Football

Needing to win their final two games to have a chance at making the playoffs, the New York Jets will get Mike White back in Week 17.

Per Brian Costello of the New York Post, White was cleared by doctors Monday and will start Sunday's matchup against the Seattle Seahawks.

Head coach Robert Saleh confirmed the news to reporters, adding Joe Flacco will serve as the backup and Zach Wilson will be inactive.

White has missed the past two games after suffering three fractured ribs in a Dec. 11 loss to the Buffalo Bills. He told reporters five days later that he spoke to almost 10 doctors in an attempt to find one who would clear him to play, but none of them would do it.

The loss of White forced the Jets to turn back to Wilson as their starting quarterback. He didn't play as badly as he did in a Week 11 loss to the New England Patriots that resulted in his benching, but it wasn't much better.

Wilson threw for 317 yards and two touchdowns with one interception against the Detroit Lions on Dec. 18, but he completed only 18 of 35 attempts. His interception on the first drive of the third quarter resulted in a Lions field goal, and Detroit won 20-17.

Taking on the Jacksonville Jaguars four days later, Wilson was benched late in the third quarter after going 9-of-18 for 92 yards with one interception. Chris Streveler had some success, completing 10 of 15 attempts for 90 yards.

The Jets failed to find the end zone in a 19-3 defeat. It was their fourth consecutive loss after they reached 7-4 with a 31-10 victory over the Chicago Bears.

Despite having fallen under .500, the Jets still can reach the playoffs. Their easiest path would be to win the next two games against the Seahawks and Miami Dolphins and have the Patriots lose once in the next two weeks.

New England, which has lost four of its last five, closes the season at home against Miami on Sunday before traveling to Buffalo in Week 18.

The Jets can also qualify by winning out and having the Los Angeles Chargers lose their final three games.

The Chargers close the season against the Indianapolis Colts on Monday night, Los Angeles Rams on Jan. 1 and Denver Broncos on Jan. 8. Those three teams are a combined 13-30-1.

White was 1-2 in three starts after taking over for Wilson, but his losses were against two 12-3 teams in the Bills and Minnesota Vikings. The Jets were competitive, losing by a combined 13 points.

The fifth-year quarterback has completed 62 percent of his passes for 952 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions in three games.

As the 2022 NFL season winds down, many teams are still focused on fighting for a spot in the playoffs, but some teams have already turned their attention to securing their position in the 2023 draft.

Week 16 saw a bit of shuffling after Saturday's full slate of games, and Sunday's rundown also provided some movement.

Here's a look at the updated 2023 NFL draft order following Sunday's results:

---

1. Houston Texans

2. Chicago Bears

3. Seattle Seahawks (via Denver Broncos)

4. Arizona Cardinals

5. Indianapolis Colts

6. Atlanta Falcons

7. Detroit Lions (via Los Angeles Rams)

8. Carolina Panthers

9. Las Vegas Raiders

10. Philadelphia Eagles (via New Orleans Saints)

11. Houston Texans (via Cleveland Browns)

12. Seattle Seahawks

13. Tennessee Titans

14. New England Patriots

15. New York Jets

16. Pittsburgh Steelers

17. Green Bay Packers

18. Detroit Lions

19. Jacksonville Jaguars

20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

21. Washington Commanders

22. Miami Dolphins (forfeited)

23. New York Giants

24. Los Angeles Chargers

25. Baltimore Ravens

26. Denver Broncos (via San Francisco 49ers)

27. Dallas Cowboys

28. Cincinnati Bengals

29. Kansas City Chiefs

30. Minnesota Vikings

31. Buffalo Bills

32. Philadelphia Eagles

---

The Green Bay Packers opened Christmas Day by extending their win streak to three games with a 26-20 road victory over the Miami Dolphins.

While the win slightly improved the Packers' chances of making it to the postseason, it also knocked them down the draft board. Green Bay was slotted in the No. 12 spot entering Sunday, but fell to No. 17 after the victory.

However, draft position is the last thing on the mind of Packers star quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The back-to-back reigning NFL MVP is more concerned about making a push for the playoffs this season, despite how slim Green Bay's hopes may be at this point in the year.

Aaron Rodgers on being 7-8 and with playoff chances looking up: "Consiedering where we were two weeks ago, a lot has happened in our favor.

"We played meaningful games in December and we won all three of those. Now we're playing meaningful games in January and got to win those."

