San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo could be in line to return for the postseason after a report suggested he would not require surgery on his broken left foot.

Garoppolo stayed down after being sacked by both Jaelan Phillips and Jerome Baker during the 49ers' 33-17 win against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

It was subsequently said he had broken bones in his foot which would likely require surgery, giving rise to fears his season was over.

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan described the blow of losing his starting quarterback as "crushing", but his fears may yet be allayed, according to a report from ESPN's Adam Schefter.

The report claims Garoppolo avoided a Lisfranc injury and will not require surgery, potentially opening the door to his return to the field within seven to eight weeks.

If Garoppolo was to return within seven weeks, he could feature in any potential NFC Divisional Round game for San Francisco, while the NFC Championship game takes place one week later.

Super Bowl LVII, meanwhile, will take place another two weeks down the line, potentially giving Garoppolo the chance to win his third Super Bowl title.

On Monday, Shanahan indicated Garoppolo's injury may not be as bad as first feared, but was unwilling to speculate until he could give an official diagnosis.

"They're still trying to work through it," Shanahan said. "Some specialists have to finalise it, so we don't want to give you guys any false information. 

"They're discussing all those things, but we're feeling like it's starting to get better than that, so we'll see when we get the official information."

With any potential return for Garoppolo some time away, the 49ers will rely on Brock Purdy – the final pick in this year's draft – to fill the void following an encouraging display against the Dolphins.

On Monday, Shanahan refuted suggestions the 49ers could not compete for honours with Purdy in a starting role, saying: "He's decisive. He started for years [at Iowa State] at a high level. 

"You gotta have some balls to play quarterback in this league, and he does. We think we'll have a chance with him."

Desperate to save what has been a disastrous title defense, the Los Angeles Rams have claimed quarterback Baker Mayfield off waivers.

The defending Super Bowl champions made the move on Tuesday, one day after Mayfield was released by the Carolina Panthers.

The former top pick joins a Los Angeles team that has lost six consecutive games and is tied with the Denver Broncos for the NFL's third-worst record at 3-9.

While it was being speculated he would be claimed by a contending team dealing with an injury at quarterback – the San Francisco 49ers or the Baltimore Ravens – he instead joins a Rams team out of the playoff picture.

The quarterback position has been a mess for Los Angeles with Matthew Stafford likely out for the rest of the season with a bruised spinal cord, while backups John Wolford and Bryce Perkins have struggled to generate much offense.

Wolford has one touchdown pass and a 64.6 QB rating in two games played, while Perkins has one touchdown and a 53.7 rating in four contests.

Mayfield, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2018 draft by the Cleveland Browns, has not been much better, throwing six touchdowns and six interceptions while registering a 74.4 passer rating in seven games played. Among quarterbacks with at least 75 attempts, Mayfield's 57.8 completion percentage beats out only the New York Jets' Zach Wilson (55.6 per cent).

Mayfield went just 1-6 for the Panthers, who acquired him from the Browns in July and would have been responsible to pay him $1.35million for the remainder of this season had the Rams not put in the claim.

Los Angeles host the Las Vegas Raiders on Thursday night, and it is not out of the question Mayfield plays.

The Tennessee Titans have fired general manager Jon Robinson, the franchise confirmed on Tuesday.

Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk informed Robinson he was relieved of his duties following a 35-10 defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.

Although 7-5 Tennessee are top of the AFC South, they have suffered back-to-back defeats and the division stands as the weakest in the NFL – with none of the four sides currently on a winning streak.

Vice president of player personnel Ryan Cowden will take the reigns for the remainder of the season, with a "comprehensive search" beginning once the campaign is complete.

Adams Strunk said in a statement: "Since becoming controlling owner in 2015, my goal has been to raise the standard for what is expected in all facets of our organisation.

"I believe we have made significant progress both on and off the field through investments in leadership, personnel and new ideas.

"This progress includes the core of our business, the football team itself, which is regularly evaluated both by results (wins and losses) and team construction/roster building.

"I am proud of what we have accomplished in my eight seasons of ownership, but I believe there is more to be done and higher aspirations to be met."

