Ravens clinch AFC’s top seed
Lamar Jackson threw three touchdown passes — two to tight end Mark Andrews late in the first half — and rushed for 103 yards as the Ravens won their 11th straight game, 31-15 over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday to lock up the conference’s top seed and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. Elsewhere, the Eagles beat the Cowboys to go ahead in the NFC East standings, and the Cardinals beat the Seahawks. See NFL capsules on
Ravens 31, Browns 15
CLEVELAND — Lamar Jackson threw three touchdown passes — two to tight end Mark Andrews late in the first half — and rushed for 103 yards as the Ravens won their 11th straight game, over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, to lock up the conference’s top seed and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
The Ravens (13-2) shook off a sluggish start and avenged their last loss, a 40-25 to the Browns on Sept. 29.
The Browns (6-9) were officially eliminated from the postseason, and now first-year coach Freddie Kitchens may be down to his last game. Kitchens has appeared overwhelmed at times and the home finale was a microcosm of this disappointing season as the Browns underperformed and will miss the playoffs for the 17th straight season.
Eagles 17, Cowboys 9
PHILADELPHIA — Eagles cornerback Sidney Jones broke up Dak Prescott’s fourth-down pass to Michael Gallup in the end zone with 1:15 left and Philadelphia denied Dallas a division crown.
The Cowboys (7-8) would have clinched their second straight NFC East title with a win in Philadelphia. And they would have eliminated the Eagles (8-7). The Eagles need to win their final game next week at the Giants to clinch the East. The Cowboys can still win the East with a win next week against Washington and an Eagles loss to the Giants.
Cardinals 27, Seahawks 13
SEATTLE — Kenyan Drake rushed for 166 yards and two touchdowns, Larry Fitzgerald added a 21-yard TD reception, and the Cardinals stymied Russell Wilson and the injury-depleted Seahawks.
The Seahawks (11-4) saw their hopes for the No. 1 seed in the NFC potentially vanish with another lateseason loss to the Cardinals. Seattle can still claim the NFC West with a win next week over San Francisco, but will need major help to earn total homefield advantage after entering the week as the top seed in the NFC.
Saints 38, Titans 28
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Drew Brees threw for 279 yards and three touchdowns and Alvin Kamara ran for two TDs as the Saints kept their chase of the NFC’s No. 1 seed alive by rallying from a 14-point deficit.
The Saints (12-3) had to win after San Francisco beat the Rams 34-31 on Saturday night. They scored 24 straight points to keep alive their chance at one of the NFC’s top two seeds and a first-round playoff bye going into their regular-season finale at Carolina.
Jets 16, Steelers 10
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Le’Veon Bell helped deal his former team’s playoff hopes a big blow.
The Steelers (8-7) entered the game controlling their postseason chances and would have clinched a berth with wins in their final two games, but now need some help. Pittsburgh now needs to win next week at Baltimore to stay in the mix.
Chiefs 26, Bears 3
CHICAGO — Patrick Mahomes threw for two touchdowns and ran for another score, and the Chiefs stayed in contention for a first-round playoff bye.
Kansas City (11-4) earned its fifth straight win and remained a game behind New England for the AFC’s second seed. The Patriots clinched their 11th consecutive AFC East championship by beating Buffalo on Saturday. The Chiefs hold the headto-head tiebreaker over New England thanks to a victory two weeks ago that helped secure their fourth AFC West title in a row.
Dolphins 38, Bengals 35, OT
MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — A laugher became a thriller for Miami, and it needed overtime to beat Cincinnati.
Miami gave up 16 points in the final 29 seconds of regulation but regrouped, and Jason Sanders kicked a 37-yard field goal as time expired.
Broncos 27, Lions 17
DENVER — Drew Lock and Phillip Lindsay stood out even more than those hard-to-miss, all-orange uniforms worn by the Denver Broncos.
Lock threw a shovel pass to DaeSean Hamilton to put Denver ahead, Lindsay sealed the game with a late TD scamper and the Broncos extended the Lions’ skid to eight straight.
Falcons 24, Jaguars 12
ATLANTA — Devonta Freeman scored two touchdowns for the Falcons before Jacksonville took a snap, and that was enough to beat the woeful Jaguars.
Matt Ryan threw for 384 yards and Julio Jones had his biggest game of the year, hauling in 10 catches for 166 yards.
Colts 38, Panthers 6
INDIANAPOLIS — Nyheim Hines pulled off a rare feat for Indianapolis. He scored on two punt returns, set up another touchdown with a 40-yard return four plays into the game and provided the jolt of energy the Colts needed to pull away from Carolina.
The Colts (7-8) snapped a fourgame losing streak in their home finale and can avoid their second losing season in three years with a win next week.
Giants 41, Redskins 35, OT
LANDOVER, Md. — Daniel Jones put together the best performance of his rookie season fresh off an ankle injury, throwing for 352 yards and five touchdown passes.
Jones was 28 of 42 in his first action since missing the past two games with a sprained right ankle. He tossed two TDs to Kaden Smith — including the winner — and also connected with Sterling Shepard, Saquon Barkley and Cody Latimer.