Saints http://www.bengalscheapshop.com/cheap-authentic-drew-sample-jersey , Patriots, Cowboys , Seahawks and Ravens. The big losers were the Steelers, Dolphins, Chiefs and Texans.But wait. Then the Texans became winners hours later, earning a playoff berth as they headed back to Houston on Sunday following a last-second 32-30 loss at Philadelphia that handed the AFC’s No. 2 seed behind Kansas City to the Patriots — as if they need any help when the playoffs arrive. Houston sneaked in when Pittsburgh lost 31-28 at New Orleans, though the Texans still could wind up a wild card in the, well, wild AFC South.Here’s a road map as we head into the final week of the schedule.NFCNew Orleans (12-3) secured home-field advantage throughout the conference playoffs by beating Pittsburgh, dropping the Steelers into second place behind Baltimore in the AFC North. The Saints won’t be playing outdoors again — the Super Bowl, should they get there, will be inside at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium.“Knowing that we’ve done it, knowing that the road comes through New Orleans, that gives us a lot of confidence,” Drew Brees said. “Obviously we love playing in the dome. … We have goals throughout the season and this is one of them.”Also reaching their goal were the Cowboys Germaine Pratt Jersey , grabbing the NFC East with a 27-20 victory over Tampa Bay. Dallas (9-6) will be the fourth seed and host a wild-card game.“We can’t get comfortable,” Ezekiel Elliott said. “We can’t afford to take a week off next week. We’ve got to keep working and make sure we’re ready for the playoffs.”Chicago (11-4) needs to be ready next week at Minnesota (8-6-1). For one, the Bears have a shot at the second overall slot and a first-round bye with a win and a loss by the Rams (12-3), who are at home for San Francisco. For another, they could deny their division rival a postseason spot; a Vikings win gets them a wild card.But a Vikings loss and an Eagles win at Washington gets the defending champions (8-7) back into the postseason.Seattle (9-6) appears destined to play at Dallas in the first round. The Seahawks beat the Cowboys in Week 3 for their first win of what was supposed to be a rebuilding year.They’ve rebuilt so quickly that Pete Carroll is in the running for Coach of the Year.“It’s not complicated,” Russell Wilson said after the 38-31 victory against the Chiefs. “It’s hard work, it’s having faith. We knew we had to battle throughout the season, it’s a journey and we’re still not done yet.”AFCFor a decade now, the New England Patriots have owned the AFC East, and they had a huge weekend.The Patriots clinched their 10th straight division title when they beat Buffalo 24-12. They got an added bonus when Houston fell to drop out of the second seed in the conference, which New England grabbed — with a shot at the top spot.They are 7-0 in Foxborough — the league’s only undefeated team in its own building — and 3-5 on the road.“We didn’t have our best day in the passing game. But it felt good to win. At this time of year, whatever it takes to win, that’s what you’ve got to do,” Tom Brady said.Baltimore (9-6), fresh off its victory at the Chargers on Saturday night http://www.bengalscheapshop.com/cheap-authentic-ryan-finley-jersey , has a half-game lead on Pittsburgh (8-6-1), which has lost four of five. The Ravens will take the North with a home win against Cleveland next week. The Steelers host Cincinnati and need help to get into the postseason from their hated enemy, the Browns.“We’re playing pretty good football, but it might not matter,” Ben Roethlisberger said. “Obviously we don’t control our destiny any more. We have to take care of business next week.“You can be as skillful as you want on both sides of the ball and special teams, but there is still a small element of luck involved in football. A play here, a play there. If that’s what it is, I don’t know, but it’s the game of football.”The game of tiebreakers also shows that should the Colts and Titans deadlock at Nashville in the prime-time game to end the season, and the Steelers win, Pittsburgh edges both of them for the final wild card, all at 9-6-1.In the South, Houston (10-5) is leading Indianapolis and Tennessee by a game. The Texans host Jacksonville (5-10) and could wind up a wild card with a loss and a non-tie in Nashville.The Chiefs (11-4) and Chargers (11-4) already are in the postseason from the West. That takes up one wild card. But Kansas City, once the darling of the league, could plummet from top overall seed to wild card if it flops versus Oakland next week and LA beats Denver.Miami was still in the mix before falling 17-7 at home to lowly Jacksonville. Shameful.What is clear is that there’s no overwhelming favorite. It’s been a while since a wild-card team Renell Wren Jersey , Green Bay for the 2010 season, won the championship. Right now, betting against the likes of the Chargers, Seahawks or Eagles should they get in would be foolish.
A look at what’s happening around the majors Thursday:

CLUTCH CITY

Alex Bregman is red-hot at the plate as the Astros travel to Tampa Bay for a four-game series, and he’s been especially good late in games. Bregman has homered in three straight, including a game-ending two-run shot Wednesday to cap Houston’s rally from five runs down against Toronto. That was the second walk-off hit this month for Bregman, who also had a game-ending single in Game 5 of last year’s World Series. Bregman is 9 for 17 with three homers and five doubles since shaving his mustache midway through a game Sunday.

TAKE TWO

Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw looks to sharpen his stuff against the Cubs in his second start since ending a DL stint for a lower back strain. Kershaw stumbled through three innings against the Mets last Saturday after surprisingly nixing a scheduled minor league rehab assignment, though Los Angeles beat New York 8-3 that day behind stellar relief work from rookie Caleb Ferguson. The 21-year-old left-hander is set to follow Kershaw again against Chicago. Kershaw acknowledged feeling some rust at Citi Field, when he was limited to 55 pitches. He’s hoping to go deeper and pitch more effectively this time at Dodger Stadium.

BOSIO FIRED

The Tigers fired pitching coach Chris Bosio on Wednesday, saying he made insensitive comments to another employee of the team. General manager Al Avila said Bosio made the comments recently and they were brought to Avila’s attention Tuesday. Avila decided Wednesday to terminate Bosio’s contract after the team investigated the situation and spoke to all of the people involved. Detroit promoted bullpen coach Rick Anderson to replace Bosio. Roving pitching instructor A.J. Sager will be the team’s bullpen coach until Triple-A Toledo pitching coach Jeff Pico takes his place next week. The Tigers are set to wrap a four-game series against Oakland.

ANOTHER SHOT AT NOLA

The Nationals try to solve the Phillies’ Aaron Nola five days after the right-hander won a 5-3 decision in Washington. Nola (9-2, 2.58) allowed two runs, four hits and three walks over six innings while striking out five in that game. Nola is fifth in the NL in ERA, and only Mets ace Jacob deGrom has allowed fewer home runs per nine innings than Nola (0.53) among qualified NL starters.

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