SEATTLE (AP) — Jason Myers kicked a franchise-record six field goals, including a 56-yarder with 29 seconds left, and the Seattle Seahawks outlasted 44-year-old quarterback Philip Rivers and the Indianapolis Colts 18-16 on Sunday.
Rivers threw a touchdown pass after coming out of retirement to make his first start in nearly five years, and he led the Colts into position for Blake Grupe’s go-ahead, 60-yard field goal with 47 seconds left.
That was enough time for Sam Darnold and the Seahawks (11-3). Rashid Shaheed returned Grupe’s kickoff 28 yards to the Seattle 37, and Darnold connected with Shaheed twice for 25 yards to set up Myers.
Desperate to salvage their season after Daniel Jones suffered a season-ending torn Achilles tendon, the Colts (8-6) turned to Rivers, a grandfather who’d been coaching high school football and was a semifinalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
His numbers were pedestrian, but he gave Indy a chance to win. Rivers finished 18 of 27 for 120 yards with a touchdown and an interception, with the pick coming on his final pass as he tried to force the ball down the field with 11 seconds left. Coby Bryant made the interception, his career-high fourth this season.
CHARGERS 16, CHIEFS 13
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Los Angeles eliminated Kansas City from playoff contention when Derwin James picked off a pass by Gardner Minshew — who had just taken over for the injured Patrick Mahomes — in the closing seconds to preserve a victory over the reigning AFC champions.
Justin Herbert, playing through a broken left hand, threw for 210 yards and a touchdown, and the Chargers (10-4) ensured consecutive 10-win seasons for the first time since 2006-07 by completing a rare regular-season sweep of Kansas City.
Mahomes was trying to rally the Chiefs in the closing seconds, completing a series of passes to get across midfield by the 2-minute warning. But on the next play, he was scrambling toward the Kansas City sideline and throwing the ball away when he was spun to the ground by defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand, leaving the two-time MVP clutching his left knee.
Mahomes was taken briefly to the blue injury tent, then helped to the locker room with a towel draped over his head.
Minshew took over and completed three straight passes, giving Chiefs fans hope on a day that began with wind chills near zero and their playoff chances about the same. But with 20 seconds to go, Minshew unloaded a pass intended for Travis Kelce, and James — his longtime divisional foil — leaped up to pick it off, allowing Los Angeles to escape.
RAMS 41, LIONS 34
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Matthew Stafford passed for 368 yards and hit Colby Parkinson for two touchdowns, and the NFC-leading Los Angeles clinched a playoff berth with a furious second-half rally for a 41-34 victory over Detroit.
Kyren Williams rushed for two scores and Blake Corum added another TD for the Rams (11-3), who came back from a double-digit deficit shortly before halftime with 20 consecutive points to secure their eighth victory in nine games.
Los Angeles is headed to the playoffs for the third straight year and for the seventh time in coach Sean McVay’s nine seasons.
After throwing his fifth interception of the season in an inconsistent first half, Stafford ruthlessly led the Rams to victory in the second half. He heard chants of “M-V-P! M-V-P!” from the SoFi Stadium crowd after hitting Parkinson for an 11-yard score with 4:49 to play.
Amon-Ra St. Brown scorched his hometown team for 163 yards and two touchdowns on 13 receptions for the Lions (8-6). Jared Goff passed for 338 yards and three TDs, but Detroit has alternated wins and losses since Week 5, endangering its hopes for a third straight playoff berth.
Jameson Williams caught a 31-yard TD pass and had seven receptions for 134 yards. David Montgomery also scored with 2:42 to play to make it close — but the Rams got a first down to exhaust the Lions’ timeouts, preventing a last-second comeback.
BEARS 31, BROWNS 3
CHICAGO (AP) — Caleb Williams threw two touchdown passes and Chicago beat Cleveland in one of the coldest games ever at Soldier Field even though the Browns’ Myles Garrett moved within a sack of the NFL’s single-season record.
The Bears (10-4) heated up early on a day when the gametime temperature was 8 degrees, scoring two first-quarter touchdowns and breaking the game open with two more in the third.
It was just the sort of performance they needed coming off a loss at Green Bay that knocked them from first to seventh in the NFC, with a rematch against their rivals at home next week looming.
Garrett had 1 1/2 sacks, giving him 21 1/2 on the season and leaving him one shy of the record shared by New York Giants Hall of Famer Michael Strahan (2001) and Pittsburgh’s T.J. Watt (2021). He got to Williams in the second quarter on a third down at the Cleveland 8, and he and Shelby Harris took down the quarterback early in the fourth. A four-time All-Pro, Garrett has at least one sack in eight straight games and has 17 1/2 in that span.
Williams shook off a string of shaky outings, finishing 17 of 28 for 242 yards. He completed fewer than 60% of his passes in each of the previous six games.
