NFL roundup: Packers stifle Vikings, stay in thick of playoff chase
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GREEN BAY, Wis. — Aaron Rodgers threw a touchdown pass and ran for a score, and Green Bay continued its improbable playoff push by shutting down Justin Jefferson and Minnesota, 41-17, on Sunday.
Keisean Nixon scored on a 105-yard kickoff return and Darnell Savage had a 75-yard pick-6 of Kirk Cousins — one of four turnovers by the Vikings QB — to help Green Bay build a 27-3 halftime lead. Aaron Jones rushed for 111 yards on 14 carries, and A.J. Dillon had a 2-yard touchdown run as the Packers won their fourth straight.
Green Bay (8-8) will reach the playoffs if it beats division rival Detroit at home in its regular-season finale. A fourth straight postseason berth seemed out of the question after a 1-7 stretch dropped the Packers to 4-8, but they haven’t lost since and have benefited from favorable results around the league.
Rodgers went 15 of 24 for 159 yards, and the Packers defense made life miserable for Cousins and Jefferson, the NFL’s leading receiver who was held to one catch for 15 yards.
Savage, Adrian Amos and Rudy Ford each intercepted passes by Cousins, while Kenny Clark recovered a fumble on a strip sack. The Packers converted each of Cousins’ turnovers into touchdowns.
Cousins went 18 of 31 for 205 yards for the NFC North champion Vikings (12-4). His only touchdown pass came in garbage time. Dalvin Cook was held to 27 yards on nine carries.
Giants 38, Colts 10 — Daniel Jones threw two touchdown passes and ran for two more, and New York routed Indianapolis to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016.
Landon Collins, one of two players from the ‘16 team, broke the game open late in the second quarter with a 52-yard pick-6 as the Giants (9-6-1) put a final stamp on a surprising playoff run under first-year coach Brian Daboll.
The Colts (4-11-1) lost their sixth straight and ninth in 10 games.
New York’s point total was a season high and its first time scoring 30 or more since a 37-34 loss to Dallas on Oct. 11, 2020.
Jones threw touchdown passes of 6 yards to Richie James and 6 yards to Isaiah Hodgins in the first half and scored on runs of 18 and 10 yards in the second half. He finished 19 of 24 for 177 yards and had 11 rushes for 91 yards.
Colts quarterback Nick Foles was injured late in the second quarter when he was sacked by Giants rookie Kayvon Thibodeaux. He was taken to the locker room on a cart. Sam Ehlinger played the second half and threw his first NFL TD pass, a 6-yarder to Michael Pittman.
49ers 37, Raiders 34 (OT) — Tashaun Gipson intercepted Jarrett Stidham in overtime and returned it 56 yards to set up Robbie Gould’s 23-yard field goal, and San Francisco beat Las Vegas to extend its winning streak to nine games.
The 49ers (12-4) can clinch the No. 2 seed in the NFC with a win against Arizona next week or a loss by Minnesota. San Francisco also has a shot at the No. 1 seed and a bye if Philadelphia loses to the Giants in Week 18.
San Francisco allowed its most points since its most recent loss — 44-23 to Kansas City on Oct. 23.
Christian McCaffrey rushed for 121 yards and caught six passes for 72 yards. He surpassed 1,000 yards rushing for the third season and has scored touchdowns in five consecutive games.
The Raiders (6-10) have lost three of four and were eliminated from playoff contention.
Stidham, who replaced Derek Carr after the nine-year starter was benched earlier in the week, completed 23 of 34 passes for 365 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Davante Adams had seven catches for 153 yards and two touchdowns.
San Francisco’s Brock Purdy finished 22 for 35 for 284 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Brandon Aiyuk had nine catches for 101 yards and a TD.
Lions 41, Bears 10 — Jared Goff threw three touchdown passes, including two in the first half to Brock Wright, and Detroit beat Chicago to remain in the playoff chase.
The Lions (8-8) have won seven of nine to give themselves a shot at earning a postseason spot for the first time since 2016 going into their regular-season finale at Green Bay. Detroit needs a win and a loss by Seattle to the Los Angeles Rams.
The Justin Fields-led Bears (3-13) took two leads in the opening quarter before collapsing and losing a franchise-record ninth straight game.
Goff completed passes to 10 receivers, went 21 of 29 for 255 yards and did not throw an interception for an eighth consecutive game. Jamaal Williams had a career-high 144 yards rushing on 22 carries — including his 15th rushing TD this season — and D’Andre Swift added 117 yards from scrimmage and two scores.
