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01/04 21:07 CST Panthers win the NFC South. Broncos clinch AFC's No. 1 seed.
Jaguars secure the AFC South
Panthers win the NFC South. Broncos clinch AFC's No. 1 seed. Jaguars secure the
AFC South
By ROB MAADDI
AP Pro Football Writer
The Carolina Panthers are NFC South champions for the first time in 10 years.
The Denver Broncos are the AFC's No. 1 seed. And all but one playoff matchup is
locked in.
The Panthers (8-9) clinched the division title when the Falcons beat the Saints
19-17 on Sunday to eliminate the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Broncos (14-3) secured a first-round bye and home-field advantage
throughout the playoffs with a 19-3 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers.
Seattle earned the NFC's No. 1 seed on Saturday night, defeating San Francisco
13-3.
The Jaguars won the AFC South with a 41-7 rout of Tennessee. Rookie coach Liam
Coen and Trevor Lawrence led the Jaguars to a major turnaround after going 4-13
in 2024.
The AFC North is still up for grabs with a winner-take-all game Sunday night
between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Wild-card weekend will feature these matchups (all times EST):
--- Los Angeles Rams (12-5) at Carolina Panthers (8-9), Saturday, 4:30 p.m.
--- Green Bay Packers (9-6-1) at Chicago Bears (11-6), Saturday, 8 p.m.
--- Buffalo Bills (12-5) at Jacksonville Jaguars (13-4), Sunday, 1 p.m.
--- San Francisco 49ers (12-5) at Philadelphia Eagles (11-6), Sunday, 4:30 p.m.
--- Los Angeles Chargers (11-6) at New England Patriots (14-3), Sunday, 8 p.m.
--- Houston Texans (12-5) at the AFC North winner, Monday, 8 p.m.
Led by second-year coach Dave Canales and third-year quarterback Bryce Young,
the Panthers are making their first playoff appearance under owner David Tepper
and first since 2017, when they lost a wild-card game two years after they went
15-1 and lost the Super Bowl.
"I'm so grateful to have one more opportunity to get back to work where we can
get on the grass, go through the preparation and have our meetings," Canales
said Sunday. "Once we are in cleats and on that grass it's like the next thing
becomes clear, the focus of what we are doing. ... It's like here we go, we get
one opportunity and let's make this statement true: 1-0 with a chance to win a
championship. How long can we keep that statement true?"
The Buccaneers (8-9) beat Carolina on Saturday to stay alive for an extra day
but lost a three-team tiebreaker with the Falcons also finishing 8-9. Tampa Bay
started 6-2 before losing seven of nine, failing to win its fifth straight
division title.
While Sam Darnold and the Seahawks (14-3) earned a first-round bye, Brock
Purdy, Christian McCaffrey and the injury-depleted 49ers missed an opportunity
to play at home the rest of the way. Levi's Stadium, which is San Francisco's
home field, hosts the Super Bowl on Feb. 8.
AFC East New England won its first division title since Tom Brady led the franchise to 11 straight from 2009-19. Buffalo's run of five consecutive division crowns ended, and the Bills will go on the road in the playoffs. AFC North The Steelers beat the Ravens 27-22 at Baltimore on Dec. 7. They have to beat them again or tie them on Sunday night without wide receiver DK Metcalf to get into the playoffs. Derrick Henry and backup quarterback Tyler Huntley led the Ravens to a win at Green Bay last Saturday night that kept Baltimore in the race and made Pittsburgh's loss to Cleveland the next day matter. Lamar Jackson returned from a back injury to start for the Ravens, who were 3 1/2-point favorites on the road, according to BetMGM Sportsbook. AFC South Jacksonville won the division for the first time since 2022, when first-year coach Doug Pederson guided them to a 9-8 record and a wild-card playoff victory over the Chargers, overcoming a 27-0 deficit. The Texans secured the No. 5 seed with a 38-30 victory over Indianapolis. Houston is in the playoffs for the third straight season under coach DeMeco Ryans and QB C.J. Stroud. AFC West The Broncos ended Kansas City's nine-year run. Denver hasn't been the No. 1 seed since Peyton Manning and a stifling defense beat Carolina in the Super Bowl 10 years ago. The Chargers are in the playoffs for the second straight season under Jim Harbaugh. NFC East The defending Super Bowl champion Eagles became the first team to win this division in consecutive seasons in two decades. They missed a chance to be the No. 2 seed when they rested starters and lost 24-17 to Washington. NFC North The Bears clinched their first division championship since 2018. They lost 19-16 to Detroit but secured the No. 2 seed because the Eagles lost. The Packers were locked into the No. 7 seed after Week 17. NFC South The Panthers backed into a division title but are ahead of schedule in their rebuilding process. NFC West The Seahawks earned the No. 1 seed for the fourth time in team history. They reached the Super Bowl the first three, winning once. The Rams beat the Arizona Cardinals 37-20 to secure the No. 5 seed and a rematch at Carolina. The Panthers beat them 31-28 on Nov. 30. After falling to secure a bye, the 49ers dropped to the No. 6 seed and will face Philadelphia in a rematch of the NFC championship game following the 2022 season. ___ AP Sports Writer Steve Reed contributed to this report. ___ AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl |
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