Miami Gardens, Fla. — The Buffalo Bills snapped the longest current non-playoff drought in North American pro sports with a 22-16 victory on Sunday at Miami combined with Cincinnati’s victory at Baltimore. The Bills hadn’t made the postseason since 1999.
Buffalo (9-7) will travel to Jacksonville this weekend in a wild-card game.
The Bills’ anxiety was compounded by the loss of 1,000-yard rusher LeSean McCoy with a right ankle injury. He was carted off the field in the third quarter.
The frustration of a disappointing season got the best of the Dolphins (6-10) with 6:21 left, when receiver Jarvis Landry, running back Kenyan Drake and offensive lineman Jake Brendel were ejected following a fight. Landry was cited for disrespecting an official, and Drake for throwing his helmet 20 yards in anger. Unsportsmanlike conduct penalties were called against both teams.
Bengals 31, Ravens 27
Baltimore — The Ravens were ousted from the playoff hunt in stunning fashion when Andy Dalton threw a 49-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Boyd with 44 seconds, giving the Bengals the win.
Needing a win to advance to the postseason, Baltimore (9-7) rallied from a 14-point deficit to take its first lead with 8:48 left. But Dalton put together a magnificent 90-yard drive in the closing minutes before hitting Boyd over the middle on a fourth-and-12 play.
Steelers 28, Browns 24
Pittsburgh — Cleveland joined the 2008 Detroit Lions as the only teams in NFL history to go 0-16 when they failed to find a way to beat backup-laden Pittsburgh.
Cleveland had a chance late in the fourth quarter, but DeShone Kizer’s fourth-down pass to Corey Coleman bounced off Coleman’s hands and fell incomplete.
For the 16th time in 2017, the Browns walked off the field searching for answers that are as elusive now as they’ve been at any point since the franchise’s return to the NFL nearly two decades ago. Head coach Hue Jackson is expected to return despite a 1-31 record and the Browns have two of the top four picks in the 2018 draft.
Titans 15, Jaguars 10
Nashville, Tenn. — Marcus Mariota threw a touchdown and used his legs to help Tennessee end an eight-season playoff drought by beating Jacksonville to clinch an AFC wild-card berth.
The Titans (9-7) snapped a three-game skid in a game they needed to win or get some help with losses elsewhere to advance. They also posted their first back-to-back winning seasons since 2007 and 2008.
Mariota ran a season-high 10 times for 60 yards, the biggest a 13-yard scramble on third-and-5 at the 2:00 mark. Mariota also threw for 134 yards.
Colts 22, Texans 13
Indianapolis — Jacoby Brissett threw for one touchdown and Marlon Mack ran for another as the Colts beat Houston in the season finale for both teams.
The win ended the longest losing streak of Colts coach Chuck Pagano’s six seasons. He was fired less than two hours after the game ended.
Chargers 30, Raiders 10
Carson, Calif. — Philip Rivers passed for 387 yards and three touchdowns, but Los Angeles missed out on a playoff berth despite their victory over Oakland.
Oakland coach Jack Del Rio was fired after the game. Del Rio had signed a four-year contract extension last February after Oakland ended a 13-year playoff drought with a 12-win season last year.
Buccaneers 31, Saints 24
Tampa, Fla. — Jameis Winston threw for 363 yards, including a 39-yard scoring pass to Chris Godwin with nine seconds remaining, to help Tampa Bay snap a five-game losing streak with a victory over New Orleans.
Falcons 22, Panthers 10
Atlanta — Matt Bryant kicked five field goals, including a 56-yarder, for all of Atlanta’s second-half points and the Falcons clinched a playoff spot by beating Carolina.
Vikings 23, Bears 10
Minneapolis — Minnesota’s defense turned in another dominant performance and Latavius Murray rushed for 111 yards and two touchdowns, helping the Vikings secure a first-round bye for the playoffs.
Chiefs 27, Broncos 24
Denver — Patrick Mahomes II made his first NFL start a success, leading Kansas City past Denver on Harrison Butker’s 30-yard field goal as time expired.
Cowboys 6, Eagles 0
Philadelphia — Dak Prescott tossed a 20-yard touchdown pass to Brice Butler early in the fourth quarter and Dallas beat playoff-bound Philadelphia, preventing the Eagles from earning a franchise-record 14th win.
Lions 35, Packers 11
Detroit — Matthew Stafford threw three touchdown passes and Detroit beat turnover-prone and short-handed Green Bay in a matchup of teams out of the playoff race.
Giants 18, Redskins 10
East Rutherford, n.j. — Two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning threw a touchdown pass in what might be his final game with the Giants and New York got a rare taste of winning.
Cardinals 26, Seahawks 24
Seattle — Phil Dawson kicked four field goals, the last from 42 yards with 2:21 left, Blair Walsh missed a 48-yard attempt with 32 seconds left and Arizona beat Seattle. The Seahawks’ playoff hopes were dashed when Atlanta beat Carolina to earn the final wild-card spot in the NFC.
Niners 34, Rams 13
Los Angeles — Jimmy Garoppolo threw for 292 yards and two touchdowns to lead San Francisco to its fifth straight victory, against a Los Angeles team resting its big stars for the playoffs.
