GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Derrick Henry rushed for a season-high 216 yards and matched a career high with four touchdown runs as the Baltimore Ravens kept their playoff hopes alive by defeating the Green Bay Packers 41-24 on Saturday night. Henry had three touchdown runs in the first half and then scored again on a 25-yard run with 1:56 left in the game. His seventh career 200-yard rushing performance moved him ahead of Adrian Peterson and O.J. Simpson for the most in NFL history. His 36 carries represented a career high.
INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — C.J. Stroud threw two long touchdowns on Houston's first two drives, leading the Texans to a 20-16 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. This win clinched a third consecutive playoff berth for the Texans for the first time in franchise history. The Texans improved to 11-5 and have won eight in a row. It's their longest winning streak since 2018. The Chargers fell to 11-5 and had their four-game winning streak snapped. The loss handed the AFC West title to first-place Denver. The Chargers have the best kicker in the NFL, but Cameron Dicker missed a 32-yard field goal and a point after attempt.
UNDATED (AP) — The Bears clinched the NFC North title when the Ravens beat the Packers 41-24 on Saturday night. A year after going 5-12, Chicago is 11-4 under rookie coach Ben Johnson and second-year quarterback Caleb Williams. Baltimore (8-8) stayed alive in the AFC playoff race with the victory. Earlier Saturday, the Texans secured a third straight playoff berth under coach DeMeco Ryans with a 20-16 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. The Texans eliminated Philip Rivers and the Indianapolis Colts (8-7) in the process and stayed in the race for a third consecutive AFC South title. The loss by the Chargers (11-5) allowed Denver (13-4) to clinch a division that was owned by the Kansas City Chiefs for the past nine seasons.
HENDERSON, Nev. (AP) — Maxx Crosby's season is over after the Las Vegas Raiders place him on injured reserve because of a knee injury. The decision means he won't play in the final two games against the New York Giants and Kansas City. The Raiders said the move is in the best interest of both the team and Crosby. Coach Pete Carroll praised Crosby's competitiveness. The Raiders, with a 2-13 record, are in rebuild mode, also sidelining tight end Brock Bowers and safety Jeremy Chinn. Crosby, a top pass rusher, has 10 sacks this season and remains focused on winning, despite speculation about his future with the team.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Harrison Waylee ran for a touchdown, Chandler Morris threw for 198 yards and No. 20 Virginia edged 25th-ranked Missouri 13-7 in the Gator Bowl on Saturday night. The Cavaliers bounced back from a crushing loss to Duke in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game — an overtime stunner that cost them a spot in the College Football Playoff — and reached 11 wins for the first time in the program’s 122 years. Missouri All-American Ahmad Hardy ran 15 times for 89 yards. He broke Missouri’s single-season school record set by Cody Schrader (1,627 yards) in 2023 but didn’t do enough to spark Missouri’s offense.
NEW YORK (AP) — Ethan Grunkemeyer threw for a career-high 262 yards and two TDs, including a 73-yard strike to Trebor Pena early in the fourth quarter, and Penn State beat Clemson 22-10 in the Pinstripe Bowl. In his seventh start since Penn State lost Drew Allar to an injury, Grunkemeyer completed 23 of 34 passes, setting career bests for completions and attempts. His best throw was to Pena, who caught the ball at the Penn State 44, ran by Clemson safety Ricardo Jones and rumbled untouched down the left side for a 15-3 lead with 12:51 left in the fourth.
UNDATED (AP) — The College Football Playoff's first round averaged 9.9 million viewers across multiple networks, marking a 7% drop from last year. A key factor was the final game between James Madison and Oregon airing on TNT, TBS, and truTV instead of ABC and ESPN. It also faced competition from an NFL game. The Chicago Bears' victory over the Green Bay Packers drew 21.3 million viewers, overshadowing Oregon's win, which attracted 4.4 million. Alabama's comeback victory over Oklahoma was the most-watched CFP game, averaging 14.9 million viewers. ESPN sublicenses some CFP games to other networks, impacting viewership.
UNDATED (AP) — Jacob Rodriguez was sleeping on the floor of his brother’s apartment when he first got to Texas Tech as a walk-on in the spring of 2022. That was after a season as a quarterback at Virginia. The QB-turned-linebacker is now an AP All-American with a collection of trophies for national defensive player of the year awards. The fourth-ranked Red Raiders play No. 5 Oregon in a College Football Playoff quarterfinal game in the Orange Bowl on New Year’s Day. Rodriguez finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting. He won the Bednarik and Nagurski awards as the top defensive player, and the Butkus as the top linebacker.
CHICAGO (AP) — Giannis Antetokounmpo returned Saturday night from the right calf strain that has kept the two-time MVP from playing in the Milwaukee Bucks’ previous eight games. Antetokounmpo was in the starting lineup for the Bucks’ game against the Chicago Bulls, after the team originally listing him as questionable on the injury report. The two-time MVP scored a game-high 29 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a 112-103 victory over Chicago. Antetokounmpo hasn’t played since injuring his calf on Dec. 3.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Phoenix Suns center Mark Williams and New Orleans Pelicans point guard Jose Alvarado were ejected after getting into a fight in the third quarter Saturday night. The 7-foot-1 Williams and 6-foot Alvarado exchanged punches following a foul call on Alvarado as he tried to fight through a screen set by Williams. Phoenix won 123-114 for a two-game sweep of a back-to-back set between the teams in New Orleans.
UNDATED (AP) — Christian Pulisic scored the opener and Christopher Nkunku added two more as AC Milan beat Hellas Verona 3-0 to move atop Serie A. Massimiliano Allegri’s Milan hasn’t lost in Serie A since getting beat by Cremonese in the season opener in August. Milan moved two points ahead of Inter Milan before the Nerazzurri visit Atalanta later. Pulisic was in the right place at the right time to volley in from close range in first-half added time following a corner from Luka Modric that was headed on by Adrien Rabiot. Nkunku converted a penalty for his first Serie A goal and then turned in a rebound four minutes later.
SATURDAY SCORES
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Final Houston 20 L.A. Chargers 16
Final Baltimore 41 Green Bay 24
TOP-25 COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Final (12)BYU 25 (24)Georgia Tech 21
Final (20)Virginia 13 (25)Missouri 7
Final (23)North Texas 49 San Diego St. 47
NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION
Final Sacramento 113 Dallas 107
Final Phoenix 123 New Orleans 114
Final Orlando 127 Denver 126
Final Houston 117 Cleveland 100
Final Brooklyn 123 Minnesota 107
Final Miami 142 Indiana 116
Final Milwaukee 112 Chicago 103
Final Utah 127 San Antonio 114
Final New York 128 Atlanta 125
NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE
Final N-Y Islanders 2 N-Y Rangers 0
Final Buffalo 4 Boston 1
Final Carolina 5 Detroit 2
Final OT Washington 4 New Jersey 3
Final Toronto 7 Ottawa 5
Final OT Minnesota 4 Winnipeg 3
Final Tampa Bay 4 Florida 2
Final St. Louis 3 Nashville 2
Final SO Chicago 4 Dallas 3
Final Los Angeles 6 Anaheim 1
Final Calgary 3 Edmonton 2
Final San Jose 6 Vancouver 3
Final SO Colorado 6 Vegas 5