Texans handle Colts, clinch second division title in row

HOUSTON -- The Houston Texans now own the AFC South, and they have a message for the rest of the NFL:

Last week's debacle against New England was not the real Texans.

The real Texans, they claim, clinched the division for the second straight year with a 29-17 victory over Indianapolis.

"A lot of people were wondering how we were going to respond," Andre Johnson said. "I think a lot of people doubted us after what happened last week. We (felt) like we had to show people what we were really about."

They believe they did so against the Colts, a team that dominated the division for years before Houston's recent rise.

But Sunday's celebrations were more subdued than last year's. This time the Texans expected to win the division, and have much bigger goals ahead.

"It's awesome," J.J. Watt said. "But there's a lot more fun ahead, so I hope everybody is not celebrating too early."

Johnson gained 151 yards receiving and a touchdown, Bryan Braman had a special teams score on a blocked punt, and Shayne Graham kicked five field goals.

The Texans (12-2) grabbed their first AFC South title last season after the Colts nosedived without injured quarterback Peyton Manning. Manning is gone to Denver and rookie Andrew Luck couldn't do much against the inspired Houston defense.

The Colts (9-5) had won three straight games and needed a win to clinch a playoff berth a year after going 2-14 in 2011. Before that, they took the division seven times since Houston entered the league in 2002.

"It was a tough loss for us in that we came here with one idea and that was to win the division, and we're not going to win the division -- they did it," Indianapolis interim coach Bruce Arians said.

Thanks in great part to three sacks from Watt, Houston bounced back six days after the 42-14 loss to New England on national television. The Texans will have home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs if they win out.

Luck threw for 186 yards with two touchdowns in the return to his hometown. He had led the Colts to a rookie-record six wins on drives in the fourth quarter or overtime this season, and he got the Colts within six points late in the third quarter.

"We came here to win, not put up a respectable showing," Luck said. "We'll move on to next week and hopefully get better."

Houston's defense shut Luck down after he made it close, and the Texans used Arian Foster to eat up the clock. Foster ran for a season-high 165 yards to leave him with 1,313 yards rushing, giving him his third straight year with at least 1,200.

"It's not really that we bounced back," Foster said. "It's that we played the football that we know we're capable of playing. We feel we're a team that if we play how we know we can ... it's going to be hard for us to get beat."

Watt increased his AFC-leading sack total to 19 1/2 -- the NFL record for a season is 22 1/2 -- and finished with 10 tackles. He also forced a fumble for the third straight game.

"I don't even know the stats," Houston coach Gary Kubiak said. "But it seemed like every time I looked up, he was making a play."

Luck was sacked five times playing behind a makeshift offensive line missing center Samson Satele (ankle) and right tackle Winston Justice (biceps).

Johnson, who has 11,008 yards receiving in his career, scored on a 3-yard reception to make it 10-0 in the first quarter. The Texans didn't score a touchdown on offense after that, but were helped by Braman's special teams effort.

Braman blocked his second punt of the season, recovered it and returned it 8 yards for his first career touchdown to make it 20-3 just before halftime.

Vick Ballard had 60 yards rushing on a Colts drive that ended with an 8-yard touchdown reception by Dwayne Allen to cut Houston's lead to 23-17 in the third quarter. Ballard finished with a career-high 105 yards rushing.

Houston couldn't do anything on its next drive and punted. But Indy sputtered, and interim coach Bruce Arians even drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on a punt, giving Houston the ball at the Colts 39.

Graham added a 46-yard field goal to push the lead to 26-17 and made his fifth field goal with about a minute left.

Rookie T.Y. Hilton and Luck connected on a 61-yard touchdown pass just before halftime.

Watt's forced fumble on Mewelde Moore on the Houston 1 was recovered by Tim Dobbins early in the second quarter, robbing the Colts of points. And the Colts stalled inside the red zone again and had to settle for Adam Vinatieri's 26-yard field goal to cut Houston's lead to 10-3.

The Texans had set the tone as they got to Luck early, sacking him twice on the Colts' second drive. Antonio Smith got to him first, and Watt put a move on backup tackle Jeff Linkenbach and took him down for a 15-yard loss.

On offense, Johnson was dominant. He put Houston up 10-0 when he waltzed into the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown reception. Johnson kept things going earlier in the drive when he caught a pass, lost it and then grabbed it again just before it touched the ground for a 10-yard gain on third-and-9.

Notes Luck needs 74 yards to break Cam Newton's rookie yards passing record of 4,051 yards. Dobbins has recovered four fumbles this season, a franchise record. Braman's two blocked punts this season are a single-season franchise record.