— Rob Demovsky (@RobDemovsky) December 25, 2022

After Week 12, the Packers had a 3% chance to make the playoffs, per ESPN’s playoff predictor. They entered Sunday with a 17% chance but, after their third straight win, the Packers have a 37% chance. Their simplest path is to win out and have Washington lose one of its last two.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 25, 2022

The loss didn't mean much for Miami in terms of draft position, as the Dolphins forfeited their 2023 first-round pick after an investigation revealed that the team violated league policies related to the integrity of the game.

The Dolphins fell to the seventh spot in the AFC after the defeat, putting their playoff hopes in jeopardy. Miami will close the 2022 season with back-to-back division games against the New England Patriots and New York Jets, respectively, who are the two teams right on their heels in the postseason race.

The matinee matchup saw the Los Angeles Rams blow out the Denver Broncos with a 51-14 victory. The most interesting thing about this game was that it featured a pair of disappointing teams who don't own their respective first-round picks in next year's draft.

Thanks to the loss by Denver, the Seattle Seahawks maintain their position in the No. 3 spot. The Seahawks likely expected their own pick to land in the top three when they traded star quarterback Russell Wilson to the Broncos, but the misfortune of Denver wound up benefitting Seattle in the long run.

The win by Los Angeles moves the Detroit Lions down to the No. 7 spot, for now. There's still a likelihood that the defending champs' pick lands in the top five, as the Rams close the season with unfavorable matchups against the Los Angeles Chargers and the Seahawks, respectively.

Lastly, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers moved down one spot to No. 20 after their overtime win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday Night Football.

Mac Jones may be developing a reputation as a dirty player.

Bengals cornerback Eli Apple criticized Jones after the Patriots quarterback was called for a low block in Cincinnati's 22-18 win over New England on Saturday.

"Of course I did [notice it]. He tripped me," Apple said, per Sean T. McGuire of NESN. "I thought it was a dirty play. He's done that before, I've seen it."

It's hard to not agree with Apple's assessment of the play in question. The two were not particularly close to the play when Jones drove into Apple's knees during a Bengals fumble return that was later ruled an incomplete pass.

According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, the NFL will review the play to determine if Jones should face any discipline. The league has increasingly cracked down on plays below the knees, hoping to avoid serious leg injuries.

Jones dove at Apple's knees and risked injuring him in what appeared to be an outburst of frustration. Patriots fans loudly booed their second-year quarterback and chanted for fourth-round rookie Bailey Zappe as Jones struggled early in the loss.

This is not Jones' first time being accused of dirty play, either. Carolina Panthers linebacker Brian Burns called Jones out for twisting his ankle in a pile last season. Jones said he believed Burns had the ball and was ultimately not punished by the league.

When six-time All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams forced the Green Bay Packers to trade him to the Las Vegas Raiders over the offseason, there was an expectation that reforming his connection with his college teammate Derek Carr would lead to offensive fireworks.

While the Fresno State alums showed flashes of brilliance throughout the season, Adams didn't produce with the same consistency we've grown accustomed to, and he was nearly nonexistent once again as he registered just two catches for 15 yards in the Raiders' 13-10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday night.

Carr had an abysmal showing, throwing for 174 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions on 16-of-30 passing. All three of his picks came in the second half, and his last one came after Pittsburgh took its first lead of the game with less than a minute to go in the fourth quarter.

NFL Twitter was not happy with Carr for how he failed to get Adams involved in the offense during the disappointing loss:

Daily reminder how insane it is that Davante Adams left Aaron Rodgers for DEREK CARR

— Charlie Quinn (@CharlieQuinnMMA) December 25, 2022

#Raiders WR Davante Adams' two catches tonight have come on passes thrown 3 and -8 yards downfield. Carr is 0-of-5 targeting Adams on passes thrown more than 3 yards downfield. Per @ESPNStatsInfo

— Paul Gutierrez (@PaulHGutierrez) December 25, 2022

https://twitter.com/PoonPiratee/status/1606838628306636800

I miss the decades-old connection between Derek Carr and Davante Adams https://t.co/5C2DMRPheS

— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) December 25, 2022

Davante Adams has 9 receptions for 113 yards in his last 10 quarters. We’re talkin about the best receiver in football.

Figure it out Raiders

— Jesse Pollock (@jpolly22) December 25, 2022

CAN WE GET THE BALL TO DAVANTE ADAMS?

— Fantasy Football Today (@FFToday) December 25, 2022

Carr misses wide open Davante Adams. Smh

— Thomas Beebe ツ (@Mr_Beebe) December 25, 2022

Carr and Davante Adams can't get in sync tonight so far.

