The San Francisco 49ers win thanks to an impressive performance against the Los Angeles Rams and thus secure play-off participation. The AFC East goes to the Buffalo Bills for the second time in a row. ran summarises the late games of Matchday 18.

San Francisco 49ers at Los Angeles Rams 27:24

The San Francisco 49ers once again lived up to their status as fearful opponents of the Los Angeles Rams. In the venue of the next Super Bowl, the 49ers celebrated an acclaimed victory and earned their playoff ticket.

At the beginning, however, it didn’t look like it: The Rams offence got off to a dream start and built up a 17-3 half-time lead. One of Matthew Stafford’s two touchdown passes was aided by an interception by 49ers playmaker Jimmy Garoppolo, who was on the field despite a hand injury.

San Francisco came out of the break completely changed and relied almost entirely on the running game around Elijah Mitchell in the third quarter. The Rams defence could not find a way against the plays of head coach Kyle Shanahan, so that the 49ers were able to shorten the gap quickly.

Thanks to a trick play in which receiver Deebo Samuel threw at his position mate Jauan Jennings, San Francisco levelled the tight game shortly before the decisive quarter. Another interception by Garoppolo then tipped the game again in the final minutes.

Cooper Kupp put the Rams back in front before the previously battered Garoppolo delivered a picture-perfect two-minute drive: with 26 seconds left, Jennings made it 24-24.

San Francisco won the coin toss for overtime, but could only finish the long drive with a field goal. The Rams got the ball once more and started promisingly until Matthew Stafford lunged for a deep pass that was intercepted by Ambry Thomas.

The overtime win gives the 49ers (10-7) their return to the playoffs. The Los Angeles Rams (12-5) win the NFC West but fall to fourth place in the playoff picture.

New Orleans Saints at Atlanta Falcons 30:20

With a win against Atlanta and a simultaneous loss by the 49ers, New Orleans could still have jumped into the playoff spots on the final day of play. Although Saints quarterback Taysom Hill was injured early on, the offence ran at full speed for a long time and went into halftime with a 24-6 lead.

The Falcons struggled for a long time against the good defence and were never in the lead at any point in the game. Quarterback Matt Ryan finished the game with 216 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

Atlanta finishes the season with a 7-9 record, while the Saints end the year with a positive record (9-8).

Seattle Seahawks at Arizona Cardinals 38-30

Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks celebrated an acclaimed victory over the Arizona Cardinals to close out the season. With 190 yards and a 62-yard touchdown, running back Rashaad Penny impressed once again.

The Cardinals offense fell well short of the Seahawks (431 yards) with 305 yards and enters the NFC playoffs as the number-5 seed (11-6).

Carolina Panthers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers 17:41

The reigning Super Bowl champions showed no signs of weakness a week before the start of the playoffs and celebrated their 13th win of the season against Carolina. Tom Brady’s offence (326 yards, three touchdowns) was again on fire, scoring five touchdowns in total.

Panthers quarterback Sam Darnold had another mixed day with two passing touchdowns, but also an interception and a lost fumble. Carolina finishes the season with a 5-12 record, Tampa Bay goes on a mission to defend their title with a 13-4 record.

New York Jets at Buffalo Bills 10:27

Unthreatened, the Buffalo Bills (11-6) secured their second straight AFC East title. In tough conditions the Bills offence took a long time to get going and the game seemed to be open until the fourth quarter.

Two Devin Singletary touchdowns (one rushing, one receiving) finally ended the Jets’ hopes (4-13), who held a 10-13 margin for much of the game.

Bills playmaker Josh Allen finished with 239 yards and two touchdowns. His counterpart Zach Wilson recorded 87 yards and a touchdown in the final game of his rookie season.

New England Patriots at Miami Dolphins 24:33

The Miami Dolphins (9-8) once again lived up to their role as the Patriots’ scaremongers and skillfully put Bill Belichick’s team in their place. The defence in particular did not let quarterback Mac Jones rest for long stretches and forced the rookie into two turnovers, both of which ended in direct touchdowns.

On the Dolphins’ side, running back Duke Johnson was particularly convincing, rushing for 117 yards and a touchdown. Signal caller Tua Tagovailoa finished the game with 109 yards and a touchdown.

Thanks to a solid 10-7 record, the Patriots are back in the playoffs after a one-year break.