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Posted by ESPN.com's Matt Mosley

In a fitting end to one of the best games of the season, New York Giants running back Derrick Ward put his team in position to win and Brandon Jacobs powered the ball in from the 2-yard line to give the Giants a 34-28 win in overtime. Ward, who'd been largely ineffective without Jacobs in the lineup, had a career high 215 yards on 15 carries.

Jacobs wore down the Carolina Panthers with his punishing style and they couldn't catch Ward. Carolina's DeAngelo Williams had a brilliant night of his own, rushing for 108 yards and four touchdowns. The Giants (12-3) trailed, 28-20, in the fourth quarter, but they persevered and were able to secure home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Giants won't have to leave New York -- unless they head to Tampa, which is looking like a much better bet than a week ago.

We've focused on the absence of Plaxico Burress in the Giants' two losses, but the return of Jacobs gave this team its identity back. The offensive line that had looked shaky in losses to the Eagles and Cowboys took over the game in the second half. The Giants rushed for 301 yards, and in overtime, they were able to convert a key third-and-7 by staying on the ground.

Tom Coughlin would never admit it, but doubt had seeped into his team's mind. This win should restore some of the swagger they've lost. Defensive end Justin Tuck could barely walk off the field after the game due to the effects of the flu. But he kept battling. The Panthers had a chance to win at the end of the regulation, but John Kasay couldn't connect on a 50-yard field goal. Credit the Giants' defense for not allowing Williams any running room when the Panthers were trying to get Kasay in position to win the game.

Kasay's kick had plenty of distance, but he didn't allow for the wind which pushed the ball wide left. On Sunday night, the Panthers and Giants certainly played the part of the two best teams in the NFC. Much more to come on this game in the morning.

Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- The Carolina Panthers weren't able to clinch home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Panthers will host at least one game. But Sunday night's 34-28 overtime loss to the New York Giants means the Panthers won't be the top seed in the NFC. The No. 1 seed goes to the Giants.

A meeting of the conference's two best teams lived up to the hype and it might end up being a preview of the NFC Championship Game. But the Panthers weren't able to earn all rights to host it in Bank of America Stadium, where Carolina is undefeated this year.

The only way the Panthers can host is if the Giants don't reach the NFC title game. But Carolina is in line for a first-round bye and a home game in the second round of the playoffs. That's a better start than Carolina's last two swings in the postseason. In 2005, Carolina won at Giants' Stadium and Chicago's Soldier Field before losing at Seattle in a game where travel fatigue was a big factor.

Carolina also won on the road at St. Louis and Philadelphia in its 2003 Super Bowl season.

Posted by ESPN.com's Paul Kuharsky

Houston Chronicle columnist Jerome Solomon gets props Sunday.

He wrote Friday that he thought the Texans were overly relaxed and overly confident about their trip to Oakland, primed for a fall. They had a chance to win an eighth game for the second year in a row and set themselves up for their first winning season with a victory in their finale against Chicago. Instead they turned Solomon into a prophet.

Whether over-relaxation and overconfidence were the issues is up for debate -- I did not see much of the game and can't judge it. But the streaking Texans laid a major egg and set up something beside a winning season: A miserable plane flight home and a week of regret.

They allowed Raiders quarterback JaMarcus Russell to have the best day of his two-year career -- completing 18 of 25 passes for 236 yards and two touchdowns, with a 128.1 passer rating.

They allowed someone named Chaz Schilens to catch a touchdown pass.

They also made a star out of Johnnie Lee Higgins, who got to dance in the end zone twice -- following a 29-yard touchdown catch and an 80-yard punt return that extended Oakland's lead to 27-13.

From what I saw, the rush was insufficient and the coverage was too loose -- problems the Texans need to address this offseason no matter what record they finish with.

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Graham

What a fine job the Buffalo Bills have done infuriating their supporters, but on Sunday they provided a lot of hope for some fan bases that normally wouldn't care one bit about them.

