AFC East

It wasn't always pretty, but the New England Patriots got right back in the playoff picture.

New England defeated the Arizona Cardinals 27-13 on Monday at State Farm Stadium, ending a two-game losing streak and improving to 7-6. The contest was marred by injuries—including a non-contact one Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray suffered on the first possession—but the visitors pulled ahead behind a strong defensive effort.

That showing was critical because the Patriots were without running back Damien Harris and wide receiver Jakobi Meyers and then lost running back Rhamondre Stevenson and wide receiver DeVante Parker during the contest.

Raekwon McMillan's scoop-and-score in the third quarter on a DeAndre Hopkins fumble put New England ahead for good, Marcus Jones' interception on the ensuing possession ended a potential game-winning drive, and the defense sacked Colt McCoy six times.

The Patriots D drew praise for its clutch performance:

This was an important swing game for the AFC East team. It is now tied with the Los Angeles Chargers and New York Jets in the race for the final wild-card spot and no longer has to worry about a losing streak spiraling with little time to fix things.

The victors still left plenty to be desired on offense with Mac Jones throwing a pick to Isaiah Simmons, fumbling a handoff exchange as a drive stalled with a field goal right before halftime and even visibly showing frustration with play-caller Matt Patricia, but unexpected touchdowns by running backs Kevin Harris and Pierre Strong Jr. provided enough support.

McMillan's touchdown swung the game, and the defense looked formidable enough to help the Patriots challenge for a postseason berth.

That unit will look to keep the momentum rolling in the team's next contest, on the road against the Las Vegas Raiders.

The New England Patriots lost one of their top players on offense during Monday night's game against the Arizona Cardinals.

The team announced that running back Rhamondre Stevenson will miss the remainder of the contest after suffering an ankle injury in the first quarter.

Stevenson ran the ball three times for eight yards and caught two passes for two yards prior to being forced to exit the game. He briefly returned for one drive in the second quarter but couldn't play through the injury. Stevenson entered the game as New England's leading rusher with 734 yards and four touchdowns on the ground.

A second-year player out of Oklahoma, Stevenson has become the workhorse of the Patriots backfield. His 161 carries entering Monday were nearly double that of backup running back Damien Harris, and his 56 receptions also led the team.

The 2021 fourth-round pick appeared in 12 games as a rookie and ran for 606 yards and five scores.

In addition to Stevenson exiting the game early, New England ruled out wide receiver DeVante Parker (head) and defensive back Jack Jones (knee) for the rest of Monday's game after they also went down in the first half.

The Patriots are left thin in the backfield without Stevenson, as Harris was inactive for the primetime matchup because of a thigh injury. With Stevenson out, New England's only available ball-carriers are rookies Pierre Strong Jr. and Kevin Harris, both of whom reached the end zone for their first career touchdowns against the Cardinals.

The ongoing courtship between the Dallas Cowboys and free-agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. appears to have reached its end, as the Cowboys are reportedly bringing in a veteran pass-catcher.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport and Jane Slater reported that Dallas reached an agreement with receiver T.Y. Hilton on Monday. The 33-year-old had played 10 years with the Indianapolis Colts and was a four-time Pro Bowl selection.

The addition of Hilton gives the Cowboys the extra offensive weapon they need as the playoffs approach. But where does that leave Beckham?

Here are the top remaining landing spots for the 30-year-old now that Dallas is likely no longer in the running.

Buffalo Bills

Beckham undoubtedly wants to join a contender to win another championship as he did with the Los Angeles Rams last season in Super Bowl LVI. He should look no further than the top team in the AFC.

The Buffalo Bills remained in the No. 1 spot after Sunday's gritty win over the New York Jets. At 10-3, Buffalo is one of the favorites to compete for a Super Bowl title this year, but the team could still use another target for star quarterback Josh Allen.

The Bills have one of the best receivers in the league in Stefon Diggs, who leads the team with 94 receptions, 1,239 yards and 10 touchdowns. However, no other player on the team has 40 catches. Allen's over-reliance on Diggs can come back to haunt Buffalo if teams focus their defense on him.

Adding Beckham to the mix would help take some attention off Diggs. For what it's worth, last month Beckham named the Bills as one of four teams he'd be interested in joining after he completed his recovery from a torn ACL.

San Francisco 49ers

The San Francisco 49ers are the hottest team in the NFL, earning their sixth straight victory on Sunday with a blowout over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. However, star receiver Deebo Samuel went down with an ankle injury during the game, putting his status in question for the next few weeks.

Beckham could be the perfect option to fill in for Samuel if he misses extended time. If both are able to be on the field together, it would add a different dimension to an already dynamic 49ers offense.

