2023 NFL final regular-season power rankings: Bills rally to win AFC East, Ravens finish on top

Following their lopsided win on Sunday, Dennis Allen’s club was forced to do some scoreboard-watching. Would a 9-8 season be good enough to grab a wild card berth? The Saints’ offense exploded for 400 yards and six offensive touchdowns against the visiting Falcons. Derek Carr hit on 22-of-28 throws for 264 yards and four touchdowns.

New Orleans’ defense limited Atlanta to 78 yards on the ground and came up with three takeaways in the lopsided victory. Despite a strong finish and a 9-8 record, the Saints will miss the playoffs for the third consecutive season.

This is a team that backed itself into a corner after a promising start this season. With five losses in their previous seven games, the Seahawks needed a win at Arizona and some help from the Bears at Lambeau Field. Seattle held up its end of the bargain, despite the fact that the team gave up a whopping 466 total yards on the afternoon.

For the second straight year, Pete Carroll’s club finished 9-8. A year ago, a Green Bay loss put the Seahawks in the playoffs. It needed another Packers’ loss on Sunday to get back to the postseason, but it wasn’t meant to be.

Last week, Doug Pederson’s team snapped a four-game losing streak with a win over Carolina. All the Jaguars had to do was beat the Titans to repeat as AFC South champions. It proved to be too much for a club that a year ago won its final five games to finish 9-8 in winning a division title. Sunday’s loss knocked this team out of the playoffs.

Jacksonville’s defense was gashed by Derrick Henry for 153 yards and a score. Trevor Lawrence threw for 280 yards and two scores but was picked off twice. Pederson’s club wound up turning over the football 30 times in 17 games.