The Titans host the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 14, with three of their remaining five games taking place in Tennessee.

Odell Beckham Jr's future is not on a timeline for Dallas Cowboys general manager Jerry Jones, after the wide receiver hinted he could yet move to Texas.

The free agent, who has been without a club since winning the Super Bowl with the Los Angeles Rams last season, has spent the past two days in contact with the team.

After undergoing a physical on Monday, Beckham attended a Dallas Mavericks match alongside Cowboys players, where he suggested a move could be a "good possibility."

But Jones says there is no deal on the table yet for the three-time Pro Bowl pick, who has not played since tearing his ACL in the Super Bowl earlier this year.

"By no means are we at a position to say, 'close,' or where we are," he said. "We're just discussing the many options that are there."

Asked if Beckham could play this season if he was to sign imminently, Jones sidestepped a direct answer, adding: "I'm going to keep that one at bay because that's degree.

"It's a lot different if you play one play or if you played or are available for a week and that week be the Super Bowl week, than if he's available the next week.

"I would say that's a point of discussion - a player's own belief of where he is in becoming ready to play is real big.

"I just think this is an opportunity that is rare because of his availability. But one way or the other, there's not a failure here. I'm talking about the actual signing or not signing. There's no disappointment here."

The Cowboys are 9-3 for the season to date, and lie second in NFC East behind the Philadelphia Eagles, with their next match against state rivals the Houston Texans on Sunday.

The Green Bay Packers still want Aaron Rodgers to play on next season, says general manager Brian Gutekunst, despite the quarterback's cryptic words over the weekend.

The former Super Bowl champion is in the middle of a three-year contract that runs through the 2024 season, having spent his entire professional career in Wisconsin.

But following Sunday's 28-19 win over the Chicago Bears, Rodgers cast doubt over the subject of his future, stating: "There has got to be mutual desire on both sides."

Amid their bye week, Gutekunst said no discussions have taken place over the 39-year-old's next steps, but stressed they still want the veteran to remain on their books.

"That's an offseason-type kind of decision, but surely, yeah," he stated. "We want all our guys back. We made a big commitment to [Rodgers] this offseason, so that was obviously something that was really important to us.

"But like we've talked about in the past, this is something we'll sit down with him after the season, and it will be something we do together and move forward that way.

"We don't talk about those things during the season very often. We just talk more about our team when we speak. Certainly, that'll be something we get to.

"We went through something in the offseason where it was a very big commitment on our part. It wasn't certainly for one year. B we really haven't had any conversations about that stuff during the season."

Rodgers' comments come amid a difficult season for the Packers, who have posted a 5-8 record and are on the cusp of elimination from playoff contention.

Their next game comes against the Los Angeles Rams in just under a fortnight, with the team facing a fight to recover their campaign.

Tom Brady added to his own NFL record for career game-winning drives, pulling another rabbit out of his hat to deliver an unlikely 17-16 win against the New Orleans Saints on Monday.

Brady's Bucs had only mustered three points in the first 55 minutes of the 60-minute contest, but produced two clutch touchdown drives late in the fourth quarter to salvage a gutsy win.

He delivered the first touchdown pass to Cade Otton with three minutes remaining, and after getting the ball back 30 seconds later, the two-and-a-half minutes on the clock was more than enough to march down again and find Rachaad White with three seconds to spare.

Brady now has 56 game-winning drives in his career, two more than Peyton Manning in second-place.

It was a crucial win for the Buccaneers, who are now 6-6 and one game clear atop the insipid NFC South.

After the victory, Brady reflected on the rollercoaster of emotions after his initial game-winning touchdown pass to Chris Godwin was negated by a holding penalty.

"Just like we drew it up," he said with tongue-in-cheek to open his press conference.

"It was great. Great route by Rachaad, great catch. [Offensive coordinator] Byron [Leftwich] made a great call. 

"We thought we threw the touchdown to Chris – I thought I threw it in a quarter-second. I was like 'how was there a hold? I caught it and threw it'.

"That put us back to the 15 [yard line], but we still found a way. It was a great team win.

"We've been pretty good in no-huddle and two-minute drills. A lot of games come down to those type of plays – and our guys made them. Our guys made the plays this week."