The Bills hung on to defeat the Denver Broncos, 30-23, at Invesco Field at Mile High, a thrilling finish for San Diego Chargers fans and an encouraging result for those who root for the New York Jets and Baltimore Ravens.

Now San Diego can get into the playoffs by beating Denver in the regular-season finale.

But in the AFC East, the fact the Bills are showing signs of life could indicate a competitive game Sunday against the New England Patriots in Ralph Wilson Stadium.

If the Bills can manage to knock off the Patriots, the Jets can win the division by surviving against the Dolphins.

Somehow, the Bills won despite being out-gained 532-275. They fell behind 13-0 and then scored on each of their next four possessions to win for only their second time in their past nine games.

Buffalo quarterback Trent Edwards returned to the field after missing two games with a groin injury and completed 17 of 25 passes for 193 yards and one touchdown with no interceptions.

Edwards, who was spectacular in the fourth quarter early in the year but then fell apart, guided the Bills on two fourth-quarter touchdown drives.

The victory also means Buffalo still can finish .500 and avoid a fourth straight losing season. But if they fall to the Patriots on Sunday, then the Bills will be 7-9 for a third consecutive year.

Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas

In the coming days, I'm going to have an online debate with one of our other bloggers on who is the coach of the year in the NFL.

I won't reveal the other blogger's identity or the coach he's going to write about, but I will say I drew the right straw here. My candidate is Atlanta's Mike Smith and that's going to be the first slam dunk of my life (other than on a 9-foot basket).

Smith isn't just the coach of the year, he's the coach who saved a franchise and made football relevant in Atlanta. That alone makes a pretty strong case. But the topper to it all came today as the Falcons, who were 4-12 and in disarray a year ago, clinched a playoff berth.

No coach has done more than Smith. And here's the scary part: Smith's not done yet. The Falcons are one of those teams that are heading into the playoffs with a lot of momentum and they're the kind of team that gets better each week. Even on the road, Smith and the Falcons could keep surprising everyone and win a game or two or three.

Posted by ESPN.com's Matt Mosley

The Philadelphia Eagles had everything to play for, but they still managed to come out flat in a 10-3 loss in Washington. Redskins coach Jim Zorn may have saved his job with his team's gutty effort at home.

Jason Campbell and the offense moved the ball well enough to win the field position battle, but it was the Redskins' defense that won this game. Jason Taylor had an injury-marred season that might signal the end of his career, but he looked like the perennial All-Pro that he used to be with two sacks and a forced fumble. The second sack forced Donovan McNabb to fumble deep in his own territory in the third quarter and the Redskins quickly punched it in to take a 10-0 lead.

An Eagles offense that had been the picture of efficiency in the previous three games was listless for much of Sunday's game. With just over six minutes left, DeSean Jackson burned DeAngelo Hall deep, but the rookie dropped the ball.

If you didn't know the playoff scenarios, you would've thought the Redskins were the team desperately trying to grab a wild-card spot. But with the Falcons' win over the Vikings, the Redskins were officially eliminated from the race. Still, the Redskins should be able to build on this win. Jason Campbell wasn't great, but he made several key plays. Zorn never panicked, and only made one really questionable decision -- the 54-yard field goal attempt in swirling winds.

The Eagles (8-6-1) stayed in the game because of a solid defensive performance.  Trent Cole had a sack and eight tackles and linebacker Stewart Bradley was all over the field with nine tackles. Eagles coach Andy Reid went back to his old ways, abandoning a running game that had helped his team win three consecutive games. Westbrook's still banged up, but that's no excuse for not running the ball.

McNabb made a couple of nice deep throws in the fourth quarter, but Jackson dropped both of them. The Eagles had seven drops on the day. A team that thrives on a high-tempo passing game could never find a rhythm. McNabb certainly wasn't at his best, but he didn't get much help.

Hall and safety LaRon Landry both played brilliantly for the Redskins. Landry appeared to intimidate the Eagles' wide receivers. As poorly as the Eagles' offense played throughout the game, they did put together an effective drive in the closing minutes.

