South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Chiefs stay atop the AFC
Even as the Chiefs squeaked out wins the past few weeks, coach Andy Reid lamented both the state of their inexperienced defense and their inability to put away struggling teams.
They showed massive improvement in both areas on Saturday.
That youthful defense shut down Geno Smith and the slumping Seahawks offense, Patrick Mahomes threw two TD passes before running for a clinching score in the fourth quarter, and the Chiefs rolled to a 24-10 win that allowed them to keep pace with the Bills for the best record in the AFC.
“I mentioned it the other way the last couple of weeks, that they need to get better,” Reid said of his defense, which often has five or more rookies on the field at a time. “They’re making progress and I thought they did a nice job today.”
Saints 17, Browns 10: Alvin Kamara and Taysom Hill each had TD runs and the Saints went outside and handled Cleveland’s arcticlike cold in a win over the Browns. The Browns were officially eliminated from the playoffs.
Vikings 27, Giants 24: Greg Joseph kicked a career-long 61-yard field goal as time expired to give the Vikings a victory that prevented the Giants from clinching a playoff spot.
Bengals 22, Patriots 18: Joe Burrow threw three touchdown passes and the Bengals forced a late turnover in the red zone to preserve a win over the Patriots. The Bengals won their seventh straight game and remained in the driver’s seat for a second consecutive AFC North title despite nearly blowing a 22-0 halftime lead.
Panthers 37, Lions 23:
D’Onta Foreman ran for a career-high 165 yards and a touchdown, and the Panthers racked up a franchise record 320 yards on the ground to beat the Lions. The Panthers improved to 6-9 and can would win the NFC South title with victories in their final two games. Ravens 17, Falcons 9: Tyler Huntley threw a first-half touchdown pass, and the Ravens defense kept the Falcons out of the end zone in a victory that ended up assuring a playoff spot for the Ravens. About a halfhour after the Ravens took care of the Falcons, the Patriots lost to the Bengals to put the Ravens in the playoffs. Texans 19, Titans 14: Davis Mills threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Brandin Cooks with 2:52 left, and the Texans snapped a ninegame skid by beating the sliding Titans. Kickoff was delayed by an hour in a joint agreement by the Titans, the NFL and local emergency management officials after rolling power blackouts. This was the coldest home game in Titans history. Bills 35, Bears 13: Devin Singletary and James Cook ran for long TDs in the third, and the Bills clinched the AFC East title by beating the Bears on Saturday in one of the coldest games played in Chicago. Josh Allen ran for a TD and threw for another in the game’s closing minutes, breaking a tie with Hall of Famer Dan Marino for the most TDs in a player’s first five NFL seasons.
49ers 37, Commanders 20: Brock Purdy threw two more long TD passes to George Kittle and the 49ers beat the Commanders for their eighth straight win. Purdy kept up his impressive play since taking over for the injured Jimmy Garoppolo early in Week 13.