona 7: John Wolford passed for 231 yards and rushed for 56 more in his NFL debut, and the Los Angeles Rams are headed to the playoffs with an 18-7 victory over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
Troy Hill returned an interception 84 yards for a touchdown to lead yet another dominant defensive performance by the Rams, who earned their third postseason berth in four years under coach Sean McVay.
New Orleans 33, Carolina 7: Drew Brees threw for 201 yards and three touchdowns, the Saints had five interceptions and New Orleans wrapped up the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs.
Ty Montgomery ran for 105 yards on 18 carries for the Saints (12-4), who became the first team to sweep the NFC South by going 6-0 since the division was formed in 2002.
Tennessee 41, Houston 38: The Tennessee Titans won the AFC South on Sunday. All it took was Derrick Henry surpassing 2,000 yards rushing and rookie Sam Sloman’s 37-yard field goal that bounced off the upright and through.
Henry ran for a career-high 250 yards in the victory that gave Tennessee its first AFC South title since 2008 and is the fifth straight loss for the Texans. The Titans needed the air game to set up Sloman’s winner, though: a 52-yard reception by A.J. Brown moments after a 51-yard field goal by Houston tied it with 18 seconds left.
Tennessee will host Baltimore next weekend.
Las Vegas 32, Denver 31: DarrenWaller caught Derek Carr’s 2-point conversion pass with 24 seconds left Sunday, and the Las Vegas Raiders rallied to beat the Denver Broncos despite committing four turnovers.
The Broncos (5-11) reached the Las Vegas 45-yard line with 9 seconds left and Brandon McManus’ 63-yard field-goal try was blocked by Maxx Crosby, who also blocked McManus’ record 70-yard attempt on the last play of the first half.
Indianapolis 28, Jacksonville 14: Jonathan Taylor rushed for a franchise-record 253 yards and two scores, capping Indianapolis’ playoff-clinching victory over Jacksonville with a 45-yard touchdown run with 3:35 to go.
Philip Rivers threw for another score and the Colts defense shut out the Jaguars over the final quarter to help preserve the victory.
The Colts will be the No. 7 seed and face Buffalo on the road.