BRONCOS 34, PACKERS 26
DENVER (AP) — Bo Nix tied his career high with four touchdown throws and Denver’s defense stifled Jordan Love in the second half of the Broncos’ 34-26 win over Green Bay, who lost star Micah Parsons to a knee injury.
With their NFL-best 11th consecutive victory, the Broncos (12-2) clinched a playoff berth and moved a game ahead of New England for the No. 1 seed in the AFC. They stayed two games ahead of the Los Angeles Chargers in the AFC West.
The Packers (9-4-1), who led 23-14 in the third quarter before falling apart offensively, slipped a half-game behind Chicago ahead of their Soldier Field showdown with the Bears next weekend. This was Green Bay’s first loss by more than three points.
Denver cornerbacks Pat Surtain II and Riley Moss recorded their first interceptions of the season, the Broncos sacked Jordan Love three times and Denver held the Packers to just one touchdown in four trips into the red zone.
After scoring on their first five drives, the Packers managed one field goal in their final half-dozen possessions. The others ended in a pair of picks, two turnovers on downs and a punt.
RAVENS 24, BENGALS 0
CINCINNATI (AP) — Lamar Jackson threw for two touchdowns, Kyle Van Noy and Alohi Gilman teamed up for a 95-yard pick-6 and Baltimore blanked Cincinnati, the first time Joe Burrow has been shut out in his six-year career.
Derrick Henry rushed for 100 yards on 11 carries — his sixth game of 100 or more this season — as the Ravens (7-7) won their fourth straight road game and pulled within a half-game of Pittsburgh in the AFC North. The Steelers host Miami on Monday night.
Jackson threw first-half TD passes to Rasheen Ali and Zay Flowers and finished 8 of 12 for 150 yards. It was the first score of Ali’s two-year career.
Cincinnati was eliminated from playoff contention. Burrow — who vented his frustration about the Bengals’ disappointing season earlier this week — was picked off twice as he completed 25 of 39 passes for 225 yards. Ja’Marr Chase had 10 receptions for 132 yards.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Burrow drove the Bengals to the Ravens 7. On third-and-goal, Burrow tried to avoid the rush of Baltimore linebacker Tavius Robinson when he was picked off by Van Noy at the 5. Van Noy handed it off at the 16 to Gilman, who went 84 yards up the right sideline for the first defensive touchdown of his five-year career.
BILLS 35, PATRIOTS 31
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Josh Allen threw three touchdown passes, and James Cook ran for two TDs and caught another as Buffalo rallied from a deficit to beat New England, preventing the Patriots from clinching the AFC East title.
Allen finished 19 of 28 for 193 yards. Cook ran 22 times for 107 yards for the Bills (10-4), who avoided being swept by a division opponent for the first time since 2019. Buffalo reached 10 wins for the seventh consecutive season.
The Bills overcame a double-digit deficit for the third time this year after previously rallying against Baltimore (down 15 points in the fourth quarter) and Cincinnati (down 10).
The Patriots (11-3) lost their first division game of the season and their 10-game win streak ended. They haven’t won the AFC East since 2019 but still lead the Bills by one game with three games left.
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Drake Maye had a pair of touchdown runs, and TreVeyon Henderson ran for scores of 52 and 65 yards. Henderson finished with 14 carries for 148 yards.
Trailing 35-31 with 2:43 to play, the Patriots had fourth-and-5 on their own 22. Maye was flushed out of the pocket and had a pass batted down by Joey Bosa.
The Bills ran out the clock from there.
COMMANDERS 29, GIANTS 21
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Jacory Croskey-Merritt ran for a touchdown, fellow rookie Jaylin Lane returned a punt 63 yards to the end zone and Washington ended its season-derailing skid at eight games by beating similarly woeful New York.
The only NFL game this week with no playoff implications has a far bigger bearing on draft positioning. The Giants (2-12) lost their eighth in a row, moving a step closer to the top pick, a last-place finish in the NFC East and potentially front-office changes, with a coaching search already coming.
New York did not have the same expectation as Washington (4-10), which was coming off an improbable run to the conference championship game in Jayden Daniels’ AP Offensive Rookie of the Year season. Daniels didn’t play Sunday after aggravating a left elbow injury, so it was Marcus Mariota who quarterbacked the Commanders to their first victory since Oct. 5.
Mariota connected with top receiver Terry McLaurin on a 51-yard catch-and-run TD early in the fourth quarter. That was one of only 10 passes Mariota completed on 19 attempts for 211 yards, with a fumble.
EAGLES 31, RAIDERS 0
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jalen Hurts rebounded from his worst NFL game to throw three touchdown passes, Saquon Barkley had a 2-yard touchdown run and Philadelphia snapped a three-game losing streak with a win over Las Vegas.
The Eagles (9-5) were able to get their maligned offense under embattled coordinator Kevin Patullo right against the woeful Raiders and finally showed signs of life with a nice mix of play calling in bitter cold temperatures and topped 21 points for the first time in six games.