Since arriving in Tampa Bay ahead of the 2020-21 season, Brady has faced the Saints three times at home, and this is both the first win, and the first time the Buccaneers have been able to score a touchdown in any of those games.

"They're a hard team to beat, and I'm glad we won," he said. "They've got a great defense, they played us very physical, like we thought. 

"We made some mistakes in there, but we made enough plays in the end to win.

"I wish we could score more points against them, they make it really hard. They've got a really good scheme, really good players, they cover well, rush well, really good linebackers.

"Tough game, but a great win."

Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles was thrilled with the result, pointing to his team's "guts".

"They showed guts, they showed grit and they played well together," he said. "It was a complete team effort. 

"The defense got the ball back, the offense cashed it in. We got it back one more time, they cashed it in one more time. It was a good team effort."

Next up on their schedule is the San Francisco 49ers, who present a golden opportunity for a win since it will be the first start at quarterback for third-stringer Brock Purdy after Jimmy Garoppolo's season-ending injury on Sunday.

Brady played his last college game at Michigan four days after Purdy was born.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 45-year-old quarterback showed he still has some magic left in the tank as Tom Brady delivered an unlikely 17-16 home win against the New Orleans Saints on Monday.

Brady's offense struggled all game, and they trailed 16-3 with under five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, before the seven-time Super Bowl champion conjured some more of his famous late-game heroics.

He mounted a 10-play, 91-yard drive in just over two minutes, with a one-yard touchdown pass to tight end Cade Otton cutting the margin to 16-10.

Just 31 seconds later he had the ball back after the Buccaneers' defense forced a punt, thanks in large part to a sack from Carl Nassib, giving Brady two-and-a-half minutes to produce another game-winning drive.

Having broken the record for most game-winning drives in the final five minutes or overtime earlier this season, Brady added one more – the 56th of his career – but not without some controversy first.

With 19 seconds remaining, Brady found receiver Chris Godwin for a five-yard touchdown pass that seemingly won the Bucs the game, but a flag for offensive holding negated the play, and meant Brady would have to now figure it out from the 15-yard line.

A nine-yard completion to Godwin got him back down to the six-yard line, and from there, on third-down, he found backup running back Rachaad White leaking out of the backfield to reach the endzone with three seconds on the clock.

Brady ultimately completed 36 of his 54 passes for 281 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, and the win improved the Buccaneers' record to 6-6 – giving them sole possession of first-place atop the underperforming NFC South.

Odell Beckham Jr implied there is a strong chance he will be signing with the Dallas Cowboys after being spotted with Cowboys players at a Dallas Mavericks game on Monday.

Beckham, 30, has not played since last season's Super Bowl, where he caught a touchdown in the Los Angeles Rams' 23-20 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.

His contract expired after that game, and he opted to take his time this season before choosing where he would like to play, waiting to see who would emerge as a Super Bowl contender.

The Cowboys are 9-3 this season and boast arguably the best defense in the NFL, with only the San Francisco 49ers having a case for a superior unit.

Essentially a lock for the playoffs now, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has spoken publicly about meeting with Beckham and trying to convince him to bolster the team's receiving corps, where things get relatively shallow after top option CeeDee Lamb and capable number-two Michael Gallup.

At the Mavericks game, ESPN reporter Tim McMahon claims to have asked Beckham what the Cowboys' chances are of signing him, and he replied "it's a good possibility".

Ohio State star receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba vowed to make "an even bigger impact" when turning professional after declaring for the NFL Draft, though he will miss the College Football Playoff.

A hamstring injury has limited Smith-Njigba, one of the most decorated players in college football and the country's top wide receiver draft prospect, to just three outings this season.

The 20-year-old hoped to be fit for the December 31 clash against Georgia in the College Football Playoff but will be sidelined after consultation with the doctors.

That means the wide receiver has played his last game for Ohio as he confirmed he will put his name forward for the 2023 NFL Draft, which starts on April 27.

"I want to be out there competing with my brothers more than anything," Smith-Njigba told ESPN on Monday.

"Ohio State means the world to me. Watching from afar will be difficult, but I will be cheering my guys on and praying we get [the win].

