NFL…
LANDOVER, Md. (AP) — Nick Foles’ magic stretched all the way back to Minnesota.Foles did it again, leading the Philadelphia Eagles to a 24-0 victory over the Redskins and the defending Super Bowl champions earned the NFC’s final wild-card berth when Chicago beat the Vikings on Sunday.The Eagles (9-7) will play at the Bears (12-4) next weekend.Foles tied Philip Rivers’ NFL record by completing 25 straight passes and threw two touchdown passes before a chest injury forced him out of the game. Nate Sudfeld fired a 22-yard TD on his only pass.It felt like a home game for the Eagles. Philadelphia fans filled FedEx Field, sang “Fly! Eagles! Fly!” and chanted “Let’s Go Bears!” There were several thousand empty seats and Redskins fans could only cheer for the Vikings to spite Eagles fans.Foles, the Super Bowl MVP in Philadelphia’s win over New England last February, is 6-0 in must-win games filling in for Carson Wentz.
Foles stepped in after Wentz was sidelined by a back injury earlier this month and guided Philadelphia to an upset on the road against the Rams as a 13 1/2-point underdog. He set a franchise record for yards passing in a game with 471 in a 32-30 comeback win last week against Houston.
The Eagles dominated the Redskins, controlling the ball for 43:19. Philadelphia’s defense held Washington to only 89 yards total offense.
The Redskins (7-9) lost six of seven after leading the NFC East at 6-3.
Foles finished 28 of 33 for 221 yards, two TDs and one interception.
With the 24-0 win by Philadelphia at Washington, the Vikings (8-7-1) watched the Eagles claim the last wild-card spot, and went home wondering what happened to their offense after signing Kirk Cousins for $84 million guaranteed to be the franchise quarterback.
Tarik Cohen scored the last touchdown on a short run with 7:46 left to cap a 16-play drive for the Bears (12-4), who posted their best regular-season record since the 2006 team finished 13-3 and reached the Super Bowl. They’ve won nine of their last 10 games.
The Bears began the afternoon with an opportunity, albeit unlikely, to get a first-round bye with a victory and a loss by the Los Angeles Rams. Rookie head coach Matt Nagy was unmoved by the big early lead taken by the Rams, though, keeping quarterback Mitch Trubisky in the entire game and only holding out the starters who were already previously injured.
Trubisky moved the chains four times on third down during the game-sealing scoring drive, completing three passes and running once for a first down. He took a sack by Anthony Barr that would’ve forced a punt from the Minnesota 45, but a holding penalty on Vikings safety Jayron Kearse gave Chicago a fresh set of downs.
After spending the majority of the last two decades trying to keep up with Green Bay, the Vikings have overtaken the Packers only to have their other primary rival the Bears surge to the top of the division. Whether Cousins or Sam Bradford or Teddy Bridgewater, the Vikings under coach Mike Zimmer have had plenty of trouble moving the ball against the Bears.
— Matthew Stafford threw for 266 yards and two scores to T.J. Jones before the Lions’ defense completed a 31-0 shutout of the Packers. Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers never finished the game after suffering a concussion early in the second quarter. Matt Prater (PRAY’-tur) tossed a touchdown pass after faking a field-goal try to help Detroit end up 6-10 and drop the Packers to 6-9-1.
The Baltimore Ravens were able to lock up the AFC North title and the No. 4 seed in the AFC playoffs, which left the Pittsburgh Steelers out of the postseason for the first time since 2013.The Ravens reached the playoffs for the first time in four years by rushing for 296 yards in a 26-24 victory over the visiting Browns. Lamar Jackson rushed for two TDs and accounted for 90 yards on the ground. Kenneth Dixon had 117 yards rushing for Baltimore, which was 4-5 before Jackson took over for injured quarterback Joe Flacco.Cleveland got to the Baltimore 39 with 90 seconds left before three straight incompletions by Baker Mayfield were followed by a fourth-down interception by linebacker C.J. Mosley.In Pittsburgh, Ben Roethlisberger (RAHTH’-lihs-bur-gur) passed for 287 yards and a touchdown as the Steelers downed the Bengals, 16-13. Roethlisberger finished the season with a career-best and NFL-high 5,129 yards passing, but the Steelers needed three field goals by Matt McCrane to improve to 9-6-1.McCrane connected on kicks of 39, 47 and 35 yards, the last coming with 1:56 to go that put Pittsburgh in front to stay. But the field goals weren’t enough to save the Steelers, who needed Tennessee and Indianapolis to tie their game at Nashville.
The Colts are in the AFC playoffs as the No. 6 seed after earning a 33-17 winner-take-all against the Titans. Andrew Luck threw for 285 yards and three touchdowns to improve to 11-0 versus the Titans.