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Falcons destroy champ Giants, near home-field clinch

ATLANTA -- The Atlanta Falcons wanted to make a statement.

Boy, did they deliver one Sunday to the defending Super Bowl champions.

Coming off an ugly loss and criticized for failing to impress even when they won, the Falcons turned in their most well-rounded performance of the season with the playoffs approaching. Matt Ryan threw three touchdowns passes and the defense handed New York its first regular-season shutout since 1996, routing the Giants 34-0.

"We love the haters, man," said Falcons cornerback Asante Samuel, who had the first of two interceptions against Eli Manning. "The haters keep us going. So keep your hate coming. We love it. It makes us play with a chip on our shoulder."

It sure showed.

Julio Jones caught a couple of scoring throws from Ryan, who broke his own franchise records for completions and passing yards in a season. Matty Ice finished 23 of 28 for 270 yards.

"I felt like I was seeing the field well," Ryan said.

The Falcons (12-2), who have already clinched the NFC South, moved a step closer to home-field advantage throughout the conference playoffs. One more win would ensure that any postseason contests before the Super Bowl are held at the Georgia Dome.

Manning had his lowest-rated game since 2007 for New York (8-6), which dropped into a first-place tie with Washington in the NFC South. Dallas had a chance to make it a three-way tie later in the day, hosting Pittsburgh.

The Giants also went 0-for-3 on fourth down and missed a short field goal.

"Atlanta was very, very good. We were very, very bad," New York coach Tom Coughlin said. "There's no excuse for what happened here."

Despite their lofty record, Atlanta has received plenty of criticism for struggling to beat inferior opponents. A 30-20 loss to last-place Carolina the previous week only seemed to reinforce the notion that the Falcons are headed for another short stay in the playoffs. They have yet to win a postseason game since Ryan took over as the quarterback in 2008, going 0-3.

But one thing the Falcons never seem to do anymore is lose two straight games. They extended the NFL's longest active streak since consecutive defeats to 49 games, going back to the 2009 season.

"Our focus was heightened from other weeks," coach Mike Smith said. "We've got a lot of great leaders and mentors in that locker room. They took the message from the meetings and took it out on the field."

After thoroughly dominating the Giants, the Falcons have surely sent a resounding message to the rest of the league: beware of this team in the playoffs.

"Last week everybody was talking smack about us," defensive end John Abraham said. "We just continue what we're doing."

For the Giants, it was a miserable performance when they controlled their own destiny, at a time of year when they normally play some of their best football.

Manning threw his first pick on the second play of scrimmage, setting up a quick Atlanta touchdown. Coughlin made a curious call late in the first half, passing up another short field goal attempt when his team was almost 2 yards shy of the marker. Samuel batted down a short pass intended for Victor Cruz, sending Atlanta to the locker room with a commanding 17-0 lead and all the momentum.

"I was thinking we needed to engender a lift for our sideline," Coughlin said. "That did not work out either."

Nothing did.

The tone was set right away.

When Manning attempted to hit Hakeem Nicks on a short pass to the right, Samuel stepped in to make the interception and return it to the Giants 16. From there, Michael Turner ran it four straight times, the last of those a 1-yard plunge that gave Atlanta a 7-0 lead less than 3 minutes into the game.

It was all Falcons after Lawrence Tynes missed a chip shot kick from 30 yards, ruining an impressive second possession by the Giants. Atlanta took it 80 yards from there, with Ryan going to Harry Douglas on a 37-yard gain for the biggest play. Then, on third-and-11 from the 12, Ryan went to his favorite target, Tony Gonzalez, in the end zone. The 16-year veteran leaped over safety Will Hill to haul in the high throw - and hopped up quickly for his customary dunk over the goalposts.

Manning finished 13 of 25 for 161 yards, leaving him with a dismal 38.9 rating -- his worst since a Dec. 23, 2007, win at Buffalo.

"We have two games left and we have to win those two games," Manning said. "What else happens after that, we don't know and can't control."

Early in the second half, the Falcons blew it open on Ryan's 40-yard touchdown pass to Jones down the left sideline. Finally, after a drive that used up more than 9 minutes in the fourth quarter, Ryan went to Jones for a 3-yard TD.

The Giants turned it over one more time in the closing minutes, finishing off their first shutout in the regular season since a 24-0 defeat at Philadelphia on Dec. 1, 1996. The performance came just a week after they put up 52 points on the New Orleans Saints.

