Eagles clinch NFL playoffs while Lions stun Vikings
Jalen Hurts threw for two touchdowns and ran for another on Sunday as the Philadelphia Eagles beat the New York Giants 48-22 and became the NFL's first playoff qualifier. Miles Sanders ran 17 times for 144 yards and two touchdowns while Hurts completed 21-of-31 passes for 217 yards and ran seven times for 77 yards. The Eagles improved to an NFL-best 12-1 to secure their fifth playoff bid in six seasons but their goal is a championship, not just a playoff spot. "We're trying to stay focused," Hurts said. "The reality is we're never satisfied so I think there is more out there for us to do." Hurts, who threw touchdown tosses of 41 yards to DeVonta Smith and 33 yards to A.J. Brown and ran 10 yards for another touchdown, has stressed consistency and improvement for a team that won the 2018 Super Bowl and started 8-0 for the first time in club history. "You just never want to ride waves. You never want to get too high or too low," Hurts said. "The main thing is to keep going. Nothing else matters but chasing that growth every day." "We just want to continue to taste progress. We want to continue to learn from our mistakes, learn from our successes and keep continuing to grow." Sanders scored on runs of 40 and three yards. "He's a big-time asset," Hurts said. "He worked really hard this off-season and has taken advantage of the opportunities he has had so I'm really proud of him." The Eagles stretched their lead for the NFC top seed, and a first-round bye plus home-field advantage in the playoffs, as Minnesota fell to 10-3 with a 34-23 loss at Detroit. Jared Goff threw for 330 yards and three touchdowns as the Lions improved to 6-7 at the Vikings' expense. The Dallas Cowboys (10-3) barely avoided an upset home loss before defeating Houston 27-23. Ezekiel Elliott's 2-yard touchdown run in the final seconds capped a 98-yard Dallas drive to victory. Buffalo kept the top spot in the AFC with a 20-12 home victory over the New York Giants as Josh Allen threw for 147 yards and ran for 47 more, delivering a 24-yard touchdown pass to Dawson Knox and running five yards for another touchdown to spark the Bills (10-3). The Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals remained deadlocked atop the AFC North division after each club won to reach 9-4. J.K. Dobbins ran for 120 yards and a touchdown and Justin Tucker kicked three field goals to became Baltimore's all-time scoring leading in a 16-14 victory at Pittsburgh. The Ravens, already without Lamar Jackson due to a knee injury, lost another starting quarterback as Tyler Huntley was slammed into the turf in the third quarter and put into concussion protocols. Baltimore finished behind rookie Anthony Brown. Joe Burrow threw for 239 yards and two touchdowns while Joe Mixon ran for 96 yards and another score to spark the Bengals to a 23-10 home triumph over Cleveland. Jacksonville's Trevor Lawrence threw for 368 yards and three touchdowns and ran for another touchdown as the Jaguars won 36-22 at Tennessee, trimming the 7-6 Titans' AFC South division lead over them to two games. (AFP)