LOS ANGELES – Carson Wentz threw for 291 yards and four touchdowns before leaving with a knee injury and Jake Elliott kicked the go-ahead 33-yard field goal with 3:45 left for the Philadelphia Eagles, who beat the Los Angeles Rams, 43-35, in a thriller Sunday to clinch the NFC East title.
Two sources familiar with the injury told the Associated Press that doctors believe Wentz has torn his left anterior cruciate ligament and will miss the rest of the season and playoffs.
Wentz was hit hard as he scrambled into the end zone on a play that was called back because of holding. He stayed in the game and threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Alshon Jeffery four plays later to give the Eagles the lead.
Foles replaced Wentz on the next drive for Philadelphia (11-2).
The NFC West-leading Rams (9-4) then went up 35-31 on Todd Gurley’s second short TD run.
Elliott kicked a 41-yard field goal to pull the Eagles to 35-34. His go-ahead field goal was set up when Chris Long, a second-round draft pick of the then-St. Louis Rams in 2008, had a strip-sack of Jared Goff, with Rodney McLeod recovering.
Elliott kicked a 54-yarder, but the Eagles got an automatic first down on a personal foul on Aaron Donald. Elliott kicked the winner four plays later.
The game ended on a crazy play, when Philadelphia’s Brandon Graham grabbed a lateral by Tavon Austin out of the air on the game’s last play and scored what was ruled a 16-yard fumble return.
The Eagles clinched their first division title since 2013.
This was the eighth time in the Super Bowl era that quarterbacks taken No. 1 and No. 2 overall in the same draft squared off. Goff was the first pick overall in 2016, followed by Wentz.
Goff threw for 199 yards and two touchdowns.
Jaguars 30, Seahawks 24
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Blake Bortles threw two perfect passes for touchdowns and Jaydon Mickens set up another score with a 72-yard punt return.
The Jaguars (9-4) intercepted three passes by Russell Wilson, including two on deep balls, and won for the sixth time in their last seven games. This victory, coupled with Tennessee’s loss at Arizona, moved Jacksonville atop the AFC South.
It’s the first time since 2010 that the Jaguars have had the outright division lead this late in a season.
The loss didn’t sit well with the Seahawks (8-5), who had two players ejected in the final minute. Defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson was ejected for throwing a punch during a melee that included defensive tackle Michael Bennett and Jaguars running back Leonard Fournette.
More pushing and shoving occurred after the next play, and defensive end Quinton Jefferson was tossed. Jefferson tried to climb into the stands after getting hit with what looked like a plastic bottle.
Cardinals 12, Titans 7
GLENDALE, Ariz. – Phil Dawson kicked four second-half field goals and the Cardinals shut down Tennessee’s offense nearly all day.
Dawson connected from 47, 23, 32 and 35 yards and missed from 40 for the Cardinals (6-7), whose victory came two weeks after they beat then-AFC South leader Jacksonville on the same field.
The Cardinals intercepted Marcus Mariota twice in the second half after the Titans (8-5) nursed a 7-0 lead at halftime.
Chargers 30, Redskins 13
CARSON, Calif. – Philip Rivers passed for 319 yards and two touchdowns, and the Chargers continued their ferocious playoff push with their fourth straight victory.
Tyrell Williams caught a 75-yard touchdown pass and Hunter Henry had another scoring grab for the Chargers (7-6), who have won seven of nine after an 0-4 start to their relocation season.
While outscoring their opponents 131-53 during their winning streak, the Chargers also moved above .500 for the first time since September 2015 with a dominant offensive performance against Washington.
The Chargers stayed atop the AFC West alongside the Chiefs (7-6), their opponents Saturday in Kansas City.
Packers 27, Browns 21
CLEVELAND – Brett Hundley threw a 25-yard touchdown pass to Davante Adams in overtime as the Packers rallied from a two-touchdown deficit in the fourth quarter.
Cleveland fell to 0-13 and made too many crucial mistakes to break into the win column.
On third-and-6, Hundley threw a short pass to Adams, who broke a tackle and went in untouched with 5:05 left as the Packers (7-6) won in overtime for the second straight week – and third time this season. The Packers have stayed alive in the playoff race without Rodgers, who has been out since Oct. 15 with a broken collarbone, but is expected to play next Sunday.
Chiefs 26, Raiders 15
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kareem Hunt ran for 116 yards and a touchdown and the Chiefs shut down Derek Carr and his offense to snap a four-game losing streak.
The suddenly stingy Chiefs (7-6) also made a big statement in the crowded AFC West race.
Alex Smith threw for 268 yards and Charcandrick West had a touchdown run for the Chiefs, who held the Raiders without points until Marshawn Lynch’s 22-yard run with 8:51 to go.
By that point, the Chiefs were cruising toward their 14th win in 15 divisional games.
Panthers 31, Vikings 24
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Jonathan Stewart ran for 103 yards and three touchdowns, and the Panthers snapped the Vikings’ eight-game winning streak.
Cam Newton threw for a touchdown and ran for 75 yards as the Panthers (9-4) racked up 216 yards on the ground against the league’s No. 2 ranked defense to pull even with the Saints atop the NFC South standings.
Carolina sacked Case Keenum six times and forced three turnovers to keep the Vikings (10-3) from clinching the NFC North division title.
Lions 24, Buccaneers 21
TAMPA, Fla. – Matthew Stafford passed for 381 yards with an injured throwing hand and set up Matt Prater for a 46-yard field goal in the closing seconds.
Stafford made his 109th consecutive start despite being limited in practice after his right hand was stepped on during the previous week at Baltimore. He completed 36 of 44 attempts against the Bucs (4-9), and the Lions (7-6) overcame two interceptions and a fumble to stop a two-game losing streak.
Stafford moved the Lions 49 yards in eight plays to set up Prater’s winning kick with 20 seconds left.
San Francisco 26, Houston 16
HOUSTON – Jimmy Garoppolo threw for a career-high 334 yards and a touchdown to help the 49ers to their second straight win.
Garoppolo again showed that he could be the answer for the 49ers (3-10) at quarterback, going 20 of 33 in his second start for the team. Acquired before the trade deadline from New England, Garoppolo threw for 293 yards in his debut last week to help the 49ers to a 15-14 win at Chicago.
The game was tied when he found Garrett Celek on a 6-yard touchdown pass with about two minutes left in the third quarter to make it 23-16. Celek had a big play earlier in that drive on a 61-yard reception on third down.
DeAndre Hopkins had 149 yards receiving and two touchdowns, but lost a fumble in the fourth quarter with the Texans down by seven.
Bears 33, Bengals 7
CINCINNATI – Rookie Mitchell Trubisky threw for a touchdown and ran for another in his best showing yet, and the Bears ended a five-game losing streak with their most lopsided victory in five years.
Jordan Howard ran for 147 yards and a pair of touchdowns as the Bears (4-9) dominated a matchup of the NFL’s worst offenses. Their rookie quarterback took full advantage of an injury-depleted defense, completing a season-high 25 passes out of 32 attempts for 271 yards. He also ran 4 yards for a score.