There was a moment of silence before the game honoring the Connecticut shooting victims, and New York took the extra step of wearing "SHES" decals on its blue helmets in honor of Sandy Hook Elementary School. Even more touchingly, Cruz dedicated the game to 6-year-old victim Jack Pinto, who was reported to be a big Giants fan.

"It was very emotional, obviously, during the game," said Cruz, who caught only three passes for 15 yards. "With a family facing that much tragedy, you want to be someone that inspires them, someone that can put a smile on their face at a time where it's tough to do that."

Notes More recently, the Giants were shut out in the playoffs after the 2005 season, losing at Carolina 23-0. Ryan has thrown for 4,202 yards and 27 touchdowns this season. There was one bright spot for Manning: He set a franchise record for career completions with 2,585, moving past the mark held by Phil Simms (2,576).

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Packers hold off sliding Bears to clinch NFC North crown

CHICAGO -- With one championship under their belt, the Green Bay Packers are already eyeing a few others.

Aaron Rodgers connected with James Jones on all three touchdowns, Clay Matthews continued his dominance of Jay Cutler with two more sacks and Green Bay clinched its second straight NFC North title with a 21-13 victory over the archrival Chicago Bears on Sunday.

After starting the season 2-3, the Packers are showing signs they might have a run in them like the one that carried them to a Super Bowl title two years ago. They have assured themselves of a home playoff game and, at 10-4, are still in the running for the No. 2 seed in the NFC.

"We're just getting started," coach Mike McCarthy said. "We feel that way as a football team. We feel there's a lot better football in front of us."

Chicago, meanwhile, continues to slide. This was the Bears' fifth loss in six games, and they're in danger of missing the playoffs after beginning the season 7-1. Chicago (8-6) lost ground in the race for the last wild-card spot, and fans at Soldier Field showered the team with boos for much of the game.

Cutler had another dismal day against the Packers, throwing an interception that led to the game-winning touchdown. He has been picked off 17 times by the Packers, including 10 in his past five games. Alshon Jeffery was whistled for three offensive pass interference calls, all late in the second half when the Bears were scratching to get something going.

Brandon Marshall had Chicago's only touchdown, but had just 56 yards receiving. The Bears were held to 67 yards of offense in the second half and finished with 190, their third-lowest of the season. The Packers have now won six straight against their rivals to the south.

"Everybody involved in this offense should be held accountable, even if that means jobs," said Marshall, who struggled to compose himself as he spoke before cutting short his postgame interview. "It's been this way all year. There's no excuse. We still have two games left. There's still hope, but at the same time, we need to be held accountable."

It was Marshall who turned the heat up on what is already the NFL's oldest -- and fiercest -- rivalry earlier in the week, saying he had never disliked a team as much as he did the Packers. Green Bay had held him to 24 yards on two catches in their first meeting back in September, and the NFL's receptions leader called the rematch "personal," adding, "But the talk, you have to back it up. We'll go out there and we'll do everything we need to do to get a win."

Marshall did his part early, firing up the Chicago sideline when he sidestepped one tackle and stiff-armed Casey Hayward on his way to the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown that gave Chicago a 7-0 lead. He screamed as he tossed the ball into the stands, and his teammates and the crowd roared in approval. Joe Anderson fueled the frenzy when he body-slammed Randall Cobb on the ensuing kickoff, and the Bears appeared to be firmly in control.

But overcoming adversity has become second nature to the Packers with the season they've had, and this game was no different.

"We don't try to trash talk," cornerback Sam Shields said. "When we get on the field we trash talk, but not in the paper. We let our actions show on the field."

Over the final 4:19 of the second quarter, the Packers went from a 7-0 deficit to a 14-7 lead thanks to a pair of Rodgers-to-Jones TDs sandwiched around a Hayward pick.

"That was important. That was really important," Rodgers said of the 14-point swing. "We couldn't them get up a couple scores and get into what they wanted to do, which it looked like they wanted to run [Matt] Forte a lot. Getting ahead of them kind of took them out of some of that stuff."

Having already been sacked twice, Rodgers was on the run again on third-and-6 when he spotted Cobb down the right sideline. He threw a dart to Cobb, who hauled it in for a 31-yard gain that put the Packers at the Chicago 35. Three plays later, Rodgers connected with Jones for a 29-yard score that tied the game at 7.

After exchanging punts, Cutler looked for Devin Hester only to find Hayward instead. It was the sixth interception of the season for the rookie, who grabbed the ball at midfield and returned it 24 yards. Five plays later, Rodgers hooked up with Jones again, this time for an 8-yard TD.

