Jets soar past Bengals, land in playoffs

Rex Ryan's top-ranked defense shut down the Cincinnati Bengals, and rookie Mark Sanchez efficiently led a clock-eating offense as the New York Jets clinched their first playoff berth in three seasons with a 37-0 victory at a frigid Meadowlands on Sunday night.

Needing a win to keep their season alive, the Jets (9-7) set up a rematch against the Bengals (10-6) in the first round of the playoffs Saturday at Cincinnati.

It was the Jets' first shutout at home since beating Pittsburgh 6-0 on Dec. 14, 2003.

Sanchez was 8 of 16 for 63 yards with no turnovers before being replaced by Kellen Clemens late in the fourth quarter with the game in hand. Thomas Jones ran for 78 yards and two touchdowns and do-it-all Brad Smith had 92 yards rushing, including a 32-yard TD run, as the Jets set a record for rushing yards in a season.

The Bengals opened with most of their starters -- running back Cedric Benson was the only healthy starter to not play -- but pulled Carson Palmer early in the third quarter. Palmer was ineffective when he was in, going 1 of 11 for zero yards, before J.T. O'Sullivan replaced him.

Cowboys 24, Eagles 0

Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys had their way with the Philadelphia Eagles. Their reward: the NFC East title and the challenge of trying to do it again.

Romo threw a pair of early touchdown passes and the defense took over from there, sending Dallas to victory over Philadelphia and setting up a rematch at their new palace this weekend.

The Cowboys (11-5) recorded their first back-to-back shuouts. Only twice in the previous 49 seasons had they even had two shutouts the entire season.

Donovan McNabb was 20 of 36 for 223 yards, and Philadelphia (11-5) finished with 228 total yards. The Cowboys had 291 yards at halftime on their way to gaining 474.

Romo was 24 of 34 for 311 yards, with the two touchdowns and an interception.

Ravens 21, Raiders 13

Willis McGahee ran for a career-high 167 yards and three touchdowns and the Ravens clinched an AFC wild-card berth.

The Ravens (9-7) went into the regular season finale knowing a win would put them in the playoffs and a loss would send them home for an early winter. The Raiders (5-11) provided a stiff challenge for much of the game but were unable to pull it out in the end behind former starter JaMarcus Russell.

Dannell Ellerbe intercepted a pass from Russell late in the third quarter to set up McGahee's third touchdown that made it 21-13.

Titans 17, Seahawks 13

Chris Johnson became the sixth player in NFL history to rush for 2,000 yards in a season, then scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 1-yard run with 4:33 remaining.

Johnson ran 36 times -- three short of Earl Campbell's franchise record set in 1981 against Seattle -- for 134 yards and both touchdowns for the Titans (8-8).

Johnson, the second-year dynamo, joined Eric Dickerson, Jamal Lewis, Barry Sanders, Terrell Davis and O.J. Simpson in the 2,000-yard club.

Chiefs 44, Broncos 24

Josh McDaniels' first season as Denver coach ended the same way Mike Shanahan's last one did: with a late-season flop and an embarrassing blowout that wasted a strong start and kept the Broncos out of the playoffs.

Jamaal Charles ran for a Chiefs-record 259 yards on 25 carries and linebacker Derrick Johnson returned two Kyle Orton interceptions for touchdowns in Kansas City's first victory in nine tries at Invesco Field.

The Chiefs looked nothing like a 4-12 team against the Broncos (8-8), who lost eight of 10 after a 6-0 start.

Texans 34, Patriots 27

Rookie Arian Foster scored two touchdowns, Bernard Pollard recovered a fumble for a touchdown and had a key interception as the Texans (9-7) finished with a winning record for the first time in team history.

The Texans trailed by 14 points in the fourth quarter before ending the game with three unanswered touchdowns.

Steelers 30, Dolphins 24

A swarming Steelers defense sent two Miami quarterbacks to the sideline, including Pat White with a scary head injury, but the reigning Super Bowl champions were eliminated from the playoff chase.

Ben Roethlisberger threw three touchdown passes, but the stadium grew silent when White was carted off the field with a head injury following a helmet-to-helmet collision with cornerback Ike Taylor.

White moved his arms and legs before leaving the field after an eight-minute delay. A team spokesman said White "seems to be OK in terms of movement," but he still went to the hospital.

Vikings 44, Giants 7

Brett Favre passed for 316 yards and four touchdowns without a turnover in less than three quarters against the barely there Giants (8-8).

The NFC North champion Vikings (12-4) earned the No. 2 seed in the NFC and a first-round bye.

Sidney Rice caught six passes for 112 yards and two scores, and tight end Visanthe Shiancoe had seven receptions for 94 yards and a touchdown, all in the first half. Adrian Peterson scored his 18th touchdown.

Bills 30, Colts 7

Despite near whiteout conditions in the first half, Ryan Fitzpatrick threw three touchdown passes for Buffalo (6-10), including a 41-yarder to Terrell Owens.

Fred Jackson had 212 yards rushing to reach 1,000 for the first time in his career.

The Colts (14-2) rested numerous starters, including Peyton Manning, in the second quarter. They have a two-week break before opening the playoffs as the AFC's top-seeded team.

Packers 33, Cardinals 7

The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers knew well before kickoff that they would be playing each other again on the same field in a few days.

The Cardinals can only hope this wasn't a preview of that first-round playoff matchup.

Aaron Rodgers, playing mostly against the Arizona reserves, shredded the Cardinals in three quarters, completing 21 of 26 passes for 235 yards and a touchdown.

The Packers (11-5) won for the seventh time in eight games.

Arizona (10-6) sat quarterback Kurt Warner after one quarter. Backup Matt Leinart completed 13 of 21 passes for 96 yards and was intercepted twice.

Panthers 23, Saints 10

Saints backups gave an ugly performance that sends the No. 1 seed in the NFC into the postseason on a three-game losing streak.

Jonathan Stewart rushed for 125 yards and a touchdown, and the Panthers (8-8) won their third straight. Stewart surpassed Pro Bowl pick DeAngelo Williams for the team rushing lead as they became the first teammates since the AFL-NFL merger to each rush for over 1,100 yards.

The Saints (13-3) rested many starters, including quarterback Drew Brees.

Chargers 23, Redskins 20

Billy Volek threw a 2-yard touchdown pass to fullback Mike Tolbert with 35 seconds left to rally the playoff-bound Chargers to their 11th straight victory.

The AFC West champion Chargers (13-3) already clinched the conference's No. 2 playoff seed and a first-round bye and had nothing to play for except to avoid injuries.

Browns 23, Jaguars 17

Jerome Harrison rushed for 127 yards and a touchdown, and Josh Cribbs ran for a TD, giving Cleveland its first four-game winning streak since 1994. That pushed coach Eric Mangini into an uncertain offseason with momentum to fight for his job.

The Jaguars (7-9), who had to win and needed four other teams to lose just to qualify, dropped their last four games.

Falcons 20, Buccaneers 10

Matt Ryan threw for 223 yards and two touchdowns, helping the Falcons finish with consecutive winning records for the first time in franchise history.

Standing in for injured leading rusher Michael Turner, Jason Snelling ran for 147 yards on 25 carries for Atlanta (9-7).

Tampa Bay (3-13) concluded its first season under coach Raheem Morris with its worst record since 1991.

Bears 37, Lions 23

Jay Cutler matched a career high for a second straight week with four touchdown passes.

The Bears (7-9) won their final two games and three of the first four. The problem: Chicago lost eight of 10 games between its strong start and finish.

-- The Associated Press