Saquon Barkley rushed for 167 yards to top 2,000 on the season, backup quarterback Kenny Pickett ran and threw for scores before departing with injured ribs, and the Philadelphia Eagles clinched the NFC East title by routing the Dallas Cowboys 41-7 on Sunday.

Barkley has 2,005 yards and needs 101 in next week’s mostly meaningless regular-season finale to top Eric Dickerson and his 2,105 yards for the Los Angeles Rams in 1984.

The Eagles (13-3) led 24-7 in the third quarter when Pickett was drilled by defensive end Micah Parsons, ending his first start in place of the concussed Jalen Hurts. Tanner McKee, a career third-stringer, entered the game and the Eagles finished the drive with a field goal.

McKee later threw two TD passes, a 20-yarder to AJ Brown and a 25-yarder to DeVonta Smith, in front of a roaring crowd delighted to watch the Eagles dominate their fiercest rival to wrap up the division title and at least the No 2 seed in the NFC.

Hurts was injured in last week’s loss at Washington and remains in the NFL’s concussion protocol – he didn’t practice all week – which opened the door for Pickett to start.

Pickett, acquired from Pittsburgh in the offseason, played with extra protection under his jersey after he suffered a rib injury when he was pressed into service against the Commanders.

Sore ribs or not, Pickett was pumped for this start all week. He was raised a diehard Eagles fan in central New Jersey about 80 miles from Lincoln Financial Field and recalled “great memories” of going to games with his dad and grandfather since he was 5 years old.

The 26-year-old Pickett said he had plenty of family at the Linc to cheer him on against Dallas (7-9).

More than 60,000 other Eagles rooted him on, too, but Pickett’s dream day ended prematurely. He finished 10 of 15 for 143 yards.

With the Eagles no longer having a division title to play for, it’s likely Hurts will rest another week ahead of the playoffs. Now, Pickett could be sidelined as well – possibly forcing McKee into the starting lineup.

Barkley had 31 carries and his last one went for 23 yards to push him over 2,000. He could also sit out rather than risk injury chasing Dickerson’s record. Barkley, who left the Giants and signed a three-year deal with the Eagles for $26m guaranteed, set the NFL mark for most yards rushing in a player’s first season with a new team.

Carolina Panthers 14-48 Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Baker Mayfield threw for 359 yards and five touchdowns to help the Buccaneers keep their division and playoff hopes alive with a 48-14 rout of the Panthers on Sunday.

Tampa Bay’s fifth win in the past six weeks nudged the first-place Bucs (9-7) a half-game ahead of Atlanta for the best record in the NFC South, with the Falcons set to play on the road later Sunday night at Washington.

Atlanta holds the tiebreaker in the division race and can end Tampa Bay’s three-year reign as NFC South champions by beating the Commanders and winning again next week at home against the last-place Panthers (4-12).

Mayfield threw TD passes of 2 and 1 yards to Mike Evans, and Tampa Bay produced points on five straight first-half possessions to build a 27-7 lead. Jalen McMillan scored on receptions of 10 and 16 yards, linebacker JJ Russell returned a blocked punt for a third-quarter TD and rookie Bucky Irving had another big game against Carolina with 120 yards rushing on 20 carries and four receptions for 77 yards.

Irving went over 1,000 yards for the season (1,033) despite primarily being used as a backup to Rachaad White. The fourth-round draft pick ran for 152 yards and a touchdown on 25 carries against the NFL’s 32nd-ranked run defense in Tampa Bay’s 26-23 overtime win at Carolina on 1 December.

Tennessee Titans 13-20 Jacksonville Jaguars

Mac Jones threw two touchdown passes, including one to standout rookie Brian Thomas Jr, and the Jacksonville Jaguars beat the Tennessee Titans 20-13 in the rain Sunday to sweep the season series for the fourth time in 30 years.

Jones completed 15 of 22 passes for 174 yards, with most of them going to Thomas. The first-round draft pick from LSU finished with seven receptions for 91 yards. His 11-yard TD catch with 7:05 remaining gave him his eighth game with at least 60 yards and a score, tying him with Hall of Famer Randy Moss for the most by a rookie in NFL history.