The Packers made it 21 unanswered points on the first drive of the second half. In another third-and-long situation, Rodgers threw incomplete to Jermichael Finley. But Green Bay got a second chance when Chris Conte was called for pass interference and, after a delay of game penalty, Rodgers found Jones for a 6-yard score.

It was Jones' first three-touchdown game and the fourth multiple-TD game of his career.

"You don't want to lose to your rival year in and year out. It's not a rival. It's a domination," Cutler said. "We've got to find a way, but that's in the past. Arizona's up next, we've just got to focus on that."

The Bears had chances to get back into it. Green Bay's Mason Crosby missed two more field goals, and Charles Tillman forced a fumble by Ryan Grant that Nick Roach recovered. Chicago got a big break on the next play when Green Bay safety Morgan Burnett hauled Jeffery down right in front of the end zone -- and right in front of an official. The pass interference penalty gave Chicago the ball at the Green Bay 1.

But the Bears could only get a 34-yard field goal by Olindo Mare out of it after Jeffery was called for pass interference, his first of three.

Notes

Matthews has eight sacks of Cutler in as many games. The Bears sacked Rodgers three times, with Julius Peppers and Corey Wooton each being credited with 1 1/2. Despite two more misses by Crosby, his 11th and 12th this year, McCarthy said the Packers will not be looking for a new kicker. "We're not changing kickers. Write that down right now," McCarthy said. "He's our guy." Cobb had 150 all-purpose yards, leaving him 10 shy of Ahman Green's single-season Packers record (2,250 in 2003).

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Packers beat Bears, clinch top seed in NFC

CBSSports.com wire reports
Dec. 25, 2011

GREEN BAY, Wis. -- With the first five-touchdown game of his NFL career, Aaron Rodgers ensured that the Green Bay Packers' playoff road will go through Lambeau Field.

He also made sure the rival Chicago Bears will be spending the playoffs at home.

Rodgers broke a close game wide open by leading three quick scoring drives in the second half, and the Packers beat the Bears 35-21 on Sunday night.

Rodgers noted that he once threw six touchdowns in junior college -- also in a rivalry game -- but acknowledged this one was a little bit bigger.

"Yeah, this one's pretty special," Rodgers said.

With the win, the Packers (14-1) nailed down the No. 1 seed in the NFC and claimed another round of bragging rights in the NFL's most storied rivalry by knocking the Bears out of the playoff chase.

"We wanted the path to go through Lambeau," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said.

Rodgers threw a pair of touchdown passes to Jordy Nelson, another two to James Jones, and found tight end Jermichael Finley for a score. Rodgers was 21 of 29 for 283 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions when backup Matt Flynn took over for Rodgers with 7:54 left in the game.

Rodgers surpassed Lynn Dickey's single-season franchise record of 4,458 yards passing with one game left, although it's unclear how much Rodgers will play in the Packers' finale against Detroit.

The loss eliminated the Bears (7-8) from playoff contention and put the Atlanta Falcons in the playoffs.

Third-string running back Kahlil Bell rushed for 121 yards for the Bears, who trailed by only four early in the third quarter. But Rodgers drove the Packers for touchdowns on their next three possessions to put the game out of reach.

"When you play the Super Bowl champions, you have to be on top of your game," Bears coach Lovie Smith said. "Offensively, we did enough things to keep us in the game and have a chance to win the game at the end. But defensively we just didn't have it."

McCarthy said the team's run defense will be examined after the big performance by Bell, but added that the final score told the story.

"We won big," McCarthy said. "That's the bottom line."

Chicago came into Sunday on a four-game losing streak and beset by injuries. But the Bears were able to stay in the game with solid defense and tough running by Bell, who started because of injuries to Matt Forte and Marion Barber.

Rodgers' second-half fireworks proved to be too much for Chicago.

"Thirty-five points on that defense, that's a good night," McCarthy said.

The victory was the Packers' fourth over the Bears in 2011. Green Bay also beat Chicago in the 2010 regular-season finale, the NFC Championship game, and at Soldier Field on Sept. 25.

With the Bears trailing 14-3 at halftime, quarterback Josh McCown found Earl Bennett wide open for a 49-yard gain to set up first-and-goal on the 1. Bell fumbled just short of the goal line on the next play but offensive lineman Edwin Williams recovered the ball for a touchdown.

With the Packers nursing a four-point lead, and the Lambeau Field crowd nervously quiet early in the third quarter, Rodgers answered by dropping deep and throwing a rainbow pass to Nelson, who blew through the Chicago secondary and hauled in the ball for a 55-yard touchdown.

