NFL Roundup: Packers Best Bears, Earn Playoff Berth

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1/8/2024Updated: 1/8/2024

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Jordan Love threw two touchdown passes and the host Green Bay Packers jumped into the NFC playoffs with a 17–9 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday.

Entering the regular-season finale needing a win to earn a wild-card berth, the Packers (9–8) punched their ticket as the No. 7 seed and will travel to Dallas to meet the No. 2 Cowboys next weekend.

Love went over 300 yards with his 26th completion of the game with 3:08 to play, and running back Aaron Jones clicked over 100 yards rushing for the third consecutive game on the game-sealing possession. He finished with 111 yards on 22 carries.

Bears quarterback Justin Fields left the game for one play in the fourth quarter to be checked for a concussion, but returned and finished the contest. He completed 11 of 16 passes for 148 yards and rushed for 27 yards on eight carries. Chicago finished the season 7–10.

Bills 21, Dolphins 14

Josh Allen passed for 359 yards and two touchdowns as Buffalo notched a victory over Miami at Miami Gardens, Fla., to win the AFC East for the fourth straight season.

Allen tossed the go-ahead touchdown to Dawson Knox midway through the final quarter as Buffalo (11–6) won its fifth straight contest. Taylor Rapp sealed the victory with an interception with 1:13 remaining.

Tua Tagovailoa completed 17 of 27 passes for 173 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions for the Dolphins (11–6). Tyreek Hill caught seven passes for 82 yards and a touchdown and De'Von Achane added a rushing score.

Cowboys 38, Commanders 10

Dak Prescott threw four touchdown passes as Dallas clinched the NFC East title with a victory over Washington in Landover, Md.

Prescott completed 31 of 36 passes for 279 yards and CeeDee Lamb had 13 receptions for 98 yards and two touchdowns for the Cowboys (12–5).

Sam Howell completed 19 of 27 passes for 153 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions for Washington (4–13).

The loss gives the Commanders the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Jets 17, Patriots 3

Breece Hall rushed for 178 yards and a touchdown as New York beat New England for the first time since Dec. 27, 2015, a streak of 15 losses, in the season finale for both teams in Foxborough, Mass.

Sunday also potentially marked the end of Bill Belichick’s tenure as coach of the Patriots. Belichick is reportedly set to meet with New England owner Robert Kraft this week to discuss his future with the organization.

Hall had a career-high 37 carries for the Jets (7–10) in snowy, frigid conditions. New York quarterback Trevor Siemian completed 8 of 20 passes for 70 yards.

Bailey Zappe finished with 88 yards and two interceptions on 12-for-30 passing for the Patriots (4–13), who lost at least 13 games in a single season for the first time since the 1992 campaign.

Buccaneers 9, Panthers 0

Chase McLaughlin kicked three field goals of 36, 57, and 39 yards and Tampa Bay clinched the NFC South for the third season in a row by defeating Carolina in Charlotte, N.C.

The Buccaneers (9–8) won five of their last six games in the regular season. Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield, who began last season playing for Carolina, was 20-for-32 for 137 passing yards as the Buccaneers completed the season sweep.

Carolina (2–15) finished with the worst record in the NFL. Panthers rookie quarterback Bryce Young, the No. 1 overall pick in last spring’s draft, was 11-for-18 for 94 yards and was sacked three times. Running back Chuba Hubbard gained 83 yards on 23 carries.

Bengals 31, Browns 14

Andrei Iosivas caught two touchdown passes and Joe Mixon ran for one score and caught another as host Cincinnati ended its season with a win over Cleveland, ensuring all four AFC North teams finished the season with a winning record.

Jake Browning threw for three touchdowns for the Bengals (9–8), finishing 18-of-24 passing with 156 yards and one interception before being replaced by AJ McCarron late in the third quarter.

The Browns (11–6) rested many of their starters, including quarterback Joe Flacco, with the fifth seed in the AFC sewn up. Jeff Driskel started and played the entire game, going 13 of 26 for 166 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

Lions 30, Vikings 20

Jared Goff passed for 320 yards and two touchdowns, including a 70-yard strike to Amon-Ra St. Brown, as Detroit defeated visiting Minnesota.

St. Brown caught seven passes for 144 yards for the NFC North champion Lions (12–5), who will host the sixth-seeded Los Angeles Rams in the wild-card round.

Tight end Sam LaPorta caught a 2-yard touchdown pass but injured his knee late in the first half after making another catch.

Nick Mullens passed for 396 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions for the Vikings (7–10), who were officially eliminated from postseason contention. Justin Jefferson caught 12 passes for 192 yards and a touchdown.