Hurts had his moments — that included a shovel pass for a score to Dallas Goedert on a day that started with the field blanketed in several inches of snow. Hurts also hit DeVonta Smith on a 44-yard reception on a drive that stalled in the second quarter and settled for a field goal by Jake Elliott and a 10-0 lead. He pitched a 4-yard TD pass to Goedert in the third for a 24-0 lead.
Yes, their first three TDs that totaled 10 yards — and a dynamite defensive effort — was enough to beat down a Raiders (2-12) team that lost their eighth straight game and got an anemic performance out of Kenny Pickett in his first start at quarterback for the injured Geno Smith.
49ERS 37, TITANS 24
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) — Brock Purdy threw three touchdown passes and San Francisco started the stretch run of their season with a victory over Tennessee.
The 49ers (10-4) came back from a bye week and looked extremely sharp on offense against the overmatched Titans (2-12) by scoring on their first five possessions of a game for the first time since the 2021 season.
Purdy threw two touchdown passes to Jauan Jennings, another to George Kittle and the Niners got a TD run from Christian McCaffrey as San Francisco converted its first seven tries on third down.
Purdy finished 23 for 30 for 295 yards and the Niners won despite getting only 87 yards from scrimmage from McCaffrey.
Rookie Cam Ward threw a touchdown pass to Gunnar Helm in the second quarter and another in the fourth to defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons. Ward finished with 170 yards passing as the Titans were unable to build on the momentum from a win over Cleveland last week and remained in a three-way tie for the worst record in the NFL. Tennessee hasn’t won back-to-back games since November 2022.
The Titans blew a good opportunity late in the first half when Ward missed a wide-open Van Jefferson on a deep shot and then Joey Slye missed a 50-yard field goal on the final play of the half to keep San Francisco’s lead at 17-10.
SAINTS 20, PANTHERS 17
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Charlie Smyth kicked a 47-yard field goal in the final seconds of regulation, lifting New Orleans to a comeback victory over the playoff-hopeful Carolina.
The winning kick by the former Gaelic football player from Northern Ireland prevented Carolina (7-7) from seizing sole possession of first place in the NFC South.
It also capped another encouraging performance by rookie quarterback Tyler Shough, who won for the third time in six starts for New Orleans (4-10), which was 1-7 when the 40th overall draft choice took over in Week 9 for season-opening starter Spencer Rattler.
Shough was 24 of 32 for 272 yards, including a 12-yard, tying touchdown pass to Chris Olave with 2:29 left in regulation. He also rushed for a team-high 32 yards and did not turn the ball over.
Shough’s final carry set up the winning kick when he slid feet first at the Carolina 44 and took a big hit to his head area from Lathan Ransom, who was flagged for an unnecessary roughness penalty that moved the ball the Panthers 29-yard line with 9 seconds left.
TEXANS 40, CARDINALS 20
HOUSTON (AP) — C.J. Stroud threw for 260 yards and three touchdowns and Houston jumped out to a big early lead and cruised to a victory over slumping Arizona.
The Texans (9-5) have won six straight games for the first time since a nine-game winning streak in 2018 to improve their playoff hopes. It’s the sixth straight loss for the Cardinals (3-11), whose last win came on Nov. 3 against the Cowboys.
Houston got going immediately with its fastest score of the season when Stroud connected with Nico Collins on a 57-yard touchdown strike on the second play of the game. Collins took the short throw, escaped two diving defenders at around the 40 and ran untouched into the end zone for the score.
The Cardinals fumbled on the ensuing kickoff return and the Texans recovered. They couldn’t move the ball and settled for a 30-yard field goal that made it 10-0.
Woody Marks made it 17-0 when he scored on a 1-yard run on a direct snap later in the first quarter.
Arizona’s Michael Wilson had an 11-yard touchdown reception with about 11 minutes left but the 2-point conversion throw failed to leave Houston up 33-20.
The Texans padded the lead when Stroud found Collins again, this time on a 4-yard grab that made it 40-20. Collins had three receptions for 85 yards to give him 1,001 yards receiving for his third straight 1,000-yard season.
JAGUARS 48, JETS 20
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Trevor Lawrence accounted for six touchdowns, including a career-high five passing, and Jacksonville overwhelmed New York from start to finish in a drubbing Sunday.
Lawrence completed 20 of 32 passes for 330 yards and didn’t have a turnover for the third consecutive game. His passer rating of 136.7 was the best of his five-year NFL career.
He also ran for 51 yards and a score, a 15-yard scramble in the first quarter that helped set the tone. Lawrence rolled left, juked Will McDonald in the backfield and then scampered down the sideline.
Jacksonville (10-4) scored touchdowns on its first three possessions for the first time since 1998 and topped 40 points through three quarters for the first time since 2005. It was a drama-free day for the home team, which reached double-digit victories for just the second time in the last 18 seasons.
The Jets (3-11) allowed their most points since a 54-13 loss to New England in 2021. Like that one, not much went right in Jacksonville.
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