Rodgers then showed his running ability on the Packers' next possession, juking his way between Bears linebackers Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs on a scramble. Rodgers finished the drive with a 7-yard touchdown toss to Jones, giving the Packers a commanding 28-10 lead.

Packers safety Charlie Peprah came up with an interception, and Rodgers found Nelson for another score to give Green Bay a 35-10 lead.

"It just hasn't gone the way we wanted to," Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher said. "If we play like this, that's what's going to happen. The last five weeks, we haven't played well enough to win, and we've lost all five games. We're not real happy where we're at. Our coaches aren't happy, but that's what we get."

McCown finally answered with a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Kellen Davis -- then drew the ire of the Lambeau crowd by scrambling for a two-point conversion and spiking the ball over the goalpost with his team trailing 35-18.

Rodgers' offensive feats came behind a patchwork offensive line, as the Packers were without three of their top four tackles.

Chad Clifton returned to practice this week after sitting out since October because of hamstring and back injuries, but isn't ready to play. Bryan Bulaga was inactive Sunday because of a left knee sprain, and backup Derek Sherrod is out for the season with a broken right leg.

Green Bay also was missing wide receiver Greg Jennings, because of a sprained left knee, and defensive lineman Ryan Pickett because of a concussion.

The Bears have lost five straight games since losing quarterback Jay Cutler to a broken right thumb in a Nov. 20 victory over San Diego. Chicago was 7-3 after that win, but came into Sunday's game barely alive in the playoff chase.

The Bears started McCown on Sunday after backup Caleb Hanie struggled to fill in for Cutler. McCown's most recent start came with the Oakland Raiders in 2007, and he was out of the NFL last season.

"It's a tough assignment, but you've got to find a way to pull it off," McCown said.

To make matters worse for the Bears' offense, Barber was inactive because of a calf injury. Chicago already was without Forte, who missed his third straight game because of a sprained medial collateral ligament in his right knee.

Notes

Sunday's attendance was 70,574, the team's 300th consecutive sellout, including the playoffs. Bears offensive lineman Lance Louis left the game in the first half because of an illness. Packers RB James Starks bruised an ankle.

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49ers eliminate 'Hawks, clinch bye

CBSSports.com wire reports
Dec. 24, 2011

SEATTLE -- David Akers kicked his way into the NFL record book and sent the San Francisco 49ers to just the type of win they wanted as they start looking toward the playoffs.

Akers made four field goals to give him 42 this season, most in league history, and San Francisco eliminated Seattle from postseason contention by holding off the Seahawks 19-17 on Saturday.

The NFC West champions remained in position for the No. 2 playoff seed and a first-round bye thanks to Akers and an impressive second-half effort on defense.

"I thought it was, like I said, a real good preview for what the playoffs are going to be like," 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh said. "Overcoming adversity. Nobody flinched. We had some real difficult situations, you know, some real pressure-to-perform situations, and our guys performed."

Akers took his place in NFL annals, but it was Larry Grant, Alex Smith and Michael Crabtree who made the big plays that improved San Francisco to 12-3 in Harbaugh's first season in charge.

With the Seahawks fighting to stay alive in the playoff race, San Francisco had to rally multiple times. The 49ers overcame a 17-16 deficit after Marshawn Lynch scored on a four-yard TD run with 6:41 left and was showered with candy.

The 49ers were in such a good mood that San Francisco coaches ran through the press box in the closing seconds shouting "Merry Christmas everybody," as Smith took a knee to drain the final seconds.

Akers' 39-yard field goal with 2:57 left proved to be the game-winner -- but it was Grant who was the game-clincher. As the Seahawks (7-8) tried to drive for the winning score, Grant's tackle of quarterback Tarvaris Jackson from behind jarred the ball loose and it was recovered by Donte Whitner at the San Francisco 36 with 1:07 remaining.

Filling in for injured Patrick Willis, the standout linebacker who missed his third straight game with a hamstring injury, Grant missed Jackson on his initial blitz, only to come from behind and strip the QB for the only turnover of the game.

If Grant had not forced the fumble, Jackson likely would have gained enough to convert the third down and keep the Seahawks' drive going.

"He doesn't tuck it at all, he keeps it loose and keeps his eyes downfield," Grant said. "Knowing he does that, when you're coming from behind the first thought is you've got to rake for the ball."

San Francisco limited the Seahawks to 72 total yards in the second half and Seattle's only points came following a blocked punt.