Thomas, who has five TD catches in his past four games, also became the fifth player in Jaguars history with double-digit TD receptions in a single season. He joined Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns, Marcedes Lewis and Reggie Williams.

The Titans (3-13) improved their position for the 2025 NFL draft – a potential chance to land a franchise quarterback – and secured last place in the AFC South. The Jaguars (4-12) guaranteed themselves third in the division.

New York Jets 14-40 Buffalo Bills

Josh Allen threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score, and the Buffalo Bills clinched the AFC’s No 2 seed with a 40-14 rout of the unraveling and undisciplined New York Jets on Sunday.

The Bills put the game away by capitalizing on two Jets turnovers and scoring three touchdowns over a 5:01 span in the closing minutes of the third quarter. Buffalo’s defense forced three takeaways overall and sacked Aaron Rodgers four times, including a two-yard loss for a safety in the second quarter.

Allen had a short and efficient outing, finishing 16 of 27 for 182 yards with a 30-yard TD pass to Amari Cooper and a 14-yarder to Keon Coleman before giving way to backup Mitchell Trubisky with Buffalo leading 33-0 through three quarters. And Trubisky piled on by completing a 69-yard touchdown pass to practice squad call-up Tyrell Shavers 2:23 into the fourth quarter.

Allen’s two-TD passing outing was the 64th of his career to match Peyton Manning for the third most in a player’s first seven NFL seasons. Patrick Mahomes holds the record with 67 two-TD outings in that span, followed by Dan Marino’s 65.

Allen also became the NFL’s first player with five consecutive 40-TD seasons, while his one-yard score was the 65th rushing TD of his career, matching the team record held by Thurman Thomas.

Las Vegas Raiders 25-10 New Orleans Saints

Aidan O’Connell passed for two touchdowns, tight end Brock Bowers broke two rookie NFL records, and the Las Vegas Raiders won for just the fourth time this season, 25-10 over the struggling New Orleans Saints on Sunday.

Bowers’ seven catches for 77 yards gave him 108 receptions for 1,144 yards this season, eclipsing Mike Ditka’s 1961 rookie tight end mark of 1,067 yards receiving and Puka Nacua’s 2023 mark of 105 catches by a rookie at any position. Bowers also surpassed Darren Waller’s franchise mark of 107 receptions in a season, which had stood since 2020.

Ameer Abdullah rushed for 115 yards for the Raiders (4-12) – the journeyman running back’s first 100-yard game in his 10 NFL seasons.

O’Connell finished with 242 yards passing, including a three-yard TD pass to Jakobi Meyers and an 18-yarder to Tre Tucker.

Daniel Carlson kicked four field goals – his longest from 54 yards – for the Raiders, who didn’t look fazed by flight delays on Saturday that got them into their hotel after midnight, less than 12 hours before kickoff.

Indianapolis Colts 33-45 New York Giants

The New York Giants snapped a franchise-record 10-game losing streak and ended the Indianapolis Colts’ slim playoff hopes Sunday as Drew Lock threw four touchdown passes and ran for another in a 45-33 victory.

New York earned their first home win of the season and they no longer has control of the No 1 overall pick in the draft.

Lock sandwiched touchdown passes of 31 and 59 yards to Malik Nabers around TD passes of 32 yards to Darius Slayton and 5 yards to Wan’Dale Robinson in leading the Giants (3-13) to their first win since beating Seattle on 6 October.

Ihmir Smith-Marsette had a 100-yard return on the second-half kickoff on a day the league’s worst offense set a season high for points.

Jonathan Taylor scored on runs of 3 and 26 yards for Indianapolis (7-9), while Joe Flacco, subbing for the injured Anthony Richardson, threw touchdown passes of 13 yards to Alec Pierce and 7 yards to Michael Pittman, the last bringing the Colts within 35-33 with 6:38 left in the fourth quarter.

Lock, who finished 17 of 23 for 309 yards, iced the game by leading a nine-play, 70-yard drive that he capped with a five-yard run.