Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels threw three touchdowns, including the overtime game-winner, as the Washington Commanders reached the playoffs with a dramatic 30-24 win over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.
The result, on the penultimate week of the season, also meant that the Los Angeles Rams enter the playoffs as National Football Conference (NFC) West divisional champions.
In a fascinating battle of two talented rookie quarterbacks, with Daniels up against Atlanta’s Michael Penix, it went down to the wire.
Photo: AFP
Down 24-17 with 1:19 left, Atlanta tied up the game when Penix, who had led an excellent 12 play, 68-yard drive, found Kyle Pitts with a 13-yard pass into the end-zone.
Washington failed to make first down, giving Atlanta a chance to win the game in the final seconds and they had an even bigger chance when a pass interference penalty left the Falcons with a 56-yard field goal for a walk-off win.
However, Riley Patterson’s attempt landed short, sending the game into overtime.
Daniels marched down field, putting together a 12-play, 70-yard drive, winning the game by zipping the touchdown pass to tight end Zach Ertz to set off the celebrations.
“To be able to play with Jayden at the end of my career is such a blessing for me,” Ertz said.
“The whole league should be on notice with him. Everyone loves playing with him, he’s the ultimate team guy, the ultimate leader and he just gave me a chance at the end of the game,” he said.
The Philadelphia Eagles, without their starting quarterback Jalen Hurts, clinched the NFC East division title, handing the Dallas Cowboys a humiliating 41-7 defeat.
The damage to the Cowboys, who gave up four turnovers, was done by the Eagles star running back Saquon Barkley who put up 167 yards on 31 carries to pass the 2,000 yard mark for the season.
Barkley, who has 2,005 yards, needs to put up 101 yards next week to break Eric Dickerson’s record for the most rushing yards in a season, set for the Los Angeles Rams in 1984.
The win means the Eagles are guaranteed at least the No. 2 seed in the NFC.
The Buffalo Bills take the second seed in the American Football Conference, behind the Kansas City Chiefs, after a 40-14 win against the New York Jets.
The Bills led 12-0 at the half before their quarterback Josh Allen took total control of the game with touchdown passes to Amari Cooper and Keon Coleman either side of a rushing score from James Cook.
Allen, who threw for 182 yards, had opened the scoring with a one-yard rush.
Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw two interceptions and was sacked four times.
The Minnesota Vikings remain in contention for the NFC’s top seed after they edged NFC North rivals, the Green Bay Packers 27-25.
Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold threw touchdown passes to Jordan Addison and Cam Akers in the third quarter to open up a 27-10 lead, but then the Packers came alive.
Carrington Valentine intercepted a Darnold pass intended for T.J. Hockenson and that pick proved to be a momentum shift.
The Packers scored on the next possession with Josh Jacobs’ 2-yard rush, and although Darnold’s 9-yard touchdown pass to Cam Akers restored the 17-point lead, the Packers sensed a comeback was possible.
Emanuel Wilson rushed in from 5 yards and then Jordan Love found Malik Heath with a 3-yard pass to make it a two-point game with 2:19 left.
However, Darnold, who threw for 377 yards and three touchdowns, handled the pressure well as he saw the Vikings to the finish line.
The Indianapolis Colts were eliminated from playoff contention after falling 45-33 to the 3-13 New York Giants.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers kept their post-season hopes alive as Baker Mayfield threw for 359 yards and five touchdowns in a 48-14 rout of the Carolina Panthers.
The Miami Dolphins also remain in contention after backup Tyler Huntley, standing in for the injured Tua Tagovailoa, threw for 225 yards and a passing and rushing touchdown in a 20-3 win over the Cleveland.
Champagne corks often pop and loud, boisterous cheers are usually heard around Constitution Dock when the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race line honors winner finishes in the Tasmanian state capital. There were no such celebrations this year when the defending champions on board LawConnect won the race in the early hours of yesterday morning, as it came about 24 hours after two sailors died on separate boats in sail boom accidents two hours apart on a storm-ravaged first night of the race. LawConnect, a 100-foot super maxi skippered by Australian tech millionaire Christian Beck, sailed up the River Derwent at just after 2:30am.
Elena Rybakina’s Kazakhstan yesterday dumped defending champions Germany out of the United Cup with world No. 2 Alexander Zverev sidelined by an arm injury barely a week away from the Australian Open. The upset in Perth sent the Kazakhs into the semi-finals of the 18-nation tournament. In Sydney, women’s world No. 2 Iga Swiatek led Poland into the last eight by winning a rematch of her 2023 French Open final against Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic. Britain also progressed to the quarter-finals with Katie Boulter’s dominant 6-2, 6-1 victory over Australia’s Olivia Gadecki enough to guarantee they won their group. The US and
HAT-TRICK PREP: World No. 1 Sabalenka clinched her first win of the season, as she aims to become the first woman in 20 years to win three Australian Opens in succession Coco Gauff, Jasmine Paolini and Taylor Fritz yesterday all clocked impressive wins as tennis powerhouses Italy and the US surged into the quarter-finals of the mixed-team United Cup. World No. 3 Gauff swept past Croatia’s Donna Vekic 6-4, 6-2 to avenge a loss at the Paris Olympics, while Fritz took care of Borna Coric 6-3, 6-2 in searing Perth heat. That was enough to put the Americans — last year’s winners — into a last-eight clash with China today, while Elena Rybakina’s Kazakhstan today are to meet defending champions Germany, led by Alexander Zverev, in the other Perth quarter-final. In Sydney, the in-form
Chess great Magnus Carlsen on Friday quit the World Rapid and Blitz Chess Championships in New York after governing body FIDE barred the Norwegian from participating in a round at the tournament for wearing jeans. FIDE said in a statement that its dress code regulations were designed to “ensure professionalism and fairness for all participants.” It issued Carlsen a US$200 fine and gave him an opportunity to change into the correct attire, which the world No. 1 rejected, it said. Carlsen said he had a lunch meeting before the round and had to change quickly. “I put on a shirt, jacket and honestly like
RSS