. . World News – AU – What We Learned from Week 17 of the N.. F.. . L.. . season

Green Bay secured home advantage, Buffalo ended Miami’s season and Cleveland ended its playoff drought in 17 seasons.

The Green Bay Packers secured the top seeds in the N. . F.. . C.. . Playoffs, while a great argument for Aaron Rodgers as the N. . F.. . L.. . Most valuable player. The Buffalo Bills have the No.. 2 seeds in the A. . F.. . C.. . , as the Miami Dolphins season effectively ends. And the Cleveland Browns are back in the playoffs after 17 seasons that ended in frustration. It was an exciting Sunday even for week 17, and the playoff field was almost finished when it went to nightcap between Washington and Philadelphia.

🚨 BIG PLAY ALERT 🚨7️⃣2️⃣-yard TD-Catch for @ MVS__11 💪 #GBvsCHI | # GoPackGo📺 FOX📱 https: // t. co / 2UxGSiVlvn pic. Twitter. com / KriCuvvNPG

The road through the N. . F.. . C.. . Playoffs go through Green Bay. Perhaps the finest regular season in Aaron Rodgers’ career – one that included two Most Valuable Player Awards – ended with a 35:16 win over the Chicago Bears and an N.. . F.. . C.. . -Best record of 13-3. This gives the Packers a home advantage during the playoffs, forcing opponents to come to Lambeau Field, which doesn’t have loud fans but still has the cold weather in which Rodgers always succeeded.

Rodgers added four more touchdown passes on Sunday, bringing him a career high of 48, which is linked to Dan Marino for the fifth most in a season. Over the past three seasons, Rodgers, who appeared upset when the Packers drafted his potential replacement in April, had 99 touchdown passes and only 11 interceptions.

The bills weren’t at risk – and the dolphins suffered as a result. The bills had already won the first A.. F.. . C.. . East title – her first since 1995 – two weeks ago, while Miami would have secured a place on the wildcard with a win on Sunday. Even so, the Bills started the day with Josh Allen at the quarterback, letting the M. . V. . P. . The contestant put them 28-6 ahead at halftime, then let their defense and backup quarterback Matt Barkley handle the rest of the game in a 56-26 laugh that never felt nearly tight. The invoices recorded no. 2 seeds in the A. . F.. . C.. . with a 13-3 record – their best result since 1991 – while the Dolphins were eliminated from the playoffs due to their own defeat and Indianapolis victory over Jacksonville.

You can’t end a playoff drought in 17 seasons without a little drama. Despite taking 10 wins for the second time since 1995, the Cleveland Browns were heading into the final day and needed a win or the help of other teams to make it to the postseason for the first time since 2002. Pittsburgh’s decision to rest Ben Roethlisberger helped, but some doubts were raised when a coronavirus outbreak closed Cleveland facilities, leaving the team without three of their four starting defenders. The Browns took a 24-9 lead early in the fourth quarter but then sweated after Pittsburgh’s Mason Rudolph threw two touchdown passes to close the gap. An onside kick attempt after the second touchdown would have been almost successful, but the Browns, shaking off years of bad pauses, bounced back and deemed a staggering 24:22 win. The teams will compete again next week in Pittsburgh. Roethlisberger is expected to return.

Adding a six-time Super Bowl winner is helpful. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been tempting on occasion last season but realized that they needed some stability on offense to complement their excellent defense. They replaced the enigmatic Jameis Winston with Tom Brady, who had had a difficult season in New England but was seen as a player who could highlight the team’s strengths. Good call. Brady had a few problems along the way, but he finished the year at 4. 633 yards pass and a franchise record of 40 touchdown passes. More importantly, Sunday’s 44:27 win over the Atlanta Falcons gave the Buccaneers an 11-5 record, making them No.. 1 made. 5 seeds in the N. . F.. . C.. . for her first trip to the playoffs since 2007.

The titans are far from a one-man show. Derrick Henry rushed for 250 yards and two touchdowns, becoming the eighth player in the N.. . F.. . L.. . Story to 2. Racing 000 yards in a single season. But it was a couple of crucial games from quarterback Ryan Tannehill towards the end of the game that ended a thrilling 41:38 win over the Houston Texans and gave Tennessee the A.. F.. . C.. . Southern title. With the Titans 4 behind in less than two minutes, Tannehill sold a fake game to Henry before hitting a 5-yard touchdown. Houston linked the game with a field goal, but Tannehill got the ball back in just 18 seconds and immediately finished a 52-yard pass to A.. . J. . Brown, who, along with a 4-yard run by Henry Sam Slomans, scored the game-winning 37-yard field goal.

