Sam Darnold added to his career-changing season with a career-best 377 yards and three games as the Minnesota Vikings defeated the Green Bay Packers 27-25 on Sunday for their first win of nine straight. Completed a touchdown pass. They will enter the playoffs as the top seed in the NFC.
Darnold provided points for Jalen Naylor, Jordan Addison and Cam Akers, increasing his total passing touchdowns to 35, fourth all-time in NFL history for a player in his debut season with the team.
The Vikings (14-2) set up a final week showdown in Detroit with both the NFC North title and a conference-best first-round bye plus home-field advantage package on the line.
Jordan Love’s only touchdown pass for the Packers (11-5) came on a 3-yard toss to Malik Heath with 2:18 left, cutting the deficit to two points and prompting a cry of “Go Pack Go!” was rekindled. The chants of the green-clad fans mixed in with the purple fans in another classic version of this divisional rivalry.
Although the Packers have clawed their way back from the gaping hole they left against Minnesota this season, they have fallen into the top three after falling from a 28-0 deficit to 31-29 against Green Bay on September 29th. They had a disastrous result against the team with 0 wins and 5 losses. With NFC. They were also swept by the Lions and lost to the Eagles in the opening game in Brazil.
Dallas Cowboys 7-41 Philadelphia Eagles
Saquon Barkley rushed for 167 yards on his way to surpassing 2,000 yards on the season, backup quarterback Kenny Pickett ran and threw for scores before leaving with a rib injury, and on Sunday, Philadelphia The Eagles defeated the Dallas Cowboys 41-7 to win the NFC East.
Barkley has 2,005 yards, but needs 101 in next week’s largely meaningless regular-season finale to surpass Eric Dickerson and the 1984 Los Angeles Rams’ 2,105 yards.
The Eagles (13-3) led 24-7 in the third quarter, but Pickett was drilled by defensive end Micah Parsons, making his first start in place of concussed Jalen Hurts. Career third-stringer Tanner McKee entered the game, and the Eagles finished the game with a field goal.
McKee then hit a 20-yarder to AJ Brown and a 2-yarder to DeVonta Smith in front of a cheering crowd who watched the Eagles overwhelm their fiercest rivals and win a district title, and at least second place. He threw two TD passes of 25 yards. NFC seeding.
Hurts was injured last week against Washington and remains in the NFL’s concussion protocol and did not practice all week, opening the door for Pickett to start.
Pickett, acquired from Pittsburgh in the offseason, injured his ribs in a start against the Commanders but played with special protective equipment under his jersey.
Carolina Panthers 14-48 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Baker Mayfield rushed for 359 yards and five touchdowns in a 48-14 win over the Panthers on Sunday, helping the Buccaneers keep their district championship and playoff hopes alive.
Tampa Bay won for the fifth time in the past six weeks, moving the first-place Bucks (9-7) a half-game ahead of Atlanta for the best record in the NFC South. The Falcons are scheduled to play a game on the road in Washington late Sunday night.
Atlanta holds the tiebreaker in the division race and ends Tampa Bay’s three-year reign as NFC South champions by defeating the Commanders and playing next week at home against the last-place Panthers (4-12). I can do that.
Mayfield threw TD passes of 2 and 1 yards to Mike Evans, and Tampa Bay scored on five consecutive first-half possessions to build a 27-7 lead. Jalen McMillan scored on receptions of 10 and 16 yards, linebacker JJ Russell returned a blocked punt for a third-quarter TD, and rookie Bucky Irving had 20 carries against Carolina. He had a big game with 120 yards rushing and four receptions for 77 yards.
Irving gained over 1,000 yards (1,033 yards) in a season despite being used primarily as a backup to Rashard White. The fourth-round draft pick ran for 152 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries against the NFL’s 32nd-ranked run defense in Tampa Bay’s 26-23 overtime win over Carolina on Dec. 1. did.
Tennessee Titans 13-20 Jacksonville Jaguars
Mac Jones threw two touchdown passes, one to standout rookie Brian Thomas Jr., and the Jacksonville Jaguars defeated the Tennessee Titans 20-13 in the rain on Sunday. They won the season series for the fourth time in 30 years.
Jones completed 15 of 22 passes for 174 yards, most of which went to Thomas. The first-round draft pick out of LSU had seven receptions for 91 yards. His 11-yard TD catch with 7:05 left marked his eighth game with at least 60 yards and a score, tying him with Hall of Famer Randy Moss for the most rookies in NFL history.
With five TD catches in the past four games, Thomas became the fifth player in Jaguars history to record double-digit TD receptions in a single season. He joins Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns, Marcedes Lewis, and Reggie Williams.
The Titans (3-13) secured last place in the AFC South by moving up in the 2025 NFL Draft, a potential opportunity to land a franchise quarterback. The Jaguars (4-12) secured third place in the division.
