INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Colts made Chuck Pagano a winner in his return to the sideline.
Andrew Luck threw for two touchdowns, and Deji Karim swung the game with a 101-yard kickoff return in the third quarter, giving the Colts a 28-16 victory over Houston. It was Pagano’s first game back as coach since starting treatment for leukemia Sept. 26.
Indianapolis (11-5) heads into the playoffs as the No. 5 seed and on a roll. The Colts will open the postseason next weekend against the Baltimore Ravens.
Slumping Houston (12-4) lost three of their last four games to drop to the third seed in the AFC, and J.J. Watt failed to break Michael Strahan’s single-season sacks record.
BENGALS 23, RAVENS 17
CINCINNATI — Carlos Dunlap returned an interception 14 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
The Ravens (10-6) had already clinched their second straight AFC North title, and they will open the playoffs at home against Indianapolis, which defeated Houston on Sunday.
The Bengals (10-6) will travel to Houston.
The Ravens let quarterback Joe Flacco and running back Ray Rice play only two series. Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton and receiver A.J. Green sat out the second half.
BRONCOS 38, CHIEFS 3
DENVER — Peyton Manning threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns to lift Denver into the No. 1 seed for the AFC playoffs.
Manning finished the season with 4,659 yards, 41 short of his career high. He finished with 37 touchdown passes, and none will be more memorable than the last two — circus catches by Eric Decker and Demaryius Thomas that turned the game into a blowout.
Denver (13-3) won its 11th straight and leaped past Houston for the top seed.
The Chiefs gained only 119 yards all day and finished their season 2-14. They will get the top pick in April’s draft.
VIKINGS 37, PACKERS 34
MINNEAPOLIS — Adrian Peterson came within 9 yards of Eric Dickerson’s rushing record, finishing with 199 yards and powering Minnesota into the playoffs.
The result forced a rematch with the Packers next weekend in a wild-card game — this time at Lambeau Field.
Peterson rushed for 36 yards on the last drive, plenty for rookie Blair Walsh’s 29-yard field goal as time expired to put the Vikings (10-6) in the postseason. The Packers (11-5) fell to the NFC’s No. 3 seed.
49ERS 27, CARDINALS 13
SAN FRANCISCO — Michael Crabtree caught touchdown passes of 49 and 7 yards as the 49ers won a second straight NFC West title.
Colin Kaepernick threw for a career-best 276 yards and two TDs as the Niners (11-4-1) earned a No. 2 seed thanks to Green Bay’s loss to Minnesota.
Frank Gore ran for a 2-yard touchdown early in the fourth quarter for his franchise-best 51st touchdown rushing.
SEAHAWKS 20, RAMS 13
SEATTLE — Russell Wilson tied Peyton Manning’s record for most touchdown passes by a rookie with 26, and his 1-yard TD run with 1:39 left allowed Seattle to finish as the only unbeaten team at home.
Seattle (11-5) entered the day with hopes of still winning the NFC West and getting a home playoff game, but those dreams were dashed when San Francisco beat Arizona. Seattle will be the No. 5 seed and face NFC East winner Washington next weekend.
The Rams (7-8-1) sacked Wilson six times, but they couldn’t come up with their first winning record since 2003.
PATRIOTS 28, DOLPHINS 0
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Tom Brady threw two touchdown passes, and New England earned a playoff bye.
Stevan Ridley ran for two touchdowns as the Patriots used a ball-control offense and a defense that racked up a season-high seven sacks.
Now, seeded second in the AFC, they have an extra week to savor the win and prepare for their postseason opener.
BUCCANEERS 22, FALCONS 17
ATLANTA — The Falcons couldn’t follow through with their plan to gain momentum for the playoffs as Josh Freeman threw a touchdown pass to Mike Williams and Doug Martin ran for 141 yards.
The Falcons (13-3) had little to play for as they already had home-field advantage through the NFC playoffs. Coach Mike Smith said he wanted to “finish the regular season the right way,” and he stayed with his starters throughout the game.
BEARS 26, LIONS 24
DETROIT — Jay Cutler threw for 257 yards and a touchdown and helped seal the game with a late scramble.
Chicago (10-6) was eliminated from the postseason when Minnesota defeated Green Bay.
The Lions (4-12) lost their last eight games and turned the ball over four times in the finale. Calvin Johnson fell short in his attempt to become the first player with 2,000 yards receiving in a season.
GIANTS 42, EAGLES 7
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — There will be no Super Bowl repeat for the Giants. Not even a playoff berth despite Eli Manning’s career-high five touchdown passes.
The Giants (9-7) saw their playoff hopes end minutes after routing the Eagles. Chicago’s win over Detroit ended New York’s long-shot playoff chances.
Eagles coach Andy Reid is out after 14 years at Philadelphia, three people familiar with the decision told The Associated Press. The official announcement could come today.
Philadelphia closed the season 4-12.
STEELERS 24, BROWNS 10
PITTSBURGH — Ben Roethlisberger threw three short touchdown passes, and Pittsburgh avoided its first losing season in nearly a decade.
Antonio Brown, Leonard Pope and Plaxico Burress scored for the Steelers (8-8). Pittsburgh’s top-ranked defense forced four turnovers as the Steelers won for just the second time in the last six weeks, a slide that knocked them out of the playoffs for the first time since 2009.
BILLS 28, JETS 9
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — C.J. Spiller scored on a 66-yard catch and run in helping underachieving Buffalo, while Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez had two more turnovers.
Safety Bryan Scott also returned an interception 20 yards for a touchdown for the Bills (6-10), who snapped a three-game skid. Both AFC East rivals had already been eliminated from playoff contention.
TITANS 38, JAGUARS 20
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee became the first NFL team with two players scoring twice on returns in closing out the season with two wins in its final three games.
Darius Reynaud scored on two punt returns, and rookie linebacker Zach Brown returned two interceptions for touchdowns.
PANTHERS 44, SAINTS 38
NEW ORLEANS — Drew Brees made more NFL history, but so did the Saints’ porous defense in a loss to Carolina.
DeAngelo Williams rushed for 210 yards, including touchdown runs of 54 and 12 yards, for Carolina (7-9), which closed the season with four straight wins. His 65-yard gain set up the first of three 1-yard scoring runs by Mike Tolbert.
Brees passed for 396 yards, giving him 5,177 this season. That makes him the first player to eclipse 5,000 yards three times. His four TD passes gave him 43 in 2012, and he’s the first player with 40 TD passes in consecutive seasons. The Saints (7-9) also gave up 530 yards, raising their season total to 7,042 to break the record of 6,793 allowed by the 1981 Baltimore Colts.
CHARGERS 24, RAIDERS 21
SAN DIEGO — Micheal Spurlock returned the opening kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown on a wet, gloomy day in what’s expected to be Norv Turner’s final game as Chargers coach.
Turner and general manager A.J. Smith are expected to be fired because the Chargers (7-9) missed the playoffs for the third straight season. The Raiders finished 4-12.