Some teams get more help than others with the playoffs. The Indianapolis Colts made for business with a 28-14 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, but made it to the playoffs after Miami lost to Buffalo. Thank you dolphins!

The Baltimore Ravens have one of the other A.. . F.. . C.. . Wildcard places by winning a fifth game in a row – four of them against teams with record losses. Thank you, planner!

And the Chicago Bears deserved an N despite a mid-season break and a Green Bay loss on Sunday. F.. . C.. . Wild card berth in large part thanks to an ankle injury to Kyler Murray of the Arizona Cardinals. For much of the game without Murray – and after the quarterback hobbled himself on his return in the sophomore year – Arizona lost 18-7 to the understaffed Los Angeles Rams. Thank you, the brutal nature of football!

It wasn’t meant for Dallas. The Cowboys seemed lost when quarterback Dak Prescott broke his ankle in Week 5. But thanks to the rest of the N. . F.. . C.. . With East largely unlucky, Dallas not only survived until the last week of the season, but also had a good chance of a league title. The rival Giants pushed them around for much of the day and looked like a team far more talented than they were on the record, but nonetheless the Cowboys had the ball in the last two minutes of the game, just 4 points behind, driving all of the Path to the Giants 7 yard line. A sack and an incomplete pass added a third and a goal from the 17-yard line by 1 minute and 24 seconds, and then Andy Dalton went desperate. He ran away from pressure before brutally intercepting Xavier McKinney, effectively ending the Cowboys season.

The Colts only qualified for the playoffs because the Bills throttled the Miami Dolphins. Now they must travel to Orchard Park, N. Y. . for their own move against the rounded juggernaut of the Bills.

The Rams really want Jared Goff back with the quarterback after the operation on the thumb of his throwing hand. John Wolford did a good job for Goff against the Cardinals on Sunday, but he’s not a solution for out and about in Seattle.

Home teams must always be taken seriously in the playoffs, even if it is a sub-team. 500 N. . F.. . C.. . Ostmeister who only came here because each division gets a playoff team.

With powerful running games and quarterbacks that can use a stacked box to stretch the field, these teams are more alike than you might think.

Chicago should be grateful for the N.. F.. . C.. . In the east, as without the incompetence of this division, people would likely focus on the bears making the playoffs without a winning record.

Cleveland beat Pittsburgh in Cleveland this week, but next week’s Pittsburgh game could look very different with Ben Roethlisberger back at the heart of the Steelers.

Browns 24, Steelers 22 It came in a game in which Pittsburgh played without the defensive stalwarts Cam Heyward and T.. J. . Watt, but Cleveland still impressed on the ground. With 31 runs, he reached 192 yards and was carried into the playoffs by the greatest strength of the team.

Bills 56, Dolphins 26 Miami hoped Tua Tagovailoa could take care of things herself, since Ryan Fitzpatrick – the N. . F.. . L.. . The equivalent of an ace relief pitcher – has been placed on the Covid-19 reserve list. It did not work. While Tagovailoa threw for 361 yards and a touchdown, the rookie was also intercepted three times, including a pick-six, and never posed much of a challenge to Buffalo’s dominance on either side of the ball.

Packers 35, Bears 16 The beep you hear is that Chicago is returning to the playoffs. The Bears got their day in control of their own destiny but needed help to earn a wild card after quarterback Mitchell Trubisky was largely ineffective and David Montgomery trailed back to 3. 1 meter per carry.

Colts 28, Jaguars 14 Indianapolis appeared on the verge of a second brutal collapse in the second half, but a great game of team defense and Jonathan Taylor’s 45-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter drove Colts to victory. Taylor entered the season as a replacement for Marlon Mack, but his 253 yards rushing and two touchdowns on Sunday gave him 1. 169 yards and 11 touchdowns in a great year for rookies.