New York Jets 14-40 Buffalo Bills
Josh Allen threw two touchdown passes and ran for more points, and the Buffalo Bills defeated the erratic and undisciplined New York Jets 40-14 on Sunday, clinching the No. 2 seed in the AFC. Ta.
The Bills took advantage of two Jets turnovers and scored three touchdowns in a span of 5 minutes, 01 seconds at the end of the third quarter. Buffalo’s defense forced three takeaways overall and sacked Aaron Rodgers four times, including a 2-yard loss by a safety in the second quarter.
Allen had a short but efficient appearance, completing 16 of 27 yards for 182 yards on a 30-yard TD pass to Amari Cooper and a 14-yard TD pass to Keon Coleman before being replaced by backup Mitchell. -He made way for Trubisky and Buffalo led 33-0 into the third quarter. And Trubisky got even better with a 69-yard touchdown pass to Tyrell Shavers, who was called up to the practice squad, 2:23 into the fourth quarter.
Allen’s 2-TD pass was the 64th of his career, tying Peyton Manning for third-most in his first seven NFL seasons. Patrick Mahomes holds the record for 2-TD attempts in that span with 67, followed by Dan Marino with 65.
Allen also became the first player in the NFL to score 40 TDs in five consecutive seasons, and his 1-yard score was his 65th career rushing TD, tying Thurman Thomas’ team record.
Las Vegas Raiders 25-10 New Orleans Saints
Aidan O’Connell completed two touchdown passes, tight end Brock Bowers broke two rookie NFL records, and the Las Vegas Raiders defeated the struggling New Orleans Saints, 25-10, for the fourth time this season on Sunday. He won his second victory.
Bowers’ seven catches and 77 yards totaled 108 receptions and 1,144 yards this season, surpassing Mike Ditka’s rookie tight end mark of 1,067 yards receiving in 1961 and Puka Nacua’s rookie tight end mark of 1,067 yards in 2023. He surpassed the record for 105 catches at the position. Bowers also surpassed Darren Waller’s franchise record of 107 receptions in a season, which had been set since 2020.
Amir Abdullah had 115 yards rushing for the Raiders (4-12). It was the journeyman running back’s first 100-yard game in 10 NFL seasons.
O’Connell completed 242 yards passing, including a 3-yard TD pass to Jacobi Meyers and an 18-yard TD pass to Tre Tucker.
Daniel Carlson kicked four field goals for the Raiders (his longest from 54 yards). Due to a flight delay on Saturday, they arrived at their hotel just after midnight, less than 12 hours before kickoff, but the Raiders remained unfazed.
Indianapolis Colts 33-45 New York Giants
The New York Giants ended a franchise-record 10-game losing streak on Sunday as Drew Lock threw four touchdown passes and then another for a 45-33 victory, ending a franchise-record 10-game losing streak and defeating the Indianapolis Colts’ narrow Their hopes of making the playoffs ended.
New York picked up its first home win of the season and is no longer in control of the No. 1 overall draft pick.
Lock led the Giants to a TD pass of 32 yards to Darius Slayton, a 5-yard pass to Wan’Dale Robinson, and a 31-yard and a 59-yard touchdown pass to Malik Nabors, leading the Giants to a win over Seattle on Oct. 6. He led them to their first victory since defeating them (3-13).
Ihimir Smith-Marsette returned a second-half kickoff 100 yards on a day when the league’s worst offense posted its highest point score of the season.
Jonathan Taylor scored on runs of 3 and 26 yards for Indianapolis (7-9), and Joe Flacco, who replaced the injured Anthony Richardson, hit Alec Pearce for 13 yards and Michael Pittman for 7. He threw a touchdown pass, the last of which gave the Colts the victory. The score was within 35-33 with 6:38 left in the fourth quarter.
Lock, who completed 17 of 23 for 309 yards, led a nine-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a five-yard run to end the game.
Miami Dolphins 20-3 Cleveland Browns
Tua Tagovailoa’s starter Tyler Huntley scrambled and threw for a touchdown, and the Miami Dolphins beat the Cleveland Browns 20-3 on Sunday to stay in playoff contention heading into the final game of the season.
With Tagovailoa sidelined with a hip injury, Huntley did enough to keep the Dolphins (8-8) alive with one game remaining.
Miami needs to win next weekend against the New York Jets and hope the Denver Broncos lose at home to Kansas City to clinch a wild card spot. Unfortunately for the Dolphins, quarterback Patrick Mahomes and many of the top-seeded Chiefs’ starters are expected to be rested.
Tagovailoa’s status next week is unknown, but Huntley has shown he can get the job done if needed.
He completed 22 of 26 yards for 225 yards and no turnovers in his fourth start of the season. The 26-year-old attended Cleveland’s training camp before being released in August.
The Browns (3 wins, 13 losses) suffered a five-game losing streak and finished with 2 wins and 6 losses at home. They will look to move up in the draft and look for a quarterback heading into 2025.
