Rams beat Bills in thriller as Chiefs win AFC West
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Published
The Los Angeles Rams upset the Buffalo Bills in one of the games of the season, while the Kansas City Chiefs claimed a ninth straight divisional title on another eventful day in the NFL.
Patrick Mahomes engineered yet another last-gasp win for defending champions the Chiefs to keep their bid for a third straight Super Bowl on track.
Josh Allen produced another historic display but it was not enough to stop the Bills losing the highest-scoring game of the season.
The Philadelphia Eagles secured their fourth straight play-off appearance but Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets were eliminated along with the Cleveland Browns.
Rams upset Bills despite Allen heroics
The highest-scoring game of the season featured 12 touchdowns, 902 yards of offence and no turnovers as the Rams ended the Bills’ seven-game winning streak with a pulsating 44-42 victory.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford was near flawless and receiver Puka Nacua near unplayable with his 178-yard, two-touchdown game – and they needed to be given Allen’s remarkable display.
The MVP favourite passed for 342 yards, ran for another 82 and became the first player in NFL history with three passing and three rushing touchdowns in a single game.
“Josh Allen is an alien,” was Rams head coach Sean McVay’s assessment after his side defied Allen’s heroics to stay well in the play-off hunt.
Chiefs win AFC West again
The Chiefs left it late to beat the Los Angeles Chargers 19-17 on the last kick of the game to maintain their AFC West dominance.
Kicker Matthew Wright even added some extra excitement as his effort went over after hitting the left upright, after Mahomes produced a trademark final-drive scramble and pass to Travis Kelce to set up the winning kick.
The 12-1 Chiefs, who have won 10 of those games by one score, claimed a ninth straight divisional title, two behind New England Patriots’ record of 11.
Buffalo’s defeat also gave the Chiefs a two-game gap in the race for top seed in the AFC, which comes with a first-round bye and home field advantage in the play-offs.
Eagles make play-offs with Barkley brilliance
Allen’s main MVP rival Saquon Barkley had another big game to help the Eagles book a fourth straight play-off appearance – but only after surviving a late scare against the Carolina Panthers.
Bryce Young’s three-win Panthers were inches away from pulling off a huge upset when Xavier Legette just failed to stop the ball hitting the ground as he dived in for a last-minute touchdown catch.
Philly held on behind another 100-yard game for Barkley, who has a team-record 1,623 rushing yards this season and is on pace to break Eric Dickerson’s coveted record of 2,105 that has stood since 1984.
Despite a ninth win in a row to stay hot on the heels of the Detroit Lions for the NFC top seed, the 11-2 Eagles still have issues, with Jalen Hurts throwing for only 108 yards in an almost non-existent passing game.
Seahawks on hot streak
After losing five of their six games before their bye week, the Seattle Seahawks have won four in a row to lead an intriguing NFC West following an impressive 30-18 success over the Arizona Cardinals.
Running back Zach Charbonnet had a career-best 134 rushing yards and two touchdowns and the improving Seahawks defence stifled Kyler Murray for the second time in three weeks.
With quarterback Geno Smith leading the league with 3,474 passing yards, Seattle could be getting hot just at the right time – but upcoming games against the Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings will tell us more about just how far they can go.
The San Francisco 49ers are bottom of the NFC West but kept in touch with a dominant 38-13 success over the Chicago Bears – easily their best performance of the season.
George Kittle had a monster 151-yard game and the 49ers defence produced the kind of dominance that has been lacking, throttling Chicago’s offence to the tune of only four first-half yards, the lowest total in the NFL this century.
Rodgers’ Jets extend play-off drought
Rodgers had his best game as Jets quarterback but it was not enough to prevent his side being eliminated from the play-offs with a 32-26 overtime loss at the Miami Dolphins.
It stretched the Jets’ play-off drought to 14 years – the longest active streak across not only the NFL but America’s three other major sports.
Rodgers joined the Jets in search of a second Super Bowl but the move could hardly have gone worse for the 41-year-old.
The Browns also bowed out of play-off contention as they lost 27-14 at the Pittsburgh Steelers – their 21st consecutive regular season defeat at the home of their divisional rivals.
Nightmare return for Cousins
Kirk Cousins’ return to Minnesota did not go to plan as he threw two interceptions in the Atlanta Falcons’ 21-42 loss to the Vikings, with Sam Darnold completely outshining him with a five-touchdown performance.
While the Vikings improved to 11-2, Cousins has failed to throw a touchdown in four successive games, all of which the Falcons have lost to drop out of first place in the NFC South.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lead the way in their division after a 28-13 home win over the Las Vegas Raiders, while the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Tennessee Titans 10-6 in a game befitting two sides already eliminated from the play-offs.
The New York Giants found a creative new way to lose their eighth game in a row as they had a late field goal blocked in their 14-11 defeat by the New Orleans Saints.
NFL results – week 14
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Atlanta Falcons 21-42 Minnesota Vikings
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New York Jets 26-32 Miami Dolphins (OT)
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Cleveland Browns 14-27 Pittsburgh Steelers
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New Orleans Saints 14-11 New York Giants
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Jacksonville Jaguars 10-6 Tennessee Titans
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Carolina Panthers 16-22 Philadelphia Eagles
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Las Vegas Raiders 13-28 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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Seattle Seahawks 30-18 Arizona Cardinals
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Buffalo Bills 42-44 Los Angeles Rams
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Chicago Bears 13-38 San Francisco 49ers
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Los Angeles Chargers 17-19 Kansas City Chiefs
NFL highlights – week 14
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Published6 June
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