Big Ben and Brown rally Steelers past Broncos; Seahawks clinch playoff spot

PITTSBURGH -- Ben Roethlisberger passed for 380 yards and three touchdowns as the Steelers rallied for a 34-27 win over the Denver Broncos on Sunday.

Antonio Brown caught 16 passes for 189 yards and two scores as Pittsburgh (9-5) moved into the AFC’s second wild-card spot by dominating the NFL’s best defense after spotting the Broncos 17-point lead.

The Steelers controlled the second half, finally taking the lead when Ryan Shazier intercepted Osweiler to set up a 23-yard dart from Roethlisberger to Brown with 3:34 to go. Pittsburgh’s defense made it stand up, twice stopping the Broncos over the final minutes.

Brock Osweiler threw for 296 yards with three touchdowns passing and another on the ground but struggled in the second half as the Broncos (10-4) lost their second straight and failed to lock up the AFC West title.

Seahawks 30, Browns 13

SEATTLE -- Russell Wilson continued his record pace by throwing three touchdown passes, two to Doug Baldwin, and Seattle clinched a playoff spot for the fourth straight season with the win over Cleveland.

Seattle (9-5) won its fifth straight and, thanks to losses this week by Tampa Bay and the New York Giants, wrapped up a postseason berth.

Wilson was 21 of 30 for 249 yards. He found Baldwin on TDs of 6 and 3 yards in the first half, then hit Tyler Lockett on a 27-yard TD strike on the first play of the fourth quarter. Wilson became the first quarterback with three or more TD passes and no interceptions in five straight games.

Johnny Manziel threw a 7-yard TD to Gary Barnidge on the first drive for the Browns (3-11).

Chiefs 34, Ravens 14

BALTIMORE -- The Kansas City Chiefs capitalized on a variety of miscues by the Baltimore Ravens and extended their winning streak to eight games with a 34-14 victory Sunday.

Tyvon Branch returned a fumble 73 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter and Marcus Peters clinched the victory with a 90-yard interception return for a score with 4:36 left.

Kansas City (9-5) also scored touchdowns following a drive-extending penalty by Baltimore and a failed fake punt.

With the victory, the Chiefs became the first team in NFL history to follow a five-game skid with eight successive wins in the same season. Kansas City also kept itself in the thick of the AFC playoff picture.

Baltimore (4-10) lost its third straight and fell to 2-5 at home. It’s the first time in their 20-year history that the Ravens have lost five home games.

Bengals 24, 49ers 14

SANTA CLARA, -- Jeremy Hill ran for a pair of 1-yard touchdowns to back AJ McCarron’s first career start, and patchwork Cincinnati clinched a fifth straight postseason berth with the win over San Francisco.

As Andy Dalton watched from the sideline with a large cast over his broken right thumb, McCarron threw a 20-yard touchdown pass to Tyler Kroft just before halftime as the Bengals (11-3) forced three second-quarter turnovers by San Francisco (4-10) to take command.

Vontaze Burfict and Adam “Pacman” Jones each made interceptions on balls that deflected off the hands of tight end Vance McDonald. Cincinnati capitalized with touchdowns on two of the turnovers, including Kroft’s TD catch one play and five seconds after the second pick.

If all goes as planned, the Bengals will return to the Bay Area for the Super Bowl at Levi’s Stadium.

Redskins 35, Bills 25

LANDOVER, Md. -- Kirk Cousins equaled his career high with four touchdown passes and ran 13 yards for another score to help Washington win consecutive games for the first time in more than a year and stay atop the NFC East.

Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) celebrates after connecting with wide receiver Pierre Garcon for a touchdown Sunday.

(Mark Tenally / Associated Press)

While the Redskins (7-7) moved closer to a playoff berth, the Bills (6-8) are now assured of missing the postseason for the 16th year in a row, the NFL’s longest active drought.

Making first-year Bills head coach Rex Ryan’s defense look inept, and helped by a key fourth-down encroachment penalty on Buffalo, the Redskins scored TDs on each of their first three possessions for the first time since September 1999, grabbing a 21-0 lead in the second quarter.

Vikings 38, Bears 17

MINNEAPOLIS -- Teddy Bridgewater threw a career-high four touchdowns and ran for another one, and Minnesota took a significant step toward clinching a spot in the playoffs with the victory over Chicago.

Bridgewater completed 17 of 20 passes for 231 yards without a turnover, connecting twice with Stefon Diggs for scores. Jerick McKinnon and Zach Line had the other touchdown catches on a remarkably productive afternoon for all of Minnesota’s running backs.

Adrian Peterson missed some time because of an injury to his left ankle, but he still finished with 63 yards on 18 attempts to maintain his NFL rushing lead. The Vikings (9-5) stopped their two-game losing streak. They turned a lost fumble and an interception thrown by Jay Cutler into 14 second-half points.

Texans 16, Colts 10

INDIANAPOLIS -- Brandon Weeden replaced injured quarterback T.J. Yates late in the first half and threw a go-ahead 8-yard TD pass to Jaelen Strong with 10:36 to play, giving Houston its first win in 14 tries at Indianapolis.

The Texans (7-7) took sole possession of the AFC South lead by snapping a two-game losing streak.

The Colts (6-8) have lost three straight and need help to make the playoffs.

The battle of backup quarterbacks didn’t earn any style points. Yates was 6 of 10 for 68 yards with one interception before hurting his left knee. Weeden went 11 of 18 with 105 yards, leading the Texans to three field goals and the decisive TD.

Hasselbeck was 17 of 30 with 147 yards and one interception and briefly gave way to Charlie Whitehurst in the fourth.

Patriots 33, Titans 16

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Tom Brady threw for two touchdowns to help New England hold onto the top spot in the AFC, beating Tennessee while knocking Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota out with a knee injury in the first half.

The 2014 Heisman Trophy winner and the No. 2 overall pick in this year’s draft, Mariota left the game and did not return after being sacked to end consecutive second-quarter drives.

Brady completed 23 of 35 passes for 267 yards.

Delanie Walker caught two passes, both for touchdowns, for 64 yards for Tennessee. Zach Mettenberger completed 20 of 28 passes for 242 yards, two TD and two interceptions after replacing Mariota.

Falcons 23, Jaguars 17

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Julio Jones scored for the first time in seven weeks, and Atlanta ended a six-game losing streak with the road win.

Jones finished with nine receptions for 118 yards and set the franchise record for catches in a season. He has 118, breaking teammate Roddy White’s mark of 115 set in 2010.

The Falcons (7-7) had lost six straight and even had some wondering whether they had given up after losing 38-0 last week at Carolina. But they showed resiliency against Jacksonville and won for the first time since Oct. 25.

The Jaguars (5-9), meanwhile, lost ground in the muddled AFC South and were all but eliminated in the division race.