Brady, Buccaneers stay sharp, earn NFC’s 2nd seed
Tom Brady topped 5,000 yards passing for the second time in his career and host Tampa Bay set a franchise record for regular-season victories with a 41-17 win over Carolina.
Brady completed 29 of 37 passes for 326 yards and three touchdowns before taking the last half of the fourth quarter off, finishing with a careerbest 5,316 yards passing and a Tampa Bay seasonrecord 43 TD passes for the defending Super Bowl champions.
Mike Evans caught two of Brady’s TD passes, giving him a club-record 14 scoring receptions this season. Evans also became the first player in NFL history to begin a career with eight consecutive seasons with at least 1,000 yards receiving.
The Buccaneers (13-4) broke the club record for victories in a regular season set in 2002 and also earned the No. 2 seed in the NFC with the Rams losing to the 49ers in overtime. The Bucs will host Philadelphia next weekend.
Carolina (5-12) finished on a seven-game losing streak that leaves head coach Matt Rhule’s future in question.
Seahawks 38, Cardinals 20: Russell Wilson threw three touchdown passes, Rashaad Penny ran for 190 yards and a touchdown, and visiting Seattle spoiled Arizona’s shot at the NFC West title. The Cardinals (11-6) were still in the running for the NFC West title with a win, but they couldn’t take care of business against the Seahawks and will settle for the
No. 5 seed after a 7-0 start and a 4-6 finish. Seattle finishes 7-10 and won’t be in the postseason for the second time in 10 years.
Saints 30, Falcons 20: New Orleans just missed making the playoffs despite winning in Atlanta. The Saints (9-8) needed the Rams to beat the 49ers to get a wild-card spot and a fifth consecutive playoff berth. Trevor Siemian led back-to-back scoring drives following two Atlanta turnovers late in the first half, and the Saints overcame the loss of quarterback Taysom Hill to injury. The Falcons (7-10) were hurt by three turnovers, including two fumbles by running back Mike Davis.
Bills 27, Jets 10: Host Buffalo clinched its second consecutive AFC East title after Devin Singletary scored twice in the final 8:21 for a win over New York. The Bills (11-6) enter the playoffs as the conference’s third seed but awaited the outcome of the late ChargersRaiders game to determine whom they’ll host in the wildcard round. The Bills limited the the Jets to a franchise-low 53 yards of total offense and four first downs — the fewest allowed by Buffalo in franchise history.
Dolphins 33, Patriots 24: Jaylen Waddle had a touchdown grab and set the NFL record for receptions (104) in a rookie season, Duke Johnson rushed for 117 yards and host Miami finished by defeating playoff-bound New England. Xavien Howard returned an interception for a touchdown and Johnson had a touchdown run for Miami (9-8), which finished with a winning record for the second consecutive season and once again didn’t make the playoffs. Brandon Bolden had two TDs for the wild-card Pats (10-7).
Lions 37, Packers 30: Aaron Rodgers threw two touchdown passes in the first half and sat out the second half with nothing at stake as host Detroit beat top-seeded Green Bay. Backup Jordan Love threw two interceptions late in the game, sealing a defeat that didn’t affect Green Bay’s playoff positioning. The NFC North champion Packers (13-4) already had clinched the conference’s No. 1 seed and its only first-round bye. The Lions (3-13-1) closed head coach Dan Campbell’s first season with plenty of pride and nothing-tolose plays.
Browns 21, Bengals 16: Case Keenum got his second win, subbing for Baker Mayfield as host Cleveland (8-9) ended its season with a sweep of playoff-bound Cincinnati, which left quarterback Joe Burrow at home and played its backups. Burrow stayed in Cincinnati to get treatment on a sore right knee so he’s ready to play next weekend when the Bengals (10-7), who went from last place to first in the division, host a postseason game.
Vikings 31, Bears 17: Kirk Cousins passed for 172 yards and three touchdowns in the second half to lead a Minnesota comeback to beat visiting Chicago in a matchup of two eliminated teams. Justin Jefferson had the tying score and K.J. Osborn caught the go-ahead touchdown for the Vikings (8-9), who outscored the Bears 28-3 after halftime. Head coach Matt Nagy elected to go for it on fourth down six times, and Chicago failed on all but one of them. Darnell Mooney had 12 catches for 126 yards to pass the 1,000-yard mark for the Bears (6-11), who are 30-35 in four seasons under Nagy without a playoff win.
Washington 22, Giants 7: Antonio Gibson ran for a career-high 146 yards, scored a touchdown and capped his first 1,000-yard rushing season by leading visiting Washington over New York in what might have been Dave Gettleman’s final game as the Giants’ general manager. Bobby McCain returned the first of his two interceptions 30 yards for a touchdown, and Joey Slye kicked three field goals as Washington (7-10) finished a season in which it went from division winner a year ago to an also-ran. The Giants (4-13) finished a second season under Joe Judge with a six-game skid.