Titans 41, Texans 38 There were many good things to be said about Tennessee after it won a hard-won A. F.. . C.. . Southern title, but the Houston players were able to hold their heads up after a terrific second half from quarterback Deshaun Watson and let division rivals Titans fight for it.

Buccaneers 44, Falcons 27 Antonio Brown (11 catches, 138 yards, two touchdowns) and Chris Godwin (5-133-2) both had great games for Tampa Bay, but the Buccaneers will be holding their collective breath and looking for an update wait about the health of the broad receiver Mike Evans, who injured his knee in an incomplete pass in the end zone. Evans had received 46 yards prior to the injury, giving him 1. 006 for the season – he’s the first N. . F.. . L.. . wide receiver, around 1. To have 000 yards or more in each of his first seven seasons.

Ravens 38, Bengals 3 y. . K. . Dobbins showed why many people believe he is Baltimore’s top running back in the future, rumbling 160 yards and two touchdowns with just 13 runs. But Lamar Jackson was almost as effective, running 97 yards in eleven runs, giving him 1. 005 for the season. He now owns No.. 1 and no. 3 Rushing Seasons from a quarterback in N. . F.. . L.. . story.

Seahawks 26, 49ers 23 San Francisco led 9-6 in three quarters, but Russell Wilson took over in the fourth quarter and tossed two touchdown passes to Tyler Lockett. Alex Collins was on a score as well and the game wouldn’t have been as close if it wasn’t for Jeff Wilson Jr. from San Francisco got a garbage score.

Saints 33, Panther’s 7 Covid-19 protocols resulted in New Orleans having almost all of the setbacks, but that didn’t slow the team down in the least. Ty Montgomery, who plays a broad receiver but also has experience in running back, filled in admirably, carrying the ball 18 times for 105 yards. That, along with Drew Brees’ three touchdowns and a quick touchdown from Taysom Hill, was more than enough against Carolina.

Rams 18, Cardinals 7 It might not work in the playoffs, but Los Angeles ended Arizona’s season with an attack led by quarterback John Wolford who started the day with zero career-passing attempts and 231 yards left behind, a team leading 56 yards rushing and his first career win.

Giants 23, Cowboys 19 In the possibly perfect encapsulation of the N. . F.. . C.. . In the east of that season, the Giants win was due to Wayne Gallman getting his own mistake back in the final minutes. Just two games away from Dallas’ Andy Dalton, who practically handed the win to Big Blue with an interception.

Vikings 37, Lions 35 Justin Jefferson recorded 133 yards of reception, making him 1st for the season. 400 brought. He broke Randy Moss’ franchise record for a rookie recipient, finishing less than 100 of the 1st. 473 that Bill Groman had for the A.. F.. . L.. . Houston Oilers in 1960.

Minnesota’s skill players were no doubt happy to top up their stats, but keep in mind that Detroit’s defenses have been so bad this season that they ranked 6th overall. 716 yards and 519 points, breaking the franchise records set during the 2008 Lions winless season.

Chargers 38, Chiefs 21 It came against Kansas City backups, but Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert was terribly impressive as he threw 302 yards and three touchdowns to save coach Anthony Lynn’s job. Herbert wasn’t even expected to start this season, but after being forced into duty in Week 2, he finished the race at 4. 336 yards pass and a rookie record of 31 touchdowns.

Raiders 32, Broncos 31 This game had no playoff impact and was often pretty ugly, but it had a lot going for it. Denver took a late lead with a 92-yard touchdown pass from Drew Lock to Jerry Jeudy. Las Vegas took it back with a 1-yard touchdown run from Josh Jacobs and a 2-point switch with just 24 seconds left. After such swings, the game ended in the only logical way: Maxx Crosby of the Raiders blocked Brandon McManus’ attempt to win a 63-yard field goal that would have won the game.

Patriots 28, Jets 14 In coach Adam Gase’s final game with the club that may have been Sam Darnold’s last as starting quarterback, the Jets went into the fourth quarter at 14:14 and then fell apart, allowing Cam Newton throws two touchdown passes to seal the game. New England started the day with an N. F.. . L.. . – Low eight touchdown passes this season but four – including one from a wide receiver – against the Jets.

NFL, National Football League Playoffs, Cleveland Browns, Indianapolis Colts, Pittsburgh Steelers, Playoffs, Tampa Bay Buccaneers