The Kansas City Chiefs have clinched a first-round bye and home field advantage in the AFC playoffs. The Chiefs' offense was sluggish before a late TD drive gave them a 17-14 win over the Falcons. Kansas City trailed 14-10 until Patrick Mahomes threw a 25-yard scoring pass to Demarcus Robinson with 1:55 remaining. The Falcons still had a chance to force overtime, but Pro Bowl kicker Younghoe Koo missed a 39-yard field goal attempt with nine seconds left. Atlanta went ahead of Matt Ryan's five-yard scoring pass to Laquon Treadwell with 4:33 remaining.
Elsewhere around the NFL:
The Steelers are AFC North champs after turning a 21-7 deficit into a 28-24 victory over the Colts. Ben Roethlisberger overcame a month-long malaise to throw for 342 yards and three second-half touchdowns as the 12-3 Steelers ended a three-game losing streak. He gave Pittsburgh its first second-half lead since Dec. 7 by hitting JuJu Smith-Schuster from 25 yards with 7:38 to play. The 10-5 Colts allowed just 28 yards in the first half before losing their grip on the final AFC wild-card berth.
The Ravens leapfrogged over the Colts and Browns in the AFC wild-card scramble by downing the Giants, 27-13. Lamar Jackson engineered four scoring drives while Baltimore built a 20-3 halftime lead. Jackson threw for 183 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 80 yards. The Ravens recorded six sacks of Daniel Jones, including three straight in the second half.
Washington's playoff hopes are up in the air after falling behind 20-0 in a 20-13 loss to the Panthers. Dwayne Haskins turned the ball over three times and was benched with Washington trailing 20-6 in the fourth quarter. Steven Sims muffed a punt return that turned into another Panthers touchdown. Washington has a one-game lead in the NFC East, but the Giants can still win the division at 6-10 with a win over the Cowboys and a Washington loss to the Eagles.
The Cowboys kept themselves in contention for the NFC East title by whipping the Eagles, 37-17. Andy Dalton threw for 377 yards and three touchdowns, two to Michael Gallup. CeeDee Lamb, Gallup and Amari Cooper each had a catch of at least 50 yards, all after the Eagles built a 17-3 lead. For the Cowboys to win the division, they need to beat the Giants next Sunday and have Washington lose to Philadelphia.
The Jets pulled off their second stunner in as many weeks by holding off the Browns, 23-20. The Browns erased most of a 20-3 deficit before Baker Mayfield fumbled twice in the fourth quarter, once on a sack and the second coming on fourth-and-1 with 1:18 remaining. Jamison Crowder caught a touchdown pass and threw one to Braxton Berrios on a razzle-dazzle play. Mayfield threw for 285 yards, but the 10-5 Browns managed just 45 on 18 carries.
Davante Adams caught three of Aaron Rodgers' four touchdown passes as the Packers easily earned their fifth straight win, 40-14 over the Titans. Adams' three touchdown catches gave him 17 this season, one off the Packers' single-season record that Sterling Sharpe set in 1994. Green Bay ran wild behind 124 yards and two touchdowns from A.J. Dillon and 94 yards from Aaron Jones. The outcome prevented Tennessee from clinching the AFC South and gave the Colts another avenue for a playoff berth.
The Seahawks claimed the NFC West title with a 20-9 win over the Rams. Russell Wilson threw a 13-yard TD pass to Jacob Hollister with 2:51 remaining to clinch the win. Wilson finished 20 of 32 for 225 yards for the 11-4 Seahawks, who are division champs for the first time since 2016. The 9-6 Rams can still reach the playoffs with a win over Arizona next weekend or a Bears loss to the Packers.
Mitchell Trubisky accounted for three touchdowns and the Bears took hold of the final NFC wild-card berth by drubbing the Jaguars, 41-17. Trubisky completed 24 of 35 passes for 265 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception. He also ran for a score as Chicago moved one game ahead of the Cardinals in the wild-card scrum. Allen Robinson finished with 10 catches for 103 yards against his former team.
Justin Herbert set the rookie record for most touchdown passes in a season while guiding the Chargers to their third straight win, 19-16 over the Broncos. Herbert's 9-yard screen pass to Austin Ekeler in the second quarter was his 28th touchdown throw of the season, surpassing the 27 that Baker Mayfield had for Cleveland in 2018. He also became the fourth player to throw for over 4,000 yards as a rookie, joining Andrew Luck, Cam Newton and Jameis Winston. Michael Badgley tied a career high with four field goals, including the winning kick with 41 seconds remaining.
The Bengals picked up their first road win in more than two years by dumping the Texans, 37-31. Samaje Perine ran for two TD's, including a late 3-yard score in Cincinnati's second straight win. The winning drive came after the two-minute warning and followed Darren Fells' 22-yard scoring reception with about six minutes remaining. Brandon Allen passed for a career-best 371 yards and two touchdowns for the Bengals.
In NFL news, Chiefs standout Travis Kelce has broken George Kittle's NFL single season record for most receiving yards by a tight end, doing it against the Falcons. Kittle set the record two years ago with 1,377. Kelce also became the first tight end in NFL history with two 100-catch seasons, reaching the century mark just before halftime. Also, Jets running back Frank Gore became the third player in NFL history to run for 16,000 yards, joining Pro Football Hall of Famers Emmitt Smith and Walter Payton. Gore did it with a four-yard run in the third quarter against the Browns on Sunday.