Reggie Brown made a catch near the goal line, but was turned away on another jarring hit from Landry. The Eagles would need to beat the Cowboys (9-6) next Sunday and receive help from the Raiders to have a shot at the playoffs.

In a strange twist, the Cowboys may have been the biggest winners in this game. You can't say enough about how well the Redskins played Sunday. They improved to 8-7 and gave Zorn a much-needed show of support.

Posted by ESPN.com's Bill Williamson

DENVER -- See you in San Diego.

The Denver Broncos had two chances to win the AFC West in the past two weeks. They were unable to seal the deal.

Denver's loss in a thriller Sunday to Buffalo creates a winner-takes-the-division game in San Diego next Sunday. The Broncos are 8-7. San Diego, which has won three straight games, is 7-8.

The Broncos will have to forget the stinging loss to the Bills quickly. They squandered a 13-0 lead. The victory was secured for Buffalo when Denver receiver Brandon Stokley had the ball knocked out of his hands in the end zone on fourth down and 5 from the Buffalo 15 with less than a minute to play.

Posted by ESPN.com's Kevin Seifert

MINNEAPOLIS -- Minnesota made it interesting, but in the end it was unable to clinch a playoff berth Sunday at the Metrodome.

The Vikings fumbled seven times against the Atlanta Falcons and lost four. Those turnovers, along with a host of other mistakes, did them in and left Minnesota hoping for a Green Bay victory over Chicago Monday night.

Should the Bears win that game, the Vikings would need either to beat the New York Giants in their regular-season finale or hope for a Bears loss the same day at Houston.

The Vikings probably aren't going to be interested in hearing those scenarios after crumbling in the franchise's biggest game in four years. They simply never gave themselves a chance against a good Atlanta team. Quarterback Tarvaris Jackson pulled them within a touchdown late in the fourth quarter, but he ended their final possession with four consecutive incompletions.

We'll be back with you in a few hours. But to repeat the headline: The NFC North is vacant for at least one more day.

Posted by ESPN.com's Bill Williamson

It means little in the grand scheme. But the Oakland Raiders ended their 2008 home schedule with a smile.

And those have been rare in Oakland the past six years. The Raiders handled a Houston team that entered the game with a four-game winning streak.

The Raiders controlled the game. They are now 4-11 heading into their season finale at Tampa Bay.

Encouraging for next season was the play of young receivers Johnnie Lee Higgins and Chaz Schilens. Higgins had a touchdown catch and a punt return for a score and Schilens had a touchdown catch. The game was one of quarterback JaMarcus Russell's best of the season.

Again, there hasn't much to cheer about in Oakland this season so Raiders fans should savor it.

Posted by ESPN.com's Tim Graham

The New York Jets are hurting. In a critical game, they lost to the Seattle Seahawks, 13-3 at Qwest Field.

The pressure couldn't be greater for next week's season finale against the Miami Dolphins at the Meadowlands. The playoffs will be on the line. Jobs will be on the line in the front office, on the sideline and on the roster. Brett Favre could be playing his last game.

The Jets have dropped three of their past four games, and the only game they won they should have lost. Thanks to a questionable coaching decision and a J.P. Losman fumble that was returned for a touchdown, the Jets managed to beat the Buffalo Bills.

After ripping off five straight victories and winning seven out of eight, including back-to-back road wins over the New England Patriots and Tennessee Titans, the Jets are behind the Patriots and Dolphins in the AFC East race.

To reach the playoffs the Jets need to beat the Dolphins (possible) and hope the Patriots lose at Buffalo (unlikely) to win the division. They have been eliminated from the wild-card race because the Baltimore Ravens have the tiebreaker.

In the snow, where Favre won so many games as a member of the Green Bay Packers, he completed 18 of 31 passes for 187 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.

Thomas Jones ran 17 times for 67 yards and failed to score a touchdown for the first time in nine games.