— Tashan Reed (@tashanreed) December 25, 2022

Davante Adams: *wide open*

Derek Carr: pic.twitter.com/IKjiCMTRBQ

— NFL Memes (@NFLHateMemes) December 25, 2022

Can Davante Adams get a target now?

— Bread Tha Rebel (@BreadThaRebel) December 25, 2022

I can’t believe Davante Adams left Aaron Rodgers for Derek Carr.

— Cody (@CodyShook_) December 25, 2022

Derek Carr doesn’t deserve Davante Adams

— Thejingerbeardman (@the_jingerbeard) December 25, 2022

Remember when Davante Adams said Derek Carr was a Hall of Famer?

— Jaylen Watson SZN (@JaylenWatsonSZN) December 25, 2022

https://twitter.com/ToKeNasty/status/1606867258084675584

Davante Adams left Aaron Rodgers to play with this bum.

— Pardon President Nixon (@nix973) December 25, 2022

Saturday's outing marks Adams' third straight game without a touchdown and with less than 100 yards, 10 targets or five catches. A player of his caliber should never be such a non-factor for a team that is now on the brink of elimination from playoff contention.

The Raiders (6-9) will need Carr to utilize Adams more if they hope to be successful when they return to action on New Year's Day against the San Francisco 49ers (11-4), who boast one of the best defenses in the NFL.

Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Chandler Jones has been ruled out for the remainder of Saturday's game against the Pittsburgh Steelers after being carted to the locker room with a left elbow injury.

The 32-year-old signed with the Raiders this offseason after spending the last six seasons with the Arizona Cardinals. Through 14 games with Las Vegas this year, Jones has 35 tackles, 4.5 sacks, three fumble recoveries and a forced fumble. He had three tackles against Pittsburgh before exiting.

Jones missed two games last season after being placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list following a positive test for the coronavirus.

Jones started last season with one of the best single-game defensive performances of the year. He set a Cardinals franchise record with five sacks and added two forced fumbles in the Week 1 win over the Tennessee Titans.

However, his production has tapered off a bit after that. Jones finished the year with 41 total tackles, 10.5 sacks, six forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

After being drafted 21st overall in 2012 by the New England Patriots, Jones has solidified himself as one of the premier pass-rushers in the NFL. He is a three-time Pro Bowl selection and two-time first-team All-Pro. He was a part of New England's Super Bowl XLIX victory in 2014.

The Syracuse product led the NFL with 17 sacks and 28 tackles for loss in 2017. In 2019, he recorded a career-high 19 sacks. He was limited to five games in 2020 due to a torn bicep.

Jones' injury leaves Las Vegas fairly thin at defensive end. While star edge rusher Maxx Crosby can still be counted on for solid production, it will be interesting to see who lines up on the opposite side of him. Former first-round pick Clelin Ferrell could be inserted into the starting lineup. Malcolm Koonce could also be rotated in during pass-rush situations.

The Cincinnati Bengals' trip home after Saturday's win over the New England Patriots included an unplanned stop in New York.

Per Mark Slaughter of WLWT NBC in Cincinnati and confirmed by The Athletic's Paul Dehner Jr., the Bengals' team plane had to make an emergency landing at JFK Airport in New York City due to engine trouble and change aircrafts.

One person on the plane told Slaughter the ride was a "little rough but it was okay! Landed safely."

Per WLWT, the plane landed at JFK International Airport around 8:45 p.m. local time. They are expected to takeoff in a new aircraft around 9:30 p.m. and make it back to Cincinnati tonight.

The Bengals-Patriots game at Gillette Stadium on Saturday kicked off at 1 p.m. ET. Cincinnati looked like it was going to win in a route after taking a 22-0 lead into halftime.

New England was able to fight back in the second half, scoring 18 unanswered points to make it a one-score game with six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter.

A fumble by Ja'Marr Chase recovered by Marcus Jones gave the Patriots' offense the ball back with a chance to take the lead. They got down to Cincinnati's five-yard line with less than one minute to play, but a Rhamondre Stevenson fumble on 1st-and-goal was picked by B.J. Hill.

The Patriots did get the ball back one more time at their own 24-yard line with 30 seconds left. They only gained 10 yards before turning the ball over on downs. Joe Burrow took a knee to run out the clock.

Even though the final score shows a close game, the Bengals continued their streak of playing at a high level. They finished with 442 yards on offense, with Burrow racking up 375 yards through the air.

Cincinnati (11-4) has won seven consecutive games since a 32-13 loss to the Cleveland Browns on Monday Night Football in Week 8.