Manziel injured; Browns lose again
The Cleveland Browns are limping to the finish line.
The Browns (7-8) lost their fourth straight game Sunday, including their second in a row under rookie starter Johnny Manziel.
Manziel was a mere 3 of 8 for 32 yards passing and ran twice for 3 yards in the 17-13 defeat to the Carolina Panthers before leaving with a hamstring injury late in the first half.
Brian Hoyer wasn’t much better, finishing 7 of 13 for 134 yards, the bulk of that coming on an 81-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jordan Cameron. He threw one interception and was sacked three times.
The Browns had just 228 yards on offense and eight first downs.
“Offensively, not near good enough to win in this league,” Browns coach Mike Pettine said. “We made the one big play, but other than that we never really seemed to get in much of a rhythm.”
The Browns were officially eliminated from playoff contention Saturday when San Diego beat San Francisco. They’ve not been to the playoffs since 2002.
Manziel’s status for next week’s season finale at Baltimore remains uncertain.
Detroit 20, Chicago 14: Joique Bell scored the go-ahead touchdown on a sweet run in the fourth quarter, Ndamukong Suh had two sacks and the playoff-bound Detroit Lions beat Jimmy Clausen and the Chicago Bears 20-14.
Calvin Johnson added six catches for 103 yards for Detroit (11-4), which came away with a narrow victory over a struggling team after locking up its second trip to the postseason in 15 years. The Bears benched quarterback Jay Cutler last week in favor of the undistinguished Clausen.
Atlanta 30, New Orleans 14: Julio Jones returned from a hip injury to catch seven passes for 107 yards, and the Atlanta Falcons remained in playoff contention with a 30-14 victory over New Orleans.
Matt Ryan completed 30 of 40 passed for 322 yards and a touchdown, and Devonta Freeman ran for a 31-yard score for Atlanta (6-9), which can win the NFC South by beating Carolina next week.
Green Bay 20, Tampa Bay 3: Aaron Rodgers threw for 318 yards and one touchdown Sunday to help the Green Bay Packers beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 20-3 and clinch a wild-card playoff berth.
Eddie Lacy scored on a 44-yard run, Jordy Nelson caught a 1-yard TD pass in the fourth quarter and had nine receptions for 113 yards, while Randall Cobb finished with 11 catches for 131 yards.
New England 17, N.Y. Jets 16: Jonas Gray scored the go-ahead touchdown on a 1-yard run early in the fourth quarter after the Patriots intercepted Geno Smith, and New England clinched a first-round playoff bye with a 17-16 victory over the New York Jets.
Tom Brady threw a 3-yard TD pass to Rob Gronkowski for the Patriots (12-3), who could earn home-field advantage throughout the AFC playoffs if Denver loses to Cincinnati tonight.
Miami 37, Minnesota 35: Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, buoyed by a thrilling comeback win over the Minnesota Vikings, says Joe Philbin will return as coach next season.
N.Y. Giants 37, St. Louis 27: Odell Beckham Jr. caught two touchdown passes and rolled up 148 yards receiving against a defense that hadn’t allowed a TD in three straight games, leading the New York Giants to a 37-27 victory over the St. Louis Rams.
Beckham set a franchise rookie record with his 10th and 11th TD catches, shattered another rookie mark for receptions and topped 1,000 yards while shrugging off a pair of late hits in the second quarter. The second led to a brawl and three ejections, none of them to starters.
Oakland 26, Buffalo 24: Derek Carr threw two touchdown passes and Sebastian Janikowski kicked four field goals to help the Oakland Raiders knock the Buffalo Bills from playoff contention with a 26-24 victory.
Dallas 42, Indianapolis 7: Dallas ended a four-year playoff drought in a dominating 42-7 victory over the Indianapolis Colts, with Tony Romo throwing four touchdown passes and breaking Troy Aikman’s franchise record for yards passing.
San Diego 38, San Francisco 35: Nick Novak kicked a 40-yard field goal nearly five minutes into overtime after Philip Rivers rallied San Diego back from a 21-point deficit in the second half, keeping the Chargers’ slim playoff hopes alive with a 38-35 victory over the San Francisco 49ers.