San Francisco lost veteran quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo for at least the remainder of the regular season because of a broken foot. Rookie signal-caller Brock Purdy proved he can steer the ship in the interim with a three-touchdown performance (two passing, one rushing) against the Bucs.

The 49ers could look to add Beckham as another reliable target for the seventh-round pick as they charge toward the postseason.

Kansas City Chiefs

After losing star wide receiver Tyreek Hill this offseason, the Kansas City Chiefs have had to adjust on offense. However, perennial MVP candidate Patrick Mahomes still has the Chiefs on the cusp of a seventh straight AFC West title.

While Mahomes has been able to make up for Kansas City's deficiencies throughout the regular season, cracks have begun to show. In Sunday's win over the Denver Broncos, he threw three touchdown passes but also had a season-high three interceptions.

The Chiefs had been hoping free-agent additions JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling would be able to make up for the absence of Hill. They've combined to reach the end zone just four times through 13 games. All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce remains the top target in Kansas City's passing attack.

Beckham would provide Mahomes with another option in the explosive Chiefs offense. He could also open things up for Smith-Schuster and Valdes-Scantling. The three-time Pro Bowler would likely have a ton of fun playing in Andy Reid's scheme.

New York Giants

It's never too late to come home. In Beckham's case, a reunion with the team he started his NFL career with would come at a perfect time.

At 7-5-1, the New York Giants are clinging to the seventh seed in the NFC and could surely use a boost as the regular season winds down. New York is 0-3-1 in its last four games and has dealt with injuries to multiple receivers throughout the year.

Darius Slayton leads the Giants with 608 receiving yards, while Richie James leads the team's wide receivers with 38 receptions and three touchdowns. Quarterback Daniel Jones ranks near the bottom of the league with 194.9 passing yards per game. Clearly, New York's air attack could use an injection of energy.

Beckham has appeared to be open to rejoining the Giants, and he had a "good dinner" with head coach Brian Daboll earlier this month. A return to New York would give him the opportunity to be a key contributor to the team's push for the playoffs.

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has largely excelled during his breakout third-year NFL campaign, but Sunday evening was a night to forget.

The former Alabama star completed just 10 of 28 passes for 145 yards and one touchdown in a 23-17 road loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.

Sixty of those yards came on a TD throw to Tyreek Hill, who scored after Bolts defensive back Michael Davis tripped in coverage.

Tagovailoa also had some garbage time yards to pad the stats on a night where he had just 25 yards at halftime against a Chargers defense missing key personnel such as Derwin James Jr. and Joey Bosa.

The 24-year-old entered Sunday completing 68.1 percent of his passes for 21 touchdowns (five interceptions), 9.0 yards per attempt and an NFL-high 112.0 quarterback rating.

But the Chargers stymied Tagovailoa, and Twitter criticized the performance.

Miami fell to 8-5 with its second straight defeat but remains squarely in the playoff hunt. However, the Dolphins now have another tough test ahead Saturday evening when they visit the AFC-leading Buffalo Bills.

Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert established himself as one of the best young signal callers in the NFL long ago, and he proved that yet again with a stellar performance in a primetime matchup against the Miami Dolphins.

Herbert powered the Chargers to a 23-17 victory on Sunday Night Football to help the team improve to 7-6. The 24-year-old threw for 367 yards and a touchdown on 39-of-51 passing with no turnovers to lead the way.

Sunday's game looked more like a showcase of Herbert's skills, as he dazzled with tight-window throws as well as deep passes that dropped right into Chargers receivers' hands. He spread the ball around, too, as nine players registered at least one catch.

NFL Twitter heaped praise on Herbert for another impressive showing, with many touting him as a bonafide superstar:

The Chargers are fighting to get into the postseason picture. Sunday's win moved Los Angeles into the seventh seed, but a victory by the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football would put the team on the outside looking in.

With Herbert under center, the Chargers have the ability to compete against any team in the NFL. He's a quarterback that makes players around him better, and he will continue to do so if he stays healthy for the rest of the year.

The Chargers will face another tough matchup next Sunday when they host the Tennessee Titans (7-6), who are in first place in the AFC South. Herbert will have to be at his best once again for the team to earn a second successive win.

The NFL has taken great strides in recent years to protect quarterbacks, but questionable roughing the passer penalties have ignited a wave of scrutiny throughout the 2022 season.

Another such occurrence took place in the third quarter of Sunday night's game between the Miami Dolphins and Los Angeles Chargers when Dolphins defensive end Jaelan Phillips laid a hit on Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert that appeared to be a routine tackle, but he was called for a penalty. A sack would've caused the Los Angeles offense to go three-and-out, but the flag extended the drive.

Part of the issue is that roughing the passer penalties cannot be reviewed to amend any real-time mistakes. However, when referees make these calls that can affect the outcome of a game, criticism is warranted.