Saints 48, Falcons 17

Derek Carr threw a season-high four touchdown passes and host New Orleans defeated Atlanta.

Carr passed for 264 yards while Kendre Miller had his biggest workload of the season in the absence of injured Alvin Kamara and rushed for 73 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries.

Despite picking up the victory, New Orleans (9–8) was eliminated from playoff contention when the Packers beat Chicago.

Desmond Ridder, starting in place of injured Taylor Heinicke (ankle), passed for 291 yards with two touchdowns and an interception for the Falcons (7–10).

Bijan Robinson rushed for just 28 yards, but he caught seven passes that went for 103 yards and a touchdown.

Titans 28, Jaguars 20

Derrick Henry rushed for 153 yards and a touchdown in what might have been his last game for Tennessee as the Titans quashed Jacksonville’s hopes of a second straight AFC South title in Nashville.

Ryan Tannehill completed 17 of 26 passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns with an interception in what was probably his last game for Tennessee (6–11). Both Henry and Tannehill become free agents in March.

Trevor Lawrence hit 29 of 43 attempts for 280 yards and two touchdowns with two interceptions for Jacksonville (9–8). It was a disappointing end to a highly anticipated season for the Jaguars, who lost five of their last six games to miss the playoffs.

Seahawks 21, Cardinals 20

Geno Smith threw a 34-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Lockett with 1:54 remaining, then found Lockett in the back of the end zone for a two-point conversion, as Seattle defeated Arizona in Glendale, Ariz.

Despite the victory, the Seahawks (9–8) missed the playoffs, as they also needed a Green Bay loss to Chicago in the regular-season finale.

Arizona’s Matt Prater missed a 51-yard field-goal attempt on the game’s final play. Prater also was wide right on a 43-yard try with 2:59 left that would’ve given the Cardinals (4–13) a 10-point lead.

Smith completed 16 of 28 passes for 189 yards and two touchdowns.

Raiders 27, Broncos 14

Aidan O'Connell threw for 244 yards and two touchdowns to lift Las Vegas over visiting Denver in the season finale.

Jakobi Meyers caught a touchdown pass and ran for another score and Zamir White rushed for 112 yards on 25 carries for the Raiders (8–9), who won their eighth in a row against the Broncos.

Jarrett Stidham started his second straight game for Denver (8–9) and completed 20 of 34 passes for 272 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Chiefs 13, Chargers 12

Harrison Butker kicked a 41-yard field goal with 49 seconds left, enabling Kansas City to edge Los Angeles in Inglewood, Calif.

Kansas City (11–6) trailed by two points after Cameron Dicker made his fourth field goal of the day, a 20-yarder with 4:06 remaining that gave Los Angeles (5–12) its only lead of the game. But Blaine Gabbert ran for gains of 25 and 14 yards to put Butker in range for the game-winner.

The Chiefs rested quarterback Patrick Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce, and many other regulars in a game that didn’t affect their playoff seeding. Kansas City will be the AFC’s third seed. Chargers quarterback Easton Stick hit on 28 of 47 passes for 258 yards and also rushed for 77 yards on 13 attempts.

Giants 27, Eagles 10

Saquon Barkley rushed for two touchdowns and New York dominated struggling Philadelphia in the regular-season finale for both teams at East Rutherford, N.J.

Tyrod Taylor passed for 297 yards and one touchdown as the Giants (6–11) snapped a five-game losing streak against the Eagles. Xavier McKinney had two interceptions as New York defeated Philadelphia for just the third time in the past 16 meetings.

Jalen Hurts was just 7-of-16 passing for 55 yards and one interception before being pulled in the second quarter for the Eagles (11–6), who lost for the fifth time in six games.

Philadelphia is an NFC wild-card team, and the No. 5-seeded Eagles will visit the No. 4 Buccaneers next week in the playoffs.

Rams 21, 49ers 20

Carson Wentz threw for two touchdowns and rallied Los Angeles by rushing for a late score and completing a pass for the two-point conversion in a win over San Francisco in Santa Clara, Calif.

The game was laden with reserves as both teams were assured of playoff berths. The 49ers (12–5) were locked in as the top seed in the NFC, and the Rams (10–7) locked down the No. 6 seed with the win.

Not sitting out Sunday was Los Angeles star wide receiver Puka Nacua. Nacua played into the third quarter, just long enough to set rookie records on consecutive catches.

A 7-yard reception pushed his yardage total past the 1,473 mark of rookie Bill Groman of the Houston Oilers in 1960.

On the next play, Wentz and Nacua connected for the fifth time, giving Nacua 105 catches, one more than the Miami Dolphins’ Jaylen Waddle in 2021.