NFL Scores Week 16: Final Results, Playoff Standings and Picture for AFC, NFC

With top seeds still very much undetermined, many division titles up for grabs and jumbled wild-card races in both conferences, Week 16's NFL action could hardly have been more packed with subplots and juicy storylines.  

Saturday set the tone with the Philadelphia Eagles being upset by Washington, while the San Diego Chargers kept their playoff hopes alive with a 21-point comeback to win in San Francisco in overtime.

Monday night's cap-off contest between two of the AFC's best in Denver and Cincinnati will have major implications. However, Sunday's slate offers the majority of the twists in the postseason picture.

Check out the latest Week 16 scores below, along with the updated scenarios and a breakdown of what's transpired in the penultimate week of the 2014 season.

Away Team	Score	Home Team
Tennessee Titans	13-21	Jacksonville Jaguars
Philadelphia Eagles	27-24	Washington Redskins
San Diego Chargers	38-35	San Francisco 49ers
Baltimore Ravens	13-25	Houston Texans
Green Bay Packers	20-3	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Kansas City Chiefs	12-20	Pittsburgh Steelers
Cleveland Browns	13-17	Carolina Panthers
Detroit Lions	20-14	Chicago Bears
Minnesota Vikings	35-37	Miami Dolphins
Atlanta Falcons	30-14	New Orleans Saints
New England Patriots	17-16	New York Jets
New York Giants	37-27	St. Louis Rams
Indianapolis Colts	7-42	Dallas Cowboys
Buffalo Bills	24-26	Oakland Raiders
Seattle Seahawks	35-6	Arizona Cardinals

AFC Playoff Analysis

The closeness of the outcome may have been a surprise to some. No matter, because the New England Patriots did enough to beat the New York Jets and rest for the first week of the playoffs.

This has become a commonplace phenomenon for the NFL's Exhibit A in traditions of excellence:

Sean Leahy of the Boston Herald did bring up an interesting point about New England's tight 17-16 win and its potential ramifications:

That will be worth monitoring, though New England looks like the AFC's most complete team in all phases of the game.

The AFC North's plot thickened considerably on Sunday, as the Pittsburgh Steelers defeated the playoff-contending Kansas City Chiefs. That knocked out the Miami Dolphins from the postseason even before their rousing comeback win over Minnesota.

Pittsburgh's momentum was communicated by defensive end Cameron Heyward after the game, per NFL Network's Aditi Kinkhabwala:

Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports alludes to how the Bengals must come to play on Monday night in light of how well the Steelers took care of business:

Perhaps the most shocking letdown was that of the Baltimore Ravens on the road versus Houston. Former Texans coach Gary Kubiak now calls plays for the Ravens offense, and it seemed the Houston had a beat on everything Baltimore was doing.

J.J. Watt was a major factor, as NFL.com's Chris Trapasso alluded to:

There hasn't been a much more viable MVP candidate than Watt, whose team has deployed Ryan Fitzpatrick, Ryan Mallett, Tom Savage and Sunday's winner Case Keenum at quarterback this season.

It's a wonder the Texans are even in the postseason conversation at this point, and Watt is a big reason why.

The Buffalo Bills were a surprise team still with a shot a the postseason, but any such aspirations were denied with a loss to the Oakland Raiders.

NFC Playoff Analysis

Brandon Wade/Associated Press

What a monster statement by the Dallas Cowboys, as they clinched the NFC East with a 42-7 triumph over the Indianapolis Colts.

Tony Romo helped out a banged-up DeMarco Murray by completing 18 of 20 passes for 218 yards and four touchdowns to lead America's Team to the playoffs. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport hinted at how unlikely Dallas' rise has been:

Hours later, the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks destroyed the Arizona Cardinals 35-6 in prime time, placing Seattle atop the NFC.

As brilliant as Russell Wilson and Marshawn Lynch were to make plays for the Lombardi Trophy bearers, this stat from Fox Sports' Bruce Feldman shows why back-to-back title talk is real in the Emerald City:

With such a huge home advantage at CenturyLink Field, the Seahawks can host every game from here on in if they defeat St. Louis in Week 17. That has to enhance their chances for a repeat.

While the Tampa Bay Buccaneers hope to get a franchise quarterback at the top of the next draft, Green Bay bounced back from last week's loss in Buffalo and kept pace in the NFC North by beating the Bucs 20-3.

As well as elite QB Aaron Rodgers plays for the Packers, what should make opponents fear Green Bay most as it clinches a playoff berth is the emergence of Eddie Lacy.

After it looked like Lacy was enduring a sophomore slump following last year's NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award, the second-year stud got a second wind. Gil Brandt of NFL.com explains:

Dropped passes plagued Chicago Bears quarterback Jimmy Clausen, as he almost helped his side play spoiler at Soldier Field to the Detroit Lions.

Even with Matthew Stafford being sacked four times and throwing two interceptions, Detroit found a way to grind out a victory on the road to retain its status in the NFC's top tier, in line for a first-round bye.

SportsCenter noted how rare it's been for the Lions, plagued by mental errors and carelessness in recent years, to even qualify for a chance at the Lombardi Trophy:

The race for the worst division, the NFC South, saw the New Orleans Saints, once seemingly unbeatable at home, drop a fifth-straight game at the Superdome against the Atlanta Falcons. Drew Brees and the Saints' high-octane offense couldn't get going well enough against Atlanta's last-ranked pass defense.

For those questioning Matt Ryan's status as one of the game's best QBs, his performance Sunday (30-of-40 passing, 322 yards and a TD) had to silence some critics.

Matt Waldman of Footballguys praised how Ryan has handled tough circumstances:

Superstar New Orleans tight end Jimmy Graham was stripped on the goal line on what looked like could have been called a touchdown. Although Graham scored a TD later on to make up for that, NFL.com's Gregg Rosenthal criticized him for his lackluster play:

Brees made another key blunder, something that's been a common theme this year, throwing a game-sealing interception into the arms of Falcons cornerback Robert McClain.

Football Outsiders' Scott Kacsmar weighed in:

That dashed the home team's hopes of sealing a home playoff game, though it may have been a disadvantage based on how poor the Saints have fared in front of their fans as of late.

Credit the Falcons for beating up on the rest of the league's inferior cluster, though:

Carolina hosted Cleveland and knocked Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel out of the game, but the Panthers let Jordan Cameron break loose for an 81-yard touchdown grab in the fourth.

That merely set the stage for a gutsy comeback from Panthers QB Cam Newton, who hit Jonathan Stewart for a nine-yard TD connection to give Carolina's season finale some significance.

NFL Network's Andrew Siciliano broke down the past two divisions' massive stakes to look forward to in Week 17:

Somehow the 6-8-1 Panthers hit the road with their division's lead and will seek to shred Atlanta in the Georgia Dome. However, their thin secondary will be tested by Ryan and the Falcons' dynamic wideout duo of Julio Jones and Roddy White.

With how much the Lions have failed to finish in the past, their resilience this year under new coach Jim Caldwell has been phenomenal. Getting a win at Lambeau Field would cement Detroit among the NFL's best and reward its surprising 2014 resurgence with a bye and a home playoff game.