"The decision to turn pro was made after I was unable to come back on multiple occasions during the season and the doctors determined I would be unable to participate in the playoffs."

Smith-Njigba posted a Big Ten record with 1,606 receiving yards on 95 receptions while playing alongside 2022 first-round draft picks Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave last season.

A fine individual campaign included a remarkable Rose Bowl performance, in which he recorded 15 catches for 347 yards and three touchdowns.

Smith-Njigba has failed to hit similar heights in 2022, managing just five catches for 43 yards after battling with a hamstring issue – much to his frustration.

"More than you could imagine," he said of his struggles amid an injury-plagued year. "The season was tough, and I did everything I could to help my team and get back on the field.

"Sometimes things don't work out how you planned, but my faith in God has given me the strength to focus on my health and the next challenge.

"I'm going to have an even bigger impact in the NFL than when I played at OSU. I'm a playmaker who helps my team win and nothing has changed.

"My game both physically and mentally has only improved. The NFL is going to get a better version of me, and I'm excited to have the opportunity to show everyone that I still am [the best wide receiver]."

University of Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson has played his final game for the team after declaring for the 2023 NFL Draft.

Richardson announced his decision on Monday, while also stating he would not play for the Gators against Oregon State in the Las Vegas Bowl.

His confirmation for the draft sees him join a strong quarterback pool, which also includes the likes of Ohio State's CJ Stroud, Kentucky's Will Levis and Alabama's Bryce Young.

In a lengthy social media post, Richardson said: "After much prayer, consideration, and speaking with my family, I have decided to forego the upcoming bowl game and my remaining years of college eligibility to enter the 2023 NFL Draft.

"As I take my next step in this journey, I will always be a Gator and strive to make Gator Nation proud."

Richardson has completed 176 of 327 passing attempts this season, resulting in 2549 yards for 17 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Those numbers will be appealing across the NFL, where a number of franchises are expected to be in the hunt for a quarterback after what was considered to be a weak draft class for the position in 2022.

Prior to Joe Burrow's arrival in 2020, the Cincinnati Bengals were an NFL punchline. In the third season of what looks set to be a storied NFL career, he has helped them turn one of the most fearsome teams in the league into their own personal punching bag.

Ok, that may be going a little far. However, after their thrilling 27-24 win in Week 13, it is clear the Bengals are the dominant team in a rivalry with the Kansas City Chiefs, who they have now defeated in three successive games including their remarkable AFC Championship Game triumph last season.

That dream run to the Super Bowl was one that looked difficult to replicate, especially after the Bengals made an 0-2 start to the season with defeats to the Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas Cowboys.

But the concern from that early disappointment has long since dissipated, with Burrow once authoring an increasingly impressive follow-up to his outstanding 2021 campaign.

Continually perfect placement

He reached a highpoint for the 2022 season on Sunday by once again outduelling Patrick Mahomes in an undulating thrill ride in Cincinnati, exhibiting the accuracy that defined the Bengals' unexpected 2021 ascension.

The former number one overall pick delivered an accurate, well-thrown ball on 87.1 per cent of his pass attempts, according to Stats Perform data, his superb ball placement helping him complete 25 of his 31 passes for 286 yards and two touchdowns. Burrow also opened the scoring with a rushing touchdown.

While the final stat line in terms of yardage may not be eye-popping, Burrow averaged 9.23 yards per attempt, his precision as a passer ensuring the Bengals maintained offensive efficiency that is critical against the Chiefs.

Burrow ended the game with a completion percentage of 80.6, over five per cent higher than his expected completion percentage of 75.4.

And yet, even in a game where Burrow was deadly accurate, the Bengals averaged 8.7 yards per pass play and Ja'Marr Chase had 97 yards on seven catches on his return from injury, it could be argued the Bengals did not fire on all cylinders.

Though they moved the ball well, the Bengals went three of seven in the red zone, with Tyler Boyd committing a crucial drop on a would-be touchdown on third down in the third quarter, and Burrow regularly had to make plays with his legs when pass protection that has improved this season broke down.