NFL Twitter lit up with reactions to the penalty, as many were unhappy that Phillips was the subject of what was perceived to be an unnecessary call:

At the time of the penalty, the Dolphins were trailing 17-7. The Chargers' drive ended with a punt, but things obviously could've been worse.

Miami is hoping to maintain its playoff position, while Los Angeles is fighting to make its way into the postseason picture.

The New York Jets fell to the Buffalo Bills 20-12 on Sunday afternoon in what was their final meeting of the 2022 regular season, but Robert Saleh believes the two AFC East rivals will meet again in the playoffs.

"We'll see these guys again," a confident Saleh told reporters following Sunday's loss.

That is quite the prediction from Saleh, especially considering the Jets dropped to 7-6 on the season with Sunday's loss and have lost three of their last four games.

Additionally, the AFC playoff race is beginning to heat up. The New England Patriots are 6-6 and could boot the Jets out of the No. 7 playoff spot with a win over the Arizona Cardinals on Monday Night Football—Bill Belichick's squad owns the tiebreaker with two wins over the Jets this season.

The Los Angeles Chargers also enter Sunday night's game against the Miami Dolphins with a 6-6 record, and the Jacksonville Jaguars are surprisingly still in the hunt at 5-8.

The Jets have somewhat of a difficult schedule to close out the season with matchups against the Detroit Lions, Jaguars, Seattle Seahawks and Dolphins. They beat the Dolphins 40-17 in October, but that was when Tua Tagovailoa was sidelined with a concussion.

Beyond the matchups, a lot has changed for the Jets since they began the season 5-2. The most significant difference is that quarterback Zach Wilson has been benched in favor of Mike White since a Week 11 loss to the Patriots.

In seven games this season, Wilson has completed 55.6 percent of his passes for 1,279 yards and four touchdowns against five interceptions. His struggles were clear throughout the season, but after completing just nine of 22 passes in Week 11 and telling reporters that he felt he didn't let down a defense that gave up only 10 points, Saleh opted to bench him.

Entering Sunday's game against the Bills, White had completed 62.4 percent of his passes for 684 yards and three touchdowns against two interceptions in two starts. The Jets went 1-1 in those games.

Beyond the quarterback carousel, the Jets lost star rookie running back Breece Hall to a torn ACL in a Week 7 win over the Denver Broncos. He had rushed for 463 yards and four scores in seven games and looked like a prime candidate to take home the Offensive Rookie of the Year award before being sidelined.

At this point, it's not looking like the Jets will meet the Bills in the postseason, but anything could happen.

The Jets have not made the playoffs since the 2010 season.

New York Jets quarterback Mike White left Highmark Stadium in an ambulance after Sunday's 20-12 loss to the Buffalo Bills, per Heather Prusak of News 4 Buffalo.

The move is considered a precautionary measure to "make sure he is fine internally," per Mike Giardi of NFL Network.

White took several hard hits during the game, including three sacks and a big shot from Bills linebacker Matt Milano. He was initially ruled as questionable to return with a rib injury before coming back in the game two drives later.

Flacco fumbled on his first play after replacing White in the third quarter before leading a three-and-out on his only full possession. The veteran had also entered the game for two plays in the first half, throwing one incomplete pass before the starter returned.

White was more productive, leading one touchdown drive in the third quarter and a late field-goal drive to keep it a one-possession game. The quarterback finished 27-of-44 for 268 passing yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.

The toughness White showed to keep coming back into the game despite the hard hits also seemed to endear himself to fans and the coaching staff.

Head coach Robert Saleh said after the game White would "for sure" be the starter next week if he is healthy.

The 27-year-old had just four NFL appearances before this season, but he has impressed in three starts with 952 passing yards and three touchdowns.

Former starter Zach Wilson, who has been inactive the last three games after being benched, could return to the lineup if White is unable to play.

The New York Jets couldn't pull off a second upset against the Buffalo Bills, but quarterback Mike White still impressed with his toughness.

White tallied 268 passing yards in a 20-12 loss, failing in his final drive attempt that could have tied the game. The 27-year-old was also forced to leave multiple times because of injury after taking hard hits, but he somehow kept coming back into the game.

Many watching along were impressed by his grit.

It also didn't help that backup Joe Flacco struggled mightily in his limited time on the field. The veteran fumbled on his first play after coming in during the third quarter and then led a three-and-out drive before White returned.

White at least gave his team a better chance to win against an elite opponent.

Zach Wilson might have more pedigree as the 2021 No. 2 overall draft pick, but the fanbase appears to be rallying around White as the Jets try to get back to the playoffs for the first time since 2010.

After falling to 7-6, New York will look to turn things around against the Detroit Lions in Week 15.