A- Nothing about this game was easy for the 49ers, who were coming off a physical Monday Night win and playing on short rest against one of the hottest teams in the NFC, so style points or not, the 49ers deserve a lot of credit for this win, which keeps them in position to earn the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye. After giving up big chunks of yardage in the first half, the defense stepped up big in the second half, allowing just 73 yards.
C- The Seahawks did some things well, most impressively running the ball well against the league?s best rushing defense and blocked a punt that seemed to swing the momentum. That wasn?t enough, however, to overcome a subpar game from Seattle?s run defense, and a long stretch of offensive ineptitude in the second half. San Francisco is a formidable opponent, but for a team that was playing at home and still clinging to playoff hopes, this was a step back after playing so well in the second half of the season.

The 49ers could head into next week's regular-season finale at St. Louis with the No. 2 seed locked up if Atlanta wins at New Orleans on Monday night. They still have a shot at the No. 1 seed, but would need Green Bay to lose its final two games.

Regardless, all San Francisco needs is a win over the lowly Rams to clinch a home playoff game and a weekend of rest that could be critical. The 49ers played without Willis and wide receiver Ted Ginn, Jr., then saw tight end Delanie Walker and receiver Kyle Williams go down with injuries. Neither returned.

Early in the fourth quarter, Akers connected from 44 yards out for his 41st field goal of the season, breaking the NFL mark set by Neil Rackers in 2005 with Arizona.

Akers also hit from 53 and 29 yards. He missed a 52-yard attempt in the first quarter and is 42 for 49 this season.

"All our players and coaches, everybody is really happy for David's success," Harbaugh said. "Another great effort by him today."

Smith protected the ball, as he has all season, and his biggest throw set up Akers' decisive kick. On second-and-18 from his own 31 with 5:51 left, Smith threw deep for Crabtree, who got just enough separation from Brandon Browner to haul in the 41-yard reception. The 49ers didn't advance any further, but were in range for Akers to give them the lead.

Smith finished 14 of 26 for 179 yards, while Crabtree had five catches for 85 yards. The bigger contributions came from Frank Gore and his backup, Kendall Hunter. Gore scored on a four-yard run on the first drive of the second half and finished with 83 yards rushing, while Hunter added 73 on just 12 carries.

If there was a disappointment for San Francisco it was seeing its streak of not allowing a touchdown rushing or a 100-yard rusher end. Lynch finished with 107 yards on 21 carries, the first back to top 100 yards against the 49ers since Green Bay's Ryan Grant in Week 11 of the 2009 season. Lynch's touchdown run in the fourth quarter was the first allowed by San Francisco all season.

"If Marshawn Lynch isn't in the Pro Bowl, there is something wrong with the voting system," said Seattle wide receiver Doug Baldwin, who caught a 13-yard TD pass in the first quarter. "Plain and simple, he's proved it week in and week out."

San Francisco's defense was so strong in the second half that it took a special teams mistake for Seattle to have a chance. Heath Farwell blocked Andy Lee's punt to set up Lynch's TD, his 11th straight game with a score. It set off a shower of Skittles flying out of the stands. The candy covered the blue-painted end zone to the point where workers with industrial blowers came out to try and clear the field.

But the 49ers responded with Smith's throw to Crabtree and later with Grant making the play they needed as the San Francisco sideline burst into celebration.

"Our guys came back and answered," Harbaugh said.

Notes

Walker was taken to a hospital to be examined after getting kneed in the jaw inadvertently by Seattle LB Leroy Hill. Walker was expected to fly back to San Francisco with the team. San Francisco won in Seattle for the first time since 2008. Seattle finished the season 4-4 at home. Akers' previous career high for FGs was 33 in 2008.

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Brady powers Pats by Miami to clinch playoff bye

CBSSports.com wire reports
Dec. 24, 2011

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The New England Patriots emphasize playing well for 60 minutes every game. On Saturday, 30 was enough -- barely.

Rallying from their worst half of the season, the Patriots scored on their next five possessions and clinched a playoff bye with a 27-24 win over the Miami Dolphins on Saturday.

"You don't want to, certainly, make a habit of this," said Tom Brady, who scored on two 1-yard sneaks and threw for a 1-yard touchdown. "We showed some resiliency."

New England (12-3) won its seventh straight game. After the Houston Texans lost to the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday night, the Patriots needed a win or a tie to lock up one of the top two spots in the AFC.

"It's good to clinch," said Deion Branch, who caught the touchdown pass from Brady, "but not by the way we played. It's not the way you want to do it."

Miami (5-10) lost for the third time in eight games after opening at 0-7 and is 1-1 under Todd Bowles, who took over when Tony Sparano was fired.