Fields rushed for 105 yards in the first quarter and finished with 132 yards on the ground, giving him 1,143 this season. The NFL record for rushing yards by a QB is 1,206 by Lamar Jackson in 2019.
But Fields was only 7 of 21 passing for 75 yards, and Detroit’s Aidan Hutchinson forced two turnovers by the Bears QB.
Chiefs 27, Broncos 24 — Patrick Mahomes threw for 328 yards and three touchdowns, two of them to Jerick McKinnon, and Kansas City overcame another sloppy start to hold off Denver.
Isiah Pacheco and Blake Bell also scored for the Chiefs (13-3), who overcame a 17-13 third-quarter deficit to beat the Broncos for the 15th consecutive time while keeping alive their hopes for the AFC’s No. 1 seed and lone postseason bye.
The Chiefs began the day tied with the Bills, who play Cincinnati on Monday night, for the conference’s best record.
For a while, the Broncos (4-12) looked as if they would cap a chaotic week that began with the firing of first-year coach Nathaniel Hackett in a stunning victory. But a late letdown by one of the league’s best defenses, and another interception by embattled quarterback Russell Wilson, resulted in the first loss for interim coach Jerry Rosburg.
Wilson threw for 222 yards and a touchdown while also running for a pair of scores, the second of them pulling Denver within 27-24 with 6:14 left in the game.
The Broncos got the ball back with just under four minutes to go and picked up a quick first down. But the Kansas City defense stiffened near midfield, and Chris Jones sacked Wilson on fourth-and-2 to effectively end the game.
Jaguars 31, Texans 3 — Travis Etienne ran for 108 yards and a touchdown before halftime, Tyson Campbell returned a fumble for a score and Jacksonville won its fourth straight while snapping a nine-game skid against Houston.
The AFC South-leading Jaguars (8-8) need to beat slumping Tennessee at home next weekend to win the division for the first time since 2017.
Trevor Lawrence threw for 152 yards but played just one possession in the second half, and Etienne didn’t carry the ball after halftime with the Jaguars up 28-3 on the way to their first win over the Texans since 2017.
The Texans (2-13-1) failed to win a game at home for the first time in franchise history. Davis Mills threw for 202 yards and lost the fumble that Campbell returned for his first career touchdown. That made it 21-0.
JaMycal Hasty scored the Jags’ first TD on a 5-yard run. Jacksonville made it 14-0 when Etienne dashed 62 yards for a touchdown early in the second quarter.
Chargers 31, Rams 10 — Austin Ekeler rushed for 122 yards, scored two touchdowns and became the fifth running back with 100 receptions in a season as the Chargers won the matchup of Los Angeles teams.
Ekeler, who has an NFL-leading 18 touchdowns (13 rushing, five receiving), also had a career-best 72-yard TD run midway through the second quarter to extend the Chargers’ lead to 14-3.
It was the third 100-yard rushing game in Ekeler’s six-year career and his second this season.
Justin Herbert passed for 212 yards and two touchdowns as the playoff-bound Chargers (10-6) won their fourth straight. Mike Williams had seven receptions for 94 yards, including a one-handed, toe-tapping 18-yard grab along the left sideline late in the second quarter.
The Rams (5-11) surpassed the 1999 Denver Broncos for most defeats by a defending Super Bowl champion. Cam Akers had his second straight 100-yard game with 19 carries for 123 yards. Baker Mayfield was 11 of 19 for 132 yards.
Falcons 20, Cardinals 19 — Younghoe Koo made a 21-yard field goal on the final play, and Atlanta beat Arizona to end a four-game skid.
In a matchup of teams eliminated from playoff contention, Atlanta rookie quarterback Desmond Ridder got his first career victory. He was 19 of 26 for 169 yards and no interceptions in his third start as he auditions for a starting job next season.
The Falcons (6-10) improved to 5-8 in one-possession games. They were 7-2 in such games last season.
The Cardinals (4-12), playing with their fourth starting quarterback in four weeks, have lost six straight and eight of nine. David Blough completed 22 of 40 passes for 222 yards and a touchdown filling in for Colt McCoy, who is sidelined with a concussion.
Ridder drove Atlanta 72 yards in 12 plays in the final five minutes of the fourth quarter. The Falcons reached the red zone with 1:49 to play and ticked down the clock to set up Koo’s game-ending kick.
Tyler Allgeier and Cordarrelle Patterson combined for 125 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 29 carries.