Chiefs survive Falcons to clinch No. 1 seed
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City clinched the top seed in the AFC and the only playoff bye when Patrick Mahomes threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Demarcus Robinson with just under two minutes for a 17-14 win over Atlanta on Sunday.
The Chiefs had to watch as Pro Bowl kicker Younghoe Koo missed a tying field-goal attempt with 9 seconds left to escape.
The Chiefs (14-1) won their NFL-record seventh straight one-possession game and matched a franchise record with their 10th straight win. They took any seeding drama out of games involving Pittsburgh and Buffalo and will have that coveted first-round AFC bye when the postseason begins in two weeks.
The Falcons (4-11) took the lead when Matt Ryan hit Laquon Treadwell for a 5-yard touchdown with 4:33 to go. But Mahomes kept finding Travis Kelce — who had a record-setting game of his own — to set up the TD pass to Robinson.
Mahomes finished with 278 yards passing and two touchdowns along with an interception. Kelce had seven catches for 98 yards and a score, giving him 1,426 yards for the season, breaking George Kittle’s record for an NFL tight end.
PACKERS 40, TITANS 14
Davante Adams caught three of Aaron Rodgers’ four touchdown passes as host Green Bay trounced Tennessee for its fifth consecutive victory on a snowy evening.
The Packers (12-3) already have clinched the NFC North title and can earn the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs if they win at Chicago (8-7) or Seattle (11-4) loses at San Francisco (6-9) next week.
Green Bay ran wild behind
124 yards and two touchdowns from A.J. Dillon and 94 yards from Aaron Jones. Dillon, a second-round pick from Boston College, had run for just 115 yards all season during a rookie year in which he spent over a month on the COVID-19 reserve list
Tennessee (10-5) squandered an opportunity to clinch its first AFC South championship since 2008. The Titans still can clinch a division title and their second straight playoff berth by winning at Houston (4-11) next week.
STEELERS 28, COLTS 24
Ben Roethlisberger overcame a month-long malaise to throw for 342 yards and three secondhalf touchdowns as host Pittsburgh locked up the division title.
Listless and lifeless for weeks thanks to a three-game losing
streak that followed an 11-0 start, Pittsburgh (12-3) somehow got it together over the final 25 minutes against the Colts (10-5). Indianapolis missed a chance to inch closer to a playoff berth when it let a 17-point third-quarter lead slip away.
SEAHAWKS 20, RAMS 9
The Seahawks claimed the NFC West title, Russell Wilson throwing a 13-yard TD pass to Jacob Hollister with 2:51 left for the clinching score in Seattle. The Seahawks (11-4) earned its first division title since 2016 and its fifth since Pete Carroll arrived in 2010 behind a stellar defensive effort and a clutch late drive engineered by Wilson.
Wilson finished 20 of 32 for 225 yards. But unlike earlier in the season when it was Wilson that staked Seattle to a 5-0 start, this victory was carried by the
defense. Seattle flustered Jared Goff, shut down the Rams’ run game, and held Los Angeles (9-6) to a season low in points.
CAROLINA 20, WASHINGTON 13
Dwayne Haskins turned the ball over three times before getting benched, Steven Sims muffed a punt return that turned into a Panthers touchdown and Washington blew its first chance to clinch the NFC East in Landover, Md.
Haskins was 14 of 28 with a fumble and two interceptions after starting in place of injured veteran Alex Smith, despite violating COVID-19 protocols.
RAVENS 27, GIANTS 13
Lamar Jackson directed four scoring drives during the decisive first half. Host Baltimore’s fourth straight victory, combined with Pittsburgh’s win over Indianapolis, lifted the Ravens past the Colts in the AFC wild-card hunt. With a victory in Cincinnati next week, the Ravens (10-5) will earn a playoff berth for the third year in a row.
The Giants (5-10) lost their third straight and were left with only a miniscule chance of making the postseason.
JETS 23, BROWNS 16
After this loss, the Browns will need to beat the archrival Steelers next Sunday if they’re going to end the NFL’s longest playoff drought.
The Jets (2-13) sealed their second straight victory after an 0-13 start, losing all chance for the top overall draft pick.
BEARS 41, JAGUARS 17
The host Jaguars (1-14) took care of business, losing their 14th consecutive game and then getting some help to secure the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NFL draft. Hello, Trevor Lawrence!
Mitchell Trubisky accounted for three scores, including two touchdown passes to Jimmy Graham, and the Bears kept control of their postseason path. Chicago can make the NFC playoffs for the second time in three years by beating Green Bay next week at home — despite having gone through a six-game losing streak in 2020.
CHARGERS 19, BRONCOS 16
Justin Herbert set the rookie record for most touchdown passes in a season. Michael Badgley tied a career high with four field goals, including the winning kick with 41 seconds remaining in Inglewood, Calif.
Herbert’s 9-yard screen pass to Austin Ekeler in the second quarter was his 28th touchdown throw of the season, surpassing the 27 that Baker Mayfield had for Cleveland in 2018.