"First half we came out and played our tempo and our ballgame," Bowles said. "The second half they made us play theirs."

The AFC East champions trailed 17-0 at halftime but made the necessary adjustments and went to their no-huddle offense more, keeping the Dolphins from making defensive substitutions. And Brady was on target after a first half in which heavy defensive pressure against a makeshift offensive line affected his accuracy. He completed just 7 of 19 passes for 87 yards and was sacked three times in the half.

But in the second half, he completed 20 of 27 passes for 217 yards, finishing at 27 for 46 for 304 yards and leading one scoring drive after another -- a 45-yard field goal by Stephen Gostkowski, the scoring pass to Branch, his own sneak that tied the game, Gostkowski's 42-yard go-ahead kick after Devin McCourty's first interception of the year, and the other sneak with 2:56 to go, making it 27-17.

The Dolphins made it closer on Matt Moore's 15-yard scoring pass to Davone Bess with 1:48 to play. They had three timeouts left, but their hopes faded when Brady hit Wes Welker for a 6-yard gain and a first down.

"We had [Brady's] number in the first half, but in the second half he came out and made a lot of plays," Miami linebacker Karlos Dansby said. "He is a coach on the field."

The Dolphins seemed headed for a victory and got a break even before the game started when Patriots left tackle Matt Light hurt his ankle in warmups and didn't play. Left guard Logan Mankins took his spot, but he left with a knee injury suffered on New England's second series.

"There's always things that are going to go wrong in a football game and things aren't going to work out the way you want them to all the time," said Welker, who finished with 12 catches for 138 yards after managing just two for 20 in the first half. "The main thing is just playing a full 60 minutes and never giving in and understanding that one drive and one score [can] get things going."

The Patriots punted on their first six series of the first half then missed a field goal on the other. The Dolphins struggled in the second half when Moore fumbled the snap at his 38-yard line and Vince Wilfork recovered, starting the drive capped by Branch's touchdown.

"They committed penalties in the first half," Dolphins guard Richie Incognito said. "We turned the ball over and committed penalties in the second half. That is never a good recipe."

Reggie Bush had another outstanding game for Miami with his fourth straight rushing day of at least 100 yards. He finished with 113 on 22 carries one week after gaining a career-high 203 yards.

His latest performance gave him 1,086 yards rushing for the season, the first time in his six years, the first five with the New Orleans Saints, that he passed 1,000.

"It really doesn't mean anything right now," he said. "This one's pretty tough."

The Dolphins had taken a 3-0 lead on Dan Carpenter's 47-yard field goal 4:01 into the game and made it 10-0 with 1:15 gone in the second quarter on Moore's 19-yard pass to Brandon Marshall.

They stretched that to 17-0, the Patriots biggest deficit of the season, on a 1-yard touchdown pass from Moore to Charles Clay. The 89-yard drive was helped by two defensive pass interference penalties on third down.

But the Patriots remained calm in the locker room at intermission.

"There wasn't a bunch of yelling," Wilfork said. "We just came in and said we've got to play better, we've got to make more plays."

They did. The Dolphins didn't.

"Our guys fought," Bowles said, "but we didn't finish."

Notes

Welker set a franchise record for one season with 1,518 yards receiving. He broke the mark of 1,493 set by Randy Moss in 2007. Bush was checked my medical personnel on the sideline late in the game "Something in my leg just didn't feel right," he said. "I'm walking. If it was serious, I wouldn't be walking." Moore completed 17 of 33 passes for 294 yards, his highest total as a Dolphin. He threw for more than that with the Carolina Panthers once in 2009 and once in 2010. The victory was the largest comeback by the Patriots from a second-half deficit since Nov. 10, 2002 when they beat the Chicago Bears 33-30 after trailing 27-6 in the third quarter.

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49ers blank Rams, clinch West, playoff berth

CBSSports.com wire reports
Dec. 4, 2011

SAN FRANCISCO -- Vernon Davis pulled on a black "NFC West champions" hat to dress up his suit and tie for a snazzy night on the town with some San Francisco offensive teammates. They were off for a celebratory steak dinner at one of the city's hotspots.

This meal -- for Davis, Frank Gore, Alex Smith and many others -- has been years in the making. Seven, to be exact, for Gore and Smith, and six for Davis. Star linebacker Patrick Willis, he's been waiting five.

The 49ers trounced the beat-up St. Louis Rams 26-0 on Sunday to become the NFL's second team to secure a playoff berth behind unbeaten defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay. Jim Harbaugh's focused bunch wrapped up that long-awaited division title for a once-proud franchise determined to return to the glory days of Jerry Rice and Joe Montana, Steve Young and Roger Craig.