NBA
Tom Thibodeau's first victory as Knicks coach has come in a surprisingly easy 130-110 pounding of the Bucks. Julius Randle had 29 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists, while Elfrid Payton scored 27 points in his best game as a Knick.
In other NBA action:
The Hornets were 106-104 winners over the Nets behind Gordon Hayward, who had 28 points, seven assists and six rebounds. Terry Rozier added 19 points, including two clutch free throws that helped Charlotte deal Brooklyn its first loss.
Domantas Sabonis hit a layup with 8.4 seconds left and Malcolm Brogdon finished with a team-high 25 points as the Pacers nipped the Celtics, 108-107 to improve to 3-0 for the first time in seven years. Sabonis had 19 points, 10 boards and five assists in his 100th career double-double.
Cleveland is 3-0 after Andre Drummond provided 24 points, 14 rebounds and three steals in a 118-94 thumping of the 76ers. Collin Sexton added 22 points and Darius Garland had 14 points and seven assists for the Cavaliers.
The Magic are 3-0 for the first time in 11 years after Markelle Fultz and Terrence Ross each scored 26 points in their 120-113 verdict over the Wizards. Nikola Vu?evi? finished with 15 points and eight rebounds for Orlando, which trailed 94-77 entering the fourth quarter.
The Dallas Mavericks' second game in Los Angeles went much better than their first. Luka Doncic scored 24 points and the Mavs led by a NBA-record 50 points at halftime in a 124-73 rout of the Clippers. Josh Richardson added 21 points and Tim Hardaway Jr. had 18 points for the Mavs, who were coming off a blowout loss to the Lakers on Christmas Day. The Clippers trailed 77-27 at halftime, with their 50-point deficit being the largest at the break since the shot-clock era began in 1954-55.
Kyle Kuzma had 20 points to lead six Lakers in double figures in a 127-91 thrashing of the Timberwolves. LeBron James added 18 points and nine boards for Los Angeles, which played without Anthony Davis because of a calf contusion.
The Pelicans eked out a 98-95 victory against the Spurs as Brandon Ingram delivered 28 points and 11 rebounds. Zion Williamson had 18 points and 11 rebounds for New Orleans, scoring about half of his points on dunks.
The Warriors finally got their first win as Damion Lee hit a 3-pointer with 1.7 seconds remaining in a 108-107 downing of the Bulls. Stephen Curry scored 36 points and was the focus of Chicago's attention while Lee nailed the winning streak.
Mikal Bridges scored 22 points and Cameron Johnson had 21 in 21 minutes of the Suns' 116-100 victory against the Kings. Devin Booker added 20 points, five rebounds and five assists for Phoenix, which took control by closing the third quarter on a 17-5 run.
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
In women’s college basketball, NJIT took down Vermont 70-60. On the men’s side, Vermont bested NJIT 92-78.
In college basketball news:
Villanova men's basketball coach Jay Wright has tested positive for COVID-19, causing the fifth-ranked Wildcats to pause basketball activities. Wright says in a statement issued Sunday by Villanova that he another staff member tested positive. Villanova's game against Xavier scheduled for Saturday has been postponed, but the school outside Philadelphia says no determination has been made for games beyond this week.
The Music City Bowl between Missouri and Iowa has been canceled because COVID-19 issues left the Tigers unable to play. The game scheduled for Wednesday in Nashville is the second bowl called off since the postseason lineup was set on Dec. 20, joining the Gasparilla Bowl.
MLB
One of the greatest knuckleball pitchers in major league history has died. The Atlanta Braves have announced that Phil Niekro has died at 81 following a battle with cancer. Niekro won 318 games over his 24-year career, which ended in 1987 at age 48 after he made one final start with the Braves. The right-hander was a five-time All-Star who had three 20-win seasons with Atlanta. Incredibly, he had 121 wins after his 40th birthday. Niekro also pitched for the New York Yankees, Cleveland Indians and Toronto Blue Jays late in his career. Niekro joined Lou Brock, Whitey Ford, Bob Gibson, Al Kaline, Joe Morgan and Tom Seaver as Hall of Famers who have died this year.
TENNIS
Roger Federer is withdrawing from the Australian Open while he continues preparing to return to action after two operations on his right knee. Federer's long-time representative and CEO of their management company said Sunday he is working on putting together a 2021 tennis calendar for the 20-time Grand Slam champion, who plans to get back on tour following the next major. The start of the Australian Open's main draw was delayed by three weeks because of the coronavirus pandemic and is now scheduled to begin on Feb. 8 at Melbourne Park.
Also, Naomi Osaka is The Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year after winning another Grand Slam while fighting racial injustice. Osaka raised awareness for injustice and police brutality while capturing the U.S. Open, her third career major championship. She wrote to the AP that she is proud of my U.S. Open victory, but more so that she got people talking about the real issues. Osaka collected 18 of 35 first-place votes and a total of 71 points. WNBA Finals MVP Breanna Stewart finished second in the balloting.
© The Associated Press 2020. All Rights Reserved.