Recaps of Sunday’s other NFL Games

AFC

Chiefs 37, Chargers 27

SAN DIEGO

Alex Smith threw for two touchdowns and ran for another, and the Kansas City Chiefs clinched the AFC West title and a first-round playoff bye in perhaps the final NFL game in San Diego. The Chiefs (12-4) clinched the division with the win and Oakland’s loss at Denver. Smith scored on a 5-yard scramble early in the second quarter to tie the game at 10 and then threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to wide-open Charcandrick West later in the quarter to put the Chiefs ahead for good at 17-10.

Broncos 24, Raiders 6

DENVER

In a game that couldn’t have gone much worse, Oakland lost its latest starting quarterback, Matt McGloin, to a shoulder injury, then fell to Denver and then the AFC’s fifth seed. The Raiders (12-4) squandered the AFC West title and the first-round bye that went with it. Instead, the Raiders will play at Houston on Saturday afternoon.

Titans 24, Texans 17

NASHVILLE

A concussion that sidelined quarterback Tom Savage could have the biggest impact coming out of the Texans’ loss. Savage started for the AFC South champions, left in the second quarter to be evaluated for a concussion and was cleared. He took a snap to kneel down on the final play of the first half and was diagnosed with a concussion after being re-evaluated at halftime. That left Brock Osweiler, benched for Savage last month, running the offense. He threw for 253 yards and a touchdown and also ran for a 1-yard TD on fourth-and-goal in the fourth quarter. DaQuan Jones recovered a fumble for a touchdown in the first quarter, and the Titans never trailed to finish with their first winning season since 2011.

Patriots 35, Dolphins 14

MIAMI GARDENS, FLA.

Tom Brady threw for 276 yards and three scores and the Patriots clinched home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. New England took a 20-0 lead in the first half, and turned away Miami’s comeback bid with the help of a 77-yard touchdown catch-and-run by Julian Edelman and a 69-yard fumble return by linebacker Shea McClellin. The Patriots (14-2), already assured of a first-round bye, became the ninth team since 1972 to go undefeated on the road during the regular season. The Dolphins (10-6), beaten for only the second time in the past 11 games, had already earned an AFC wild-card berth. They play their first postseason game since 2008 on Sunday at Pittsburgh.

Bengals 27, Ravens 10

CINCINNATI

Andy Dalton completed his first 10 passes, one for a touchdown, and Rex Burkhead ran for a pair of scores in the Bengals’ fifth straight win at home over the Ravens. The Bengals (6-9-1) missed the playoffs for the first time in six years, and haven’t won a playoff game in 26 years, the sixth-longest streak in NFL history. Coach Marvin Lewis, 0-7 in the postseason, says he’ll return in 2017. Baltimore (8-8) failed to reach the playoffs for the third time in four years. Ravens receiver Steve Smith caught three passes for 34 yards in what was probably the final game of his remarkable career.

Colts 24, Jaguars 20

INDIANAPOLIS

Andrew Luck threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to Jack Doyle with 9 seconds left. Indy (8-8) went 75 yards in 84 seconds with no timeouts to avoid its first losing season since 2011, sending retiring linebacker Robert Mathis out with a win in his final NFL game. Jacksonville (3-13) matched the second-worst record in franchise history after blocking a punt with 1:54 to go and breaking a 17-17 tie with 1:33 left. Instead, Luck took the Colts right downfield for the score. Frank Gore ran 16 times for 62 yards, becoming the fourth player in league history to top 1,000 yards at age 33 or older.

Jets 30, Bills 10

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.

Ryan Fitzpatrick threw two touchdown passes in what was likely his final game for the Jets. Despite a 5-11 record, the Jets are making no changes in leadership, meaning both coach Todd Bowles and general manager Mike Maccagnan will remain with the team next season. Bowles is 15-17 in his two-year tenure with New York, which hired him in January 2015 after firing Rex Ryan. The Bills (7-9) face some uncertainty this offseason after firing coach Rex Ryan earlier in the week and elevating offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn to the interim role.

NFC

Seahawks 25, 49ers 23

SANTA CLARA, CALIF.

Russell Wilson threw for 258 yards and a touchdown and the Seattle Seahawks rallied from an early 11-point deficit. The NFC West champion Seahawks (10-5-1) head to the playoffs as the third seed in the NFC. The loss capped a disastrous season for the 49ers (2-14), who matched the franchise record for losses in a season previously reached in 1978, ‘79 and 2004.