The 49ers are NFC West champs and back in the playoffs for the first time since 2002.

"We want to make it to the championship. It's something we've been wanting for a long time," Davis said. "This is the reason why I'm here. It means a lot to me."

Harbaugh delivered exactly what the 49ers hired him for back in January: immediate success, a major transformation in a matter of months. So much for the lockout slowing him down.

Left tackle Joe Staley delivered the Gatordade dousing on Harbaugh's head in the closing moments -- sneaking up on the coach at the 2-minute warning. Or so he thought. Harbaugh, a 15-year NFL quarterback himself in his day, dodged out of the way to avoid being fully soaked.

"This step, this game today is for all those strong and mighty men who have been carrying the flag for this many years," Harbaugh said. "Each year that they've been here, thinking that was going to be the year, the year we go to the playoffs ... and there's disappointment when you don't make that."

Gore helped run San Francisco (10-2) right into the postseason, becoming the 49ers' career rushing leader by passing late Hall of Famer Joe Perry and finishing with 73 yards.

Alex Smith threw second-half touchdowns of 52 and 56 yards to Michael Crabtree and Kyle Williams and David Akers kicked four field goals to help Harbaugh join George Seifert (1989) and Steve Mariucci (1997) as the only rookie coaches in franchise history to win the division.

The only downer came when Willis left the game in the first half with a right hamstring injury that Harbaugh afterward said he didn't consider serious.

Rams quarterback A.J. Feeley struggled in place of injured starter Sam Bradford for the reeling Rams (2-10), who watched several more key players go down.

Even Feeley needed X-rays afterward on his right thumb.

"It's kind of the same story we've had all year. We just can't seem to put anything together," he said. "It's like a clock where everybody's got to be in sync. When that doesn't happen you put yourself in a tough situation."

The 49ers bounced back from a discouraging 16-6 loss at Baltimore on Thanksgiving night against the Ravens and Harbaugh's big brother, John, with another methodical victory. Smith was sacked nine times in that game and four more Sunday.

Despite further problems converting in the red zone early, San Francisco shut out an opponent for the first time since a 35-0 home win at Candlestick Park on Oct. 4, 2009. That was also the Rams' last shutout.

The Niners also avenged a late-season loss from 2010 that was still plenty fresh. They had won five straight before losing at St. Louis in the second-to-last week. It was after that game when coach Mike Singletary was fired. That led to the high-profile hiring of Harbaugh in January. And the 49ers' transformation began in earnest.

San Francisco's impressive season might help shed that "NFC Worst" stigma from the West.

"It's not a Hollywood team," Harbaugh said. "It's a blue-collar team."

Smith, who didn't start that last game against the Rams, completed 17 of 23 passes for 274 yards with no interceptions to finish with a career-high 142.3 quarterback rating. He gave way to rookie backup Colin Kaepernick midway through the fourth.

Gore ran for 2 yards early in the second quarter to give him 7,345 career yards rushing, moving him past Perry (7,344) for most in franchise history.

The 28-year-old Gore, a two-time Pro Bowl selection in his seventh NFL season, has said it was a goal for this season to become the career rushing leader - though getting to the playoffs for the first time has always been the top priority.

"There've been some tough years here," Gore said. "To get an opportunity to get to the postseason and to get it early, that's a blessing."

Gore and his teammates are wearing No. 34 helmet decals this season in honor of Perry, the first player with back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons and nicknamed "The Jet" for his sensational speed. He died in April at age 84.

Willis watched the second half on the sideline in a sweatsuit.

The four-time Pro Bowler landed awkwardly after missing a tackle on fullback Brit Miller, who made an 18-yard completion from Feeley with 4:28 left in the first quarter. Willis' body twisted as he fell to the ground and he stayed down for a short time as trainers ran out to check on him, then helped him limp off the field.

Akers kicked field goals of 36 and 19 yards then booted a 28-yarder 1:41 before halftime for his 31st of the year, topping Jeff Wilkins' single-season franchise mark of 30 set in 1996.

That gave the 49ers nine field goals - with only three TDs - in the last 14 trips to the red zone before Crabtree's TD catch. Akers kicked a 34-yarder in the third quarter.

Notes

Rams LG Jacob Bell (right knee) left and didn't return. The Niners are unbeaten in their last 10 home games vs. NFC West. Rookie Aldon Smith also had two sacks. Rams DE Chris Long has a sack in six straight games.

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