Normally such missed opportunities as the Bengals had inside the 20-yard line would be fatal against the Chiefs and the most feared quarterback of his generation, but since Burrow returned from the knee injury that prematurely ended his rookie year to reassume command of the offense in 2021, he and Cincinnati have become experts in finding a way to prevail against any calibre of this opposition.

On this occasion versus the Chiefs, it was success in finding balance that saw them navigate a path to a win over the team that entered Week 13 as the AFC's number one seed.

Yin and Yang

Cincinnati's passing game was complemented by a ground attack that took advantage of Kansas City's vulnerability defending the run.

Backup running back Samaje Perine averaged five yards per carry, with the efforts of the offensive line aiding him in putting up 3.29 yards before contact per rush, the sixth-most among backs with at least 10 carries in Week 13.

More critical, though, was the fourth-quarter defiance of the defense, which, despite struggling to get Mahomes off the field, came up with two crucial stops when the Bengals needed them most.

Germaine Pratt forced and recovered a fumble from Travis Kelce on a 19-yard reception to set up a go-ahead touchdown for the Bengals, on which Burrow found a wide-open Chris Evans after Boyd redeemed himself with a key third-down catch, and Joseph Ossai – who missed all of his rookie year due to injury – showcased his pass-rushing prowess and his motor to bring down Mahomes for a sack on third and short, ending the Chiefs' subsequent drive and forcing a long game-tying field goal attempt that Harrison Butker pushed wide right.

That gave Burrow the chance to kill the game in the final minutes and, after a second-down sack that appeared as if it might give the Chiefs one more chance, he extinguished any lingering Kansas City hope with one final display of his elite marksmanship.

Under pressure from Derrick Nnadi, Burrow calmly delivered a perfect ball to Tee Higgins over the middle as the Bengals ran a slant-flat concept, his throw delivered with the timing and anticipation to dart into the grasp of Higgins and defeat the excellent coverage of rookie Joshua Williams, ensuring Cincinnati picked up a first down on third-and-11 and ended the ball game.

Since Week 6, when the Bengals set off a run that has seen them win six of their past seven games, Burrow leads the NFL in completion percentage (72.3) and passing touchdowns (16), while he is third in yards per attempt (8.55), showcasing the kind of form that lifted the Bengals to the Super Bowl last season.

While he was both devastatingly accurate and efficient in Sunday's engrossing victory, it was a Bengals performance that, a week on from a hard-fought 20-16 win over the Tennessee Titans, further demonstrated they do not necessarily need Burrow to carry the entire burden of their hopes on his shoulders.

Against Kansas City, the Bengals used a balanced offensive approach to win the time of possession battle – Cincinnati limiting the Chiefs' opportunities by holding the ball for over four minutes more than their high-powered opponents – and delivered defensive stops in the crucial moments.

But such key plays may not have borne fruit had Burrow not answered the bell with an unstoppable throw to Higgins when it was all on his shoulders.

There is the talent on the Bengals' roster that Burrow doesn't have to do everything, but approaching the end of his third season as pro, the overwhelming evidence is that he can.

This latest win over the Chiefs does indeed represent the zenith of 2022 for Burrow and the Bengals to this point. The exciting thing for Cincinnati, though, is that, for as much as he impressed, it was not Burrow's best performance of the season.

The ceiling for the Cincinnati offense is higher than what the Bengals produced in Week 13, and the fact they weren't required to reach it to knock off Kansas City once more should offer substantial encouragement to the reigning AFC champions, and terrify the rest of the conference looking to usurp them.

Derwin James knows the Los Angeles Chargers have no room for error following their Week 13 defeat to the Las Vegas Raiders.

The Chargers, having claimed a dramatic win over the Arizona Cardinals in Week 12, bumped back down to earth with a 27-20 loss at Allegiant Stadium.

It leaves the Chargers 6-6 and a game adrift of the New York Jets in the final Wild Card place in the AFC playoff picture.

They now face a critical home game with the 8-4 Miami Dolphins, and safety James believes they can ill-afford any further slip-ups if they are to make the playoffs for the first time since 2018.

"We gotta keep playing. There's more games to be played. Prime time next week. We gotta come out [with a] sense of urgency," said James.