Giants 19, Redskins 10

LANDOVER, MD.

Facing an opponent with nothing to play for, Washington blew its chance to make the playoffs with an uninspired loss. The Redskins would have made the playoffs with a win as long as the Green Bay Packers-Detroit Lions night game didn’t end in a tie. Instead, Kirk Cousins was intercepted twice in the second half by Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and Washington (8-7-1) goes into an offseason filled with questions. Eli Manning played the entire game, going 17 of 27 for 180 yards despite the Giants opting for a conservative approach for much of the second half. Cousins finished 22 of 35 for 285 yards and a touchdown.

Falcons 38, Saints 32

ATLANTA

Matt Ryan bolstered his MVP credentials with a brilliant first half, throwing four touchdown passes as Atlanta secured a first-round playoff bye. Ryan was 17 of 19 for 235 yards by halftime, directing the Falcons (11-5) to touchdowns on all five possessions and a commanding 35-13 lead. He finished 27 of 36 for 331 yards, leaving him with a franchise-record 4,944 yards, 38 touchdowns and just seven interceptions this season.

Packers 31, Lions 24

DETROIT

Aaron Rodgers threw three of his four touchdown passes in the second half, lifting Green Bay to an NFC North-winning victory over Detroit. Matthew Stafford connected with Anquan Boldin for a 35-yard touchdown pass with 13 seconds left, but the Packers recovered the onside kick and Rodgers had only to kneel once to seal the victory. The Packers (10-6) closed the regular season with six straight wins, running the table as Rodgers said they could after losing four straight games midway through the season, to win the division for the fifth time in six years. Like his team, Rodgers has been perfect during the streak with 15 TD passes and no interceptions. He will lead fourth-seeded Green Bay at home Sunday against the fifth-seeded New York Giants in an NFC wild-card game. Detroit (9-7) dropped its last three games after it had a two-game lead in the NFC North, spoiling its shot at winning a division title for the first time since 1993. The Lions, though, will be in the playoffs for the second time in three years with coach Jim Caldwell because the Giants beat the Washington Redskins earlier in the day. The sixth-seeded Lions will play at third-seeded Seattle on Saturday night in a wild-card game.

Eagles 27, Cowboys 13

PHILADELPHIA

Tony Romo threw his first touchdown pass in nearly 14 months and the playoff-bound Cowboys played it safe. The Cowboys (13-3) locked up the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs when the Eagles (7-9) beat the Giants on Dec. 22. So Dak Prescott played only two series and Ezekiel Elliott watched from the sideline. Carson Wentz tossed two TD passes to Zach Ertz to help Philadelphia finish with a two-game winning streak. Romo finished 3 for 4 for 29 yards.

Buccaneers 17, Panthers 16

TAMPA, FLA.

Jameis Winston threw for 202 yards and one touchdown and the Buccaneers broke up Cam Newton’s 2-point conversion throw in the closing seconds for their first winning season in six years. Winston threw a 10-yard pass to Mike Evans to snap a fourth-quarter tie and became the first player in NFL history to start his career with consecutive 4,000-yard seasons. But the Bucs (9-7) were eliminated from playoff contention, not getting the help they needed in other games for their first berth since 2007.

Vikings 38, Bears 10

MINNEAPOLIS

Sam Bradford concluded his first season with Minnesota with three first-half touchdown passes. Bradford went 25 for 33 for 250 yards and one interception, finishing with a 71.6 percent completion rate to set an NFL single-season record. Drew Brees (71.2 for New Orleans) set the league mark in 2011. Kyle Rudolph caught 11 passes for 117 yards and a score for the Vikings (8-8), who started 5-0 before stumbling out of their bye week and never recovering. For the Bears (3-13), Jordan Howard rushed for 135 yards on 23 carries to break Matt Forte’s franchise rookie record and finish with 1,313 yards for the season.

Cardinals 44, Rams 6

LOS ANGELES

Carson Palmer threw touchdown passes to Jeremy Ross, Darren Fells and Larry Fitzgerald, and Arizona wrapped up a frustrating season with a victory over freefalling Los Angeles. Fitzgerald caught five passes and took the overall NFL lead with 107 catches in perhaps his final game for the Cardinals (7-8-1).

Associated Press