Marlon Mack ran for 119 yards and a TD for the 10-6 Colts, who are in the playoffs despite a 1-5 start.
Indianapolis will take on Houston in the wild-card round.
In other games on the final week of the 2018 NFL season:
— Kansas City finally clinched its third consecutive AFC West title and the No. 1 seed in the playoffs with a 35-3 pounding of the Raiders. Patrick Mahomes (mah-HOHMZ’) threw for 281 yards, highlighted by a 67-yard TD pass to Tyreek Hill and an 89-yard TD toss to Demarcus Robinson for the 12-4 Chiefs. That gave the first-year starter 5,097 yards and 50 touchdown passes, joining Peyton Manning as the only QBs to hit 5,000 and 50 in the same season.— The Chargers improved to 12-4 with a 23-9 win at Denver, but they have to settle for the No. 5 seed in the AFC playoffs following Kansas City’s rout of Oakland. Philip Rivers was just 14 of 34 for 176 yards and a touchdown and two interceptions, but Los Angeles still managed to end up 12-4. Kyle Emanuel returned a fumble 18 yards for the Chargers’ first TD, and Casey Hayward Jr. picked off a two-point conversion attempt and ran it back 102 yards to put the Chargers ahead 16-9 with 10:10 to play.— The Patriots claimed a first-round bye in the AFC playoffs as Tom Brady threw for three first-half touchdowns in a 38-3 trouncing of the Jets. Brady completed 24 of 33 passes for 250 yards and four scores overall to help New England finish 11-5. Sam Darnold completed 16 of 28 passes for the 4-12 Jets, but he accounted for just 167 yards and had a fumble that gave New England a touchdown.— The Texans wrapped up the AFC South title at 11-5 by silencing the Jaguars, 20-3. Deshaun Watson threw for 234 yards and ran for a touchdown to help Houston secure its fifth division title. DeAndre Hopkins had 147 yards receiving against Jacksonville, which finished 5-11 just a year after reaching the AFC championship game.— The Rams secured the No. 2 seed in the NFC playoffs as Brandin Cooks and Josh Reynolds caught two touchdown passes apiece from Jared Goff in a 48-32 victory against the 49ers. Cory Littleton returned one of his two interceptions for a TD as the 13-3 Rams forced four turnovers and wrapped up their winningest regular season since 2001. Nick Mullens passed for 282 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions for the 4-12 49ers, who wrapped up their fifth consecutive non-winning season.— Cole Beasley made a lunging catch in the end zone on a 32-yard pass from Dak Prescott with 72 seconds left before a two-point conversion pass to Michael Gallup gave the Cowboys a 36-35 win over the Giants. Prescott threw for four touchdowns and the Cowboys moved to 10-6 with their seventh win in eight games. Blake Jarwin became the first Dallas tight end since Billy Joe DuPree in 1973 to grab three TD passes. Giants rising star Saquon (SAY’-kwahn) Barkley joined Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson and Edgerrin James as the only rookies with at least 2,000 scrimmage yards, but New York finished 5-11.— Seattle has the No. 5 seed in the NFC and a wild-card meeting at Dallas after Sebastian Janikowski made a 33-yard field goal on the final play of the Seahawks’ 27-24 win against the Cardinals. Chris Carson rushed for a career-high 122 yards and a touchdown, but Seattle’s offense stumbled. Russell Wilson got sacked six times and a litany of special teams mistakes allowed Arizona to stick around far longer than expected.
— Having already wrapped up the top seed in the NFC playoffs, the 13-3 Saints rested many of their starters in a 33-14 loss to Carolina. Undrafted rookie Kyle Allen passed for 228 yards and two touchdowns before injuring his shoulder in the fourth quarter of the Panthers’ first win in eight games. The 7-9 Panthers led 23-0 at halftime, marking the first time since coach Sean Payton was hired by New Orleans in 2006 that the Saints were shut out at home in a first half.
— Bills rookie Josh Allen had a career-best three touchdown passes and scored two more rushing in a 42-17 thrashing of the Dolphins. Defensive tackle Kyle Williams closed his 13-year career in Buffalo with a tackle for a loss and was part of a defense that forced four turnovers, including three by Miami quarterback Ryan Tannehill. Miami ends up 7-9, while the Bills finish 6-10.
— Matt Ryan’s first career reception went for a touchdown and the Atlanta quarterback also threw for 378 yards and two scores in a 34-32 victory against the Buccaneers. The Falcons blew an 11-point lead before Matt Bryant nailed his second field goal of the afternoon, a 37-yarder as time expired for the 7-9 Falcons. Jameis (JAY’-mihs) Winston rallied the 5-11 Bucs from a 31-20 deficit to a one-point lead with just over five minutes to go.