"Each game from here on out, we can't lose anymore. We gotta win out."

The Chargers' run defense was again a problem area for Los Angeles, allowing Josh Jacobs to rush for 144 yards and a second-quarter touchdown.

Los Angeles' defense is allowing 5.43 yards per rush in 2022, the most in the NFL, and head coach Brandon Staley blamed poor tackling for their struggles.

"I thought we played well early," Staley said of their efforts to stop Jacobs.

"I thought there were some missed tackles in the second half, which led to most of his yards. I thought we were in good run structures but missing tackles. He forces people to miss.

"No one is out there trying to miss. He's a good back and that's going to happen. I really felt like we defended well in the first half outside of a couple of misses. In the second half, it was a little up and down.

"Guys just have to tackle better."

The Tennessee Titans are at a crossroads in their season, according to head coach Mike Vrabel, after they were thrashed by the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 13.

Vrabel saw his team crushed 35-10 at Lincoln Financial Field as the Eagles improved to 11-1 in an outstanding season.

Former Titans wide receiver A.J. Brown, traded to the Eagles on draft day this year, had eight catches for 119 yards and two touchdowns against his former team in a superb display.

For Tennessee, the blowout loss comes on the heels of a narrow loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, dropping them to 7-5.

The Titans are almost certainly going to win a poor AFC South division, but these back-to-back defeats raise substantial questions about Tennessee's ability to contend for postseason success.

"I think we are at a crossroads," Vrabel said. "I told the team I think we are at a crossroads at kind of how we want to continue down this season.

"We can't point fingers. We have to assume that each and every one of us didn't do a good enough job because we didn't.

"We have to come to work with greater energy and greater resolve to prepare to win a football game against a division opponent.

"It sucks losing, it sucks getting beat the way we did but we have to make a decision, how much are we willing to invest and trust in what the coaches are doing, trust in what each of the players are doing. I think it’s a critical time for us."

The Titans will be favoured to get back on track next week when they host the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.

Baker Mayfield will be released by the Carolina Panthers on Monday, bringing an end to a brief and disappointing stint with the franchise.

The first overall pick of the 2018 NFL Draft was traded away by the Cleveland Browns in July, with the Panthers giving up a conditional fifth-round draft pick.

After competing with Sam Darnold for the starting quarterback berth, Mayfield started the season as QB1 until suffering a high-ankle sprain in a Week 5 loss to the San Francisco 49ers – returning in Week 8, when he was backup for P.J. Walker.

Having made his last appearance in a Week 11 defeat to the Baltimore Ravens, the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Mayfield will be released by the Panthers and will hit the waiver wire on Monday.

Mayfield will depart the Panthers with a disappointing 1-6 record, throwing as many interceptions as touchdown passes (six).

A pass completion percentage of just 57.8 per cent is the second-worst across the NFL, only ahead of the New York Jets' Zach Wilson (55.6 per cent).

Bill Belichick believes it is too late in the season to rip up the playbook for the New England Patriots, even as the perennial contenders continue to struggle with their form.

A 24-10 loss to the Buffalo Bills last Thursday saw the Foxborough outfit drop to 6-6 for the season, leaving them outside the AFC's wild card slots with a handful of games to go.

Though there is plenty of time to still salvage their season, the Patriots appear to be in something of a rut, with quarterback Mac Jones involved in a sideline outburst last week.

Belichick, however, will not introduce wholesale changes, claiming they are too deep into the season to do so, and stating they merely need to execute their existing tactics.

"I think we need to do what we're doing better," he told radio station WEEI. "I don't think at this point making a lot of dramatic changes. It's too hard to do that.

"If we can just do, consistently, what we're doing, I think we'll be all right. We just haven't been able to have enough consistency. That's hurt us.

"It's not one thing. One time, it's one thing, [and] next time, it's something else. We just have to play and coach more consistently.

"I think we'd all certainly like to be doing better than what we've been doing, from a record standpoint and from an individual execution [standpoint]. But we're going to look ahead and not backward."

The Patriots are not in action for another week now, and will return to the field against the struggling Arizona Cardinals next Monday.