Mike White will return as starting quarterback for the New York Jets in the Week 17 matchup against the Seattle Seahawks.

White has been sidelined for the past two games due to a rib injury suffered during the defeat to the Buffalo Bills in Week 14, with the Jets losing the two games since as part of a four-game losing streak that has hindered their playoff push.

However, first reported by the New York Post, White has been cleared by doctors and will be back to lead the offense in Sunday's road trip against the Seahawks – in which both teams will essentially be in must-win mode as they seek to clinch a Wild Card berth.

His return provides a welcome boost for the Jets, who saw last year's second overall pick Zach Wilson continue to struggle when placed back in as starter in last Thursday's defeat to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Wilson was benched for practice squad quarterback Chris Streveler in the second half of that loss.

In order to clinch a spot in the postseason, the Jets must win against the Seahawks and in their following trip to face the Miami Dolphins, but they also require at least one defeat from the New England Patriots from their two remaining games.

The Jets sit at 7-8 for the year and have not had a winning season since 2015 (10-6), while their last playoff appearance came 12 years ago.

The Denver Broncos have fired head coach Nathaniel Hackett after under a year in charge.

A 51-14 Christmas Day defeat to the Los Angeles Rams left the Broncos 4-11 on the season, the joint-third worst record across the NFL, with Denver set for their seventh consecutive losing season.

Former Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator Hackett was hired in January for his first head coach position and was expected to produce improvements to a struggling offense, which saw quarterback Russell Wilson added to its ranks in March in a blockbuster trade with the Seattle Seahawks.

However, performances have been disappointing, with the Broncos' points-per-game average of 15.5 standing as the lowest in the NFL.

The Broncos were thrashed 51-14 by the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday, a result that proved the final straw.

In a statement, owner and CEO Gregg Penner said: "Following extensive conversations with George Paton and our ownership group, we determined a new direction would ultimately be in the best interest of the Broncos.

"This change was made out of respect for everyone involved and allows us to immediately begin the search for a new head coach.

"We recognise and appreciate this organisation's championship history and we understand we have not met that standard.

"Our fans deserve much better and I can't say enough about their loyalty during such a challenging stretch for our team.

"Moving forward, we will carefully evaluate every aspect of our football operations and make whatever changes are necessary to restore this franchise's winning tradition."

The Broncos finish the season with a road trip to face the Kansas City Chiefs and a home game against the Los Angeles Chargers.

The Philadelphia Eagles are reportedly hopeful right tackle Lane Johnson will be fit for the playoffs after being ruled out for the remainder of the regular season with an abdominal injury.

Johnson was replaced by Jack Driscoll after suffering the injury in the fourth quarter of Saturday's 40-32 defeat against the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia's second loss of the campaign.

A report from ESPN's Adam Schefter said Johnson had undergone an MRI scan that revealed a torn tendon in the abdominal area, and he is not expected to play any further part in the Eagles' final two regular season games.

However, with Philadelphia having clinched a playoff spot, the NFC East leaders hope to have the four-time Pro Bowl OT available for a postseason run.

With Johnson starting all 15 of the Eagles' games this season, his setback represents another concern for a side already nursing an injury to starting quarterback and MVP candidate Jalen Hurts.

The Eagles boast the NFL's best record at 13-2, and another victory would be enough for them to clinch the NFC East, the conference's top seed and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

Leonard Fournette revealed he has been playing through a Lisfranc injury as he sent a message – which he later deleted – to his critics.

Fournette is one of a number of players whose performances have been scrutinised in a season in which the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a disappointing 7-8.

But that record crucially has the Bucs top of the NFC South after the running back led his team to a vital overtime win over the Arizona Cardinals on Christmas Day.

Fournette contributed 162 yards from scrimmage, leading Tampa Bay in both carries (20 for 72 yards) and receptions (nine for 90 yards).

And the 27-year-old revealed his commitment to the Bucs in a Twitter post on Monday, although he soon deleted the message.

"I hate when people be on here just talking, saying I'm out of shape etc," he wrote.

"Do y'all understand I'm playing with a Lisfranc in my foot every week? Can barely push off my foot but through the Grace of God I'm going to keep proving y'all wrong."

Fournette has the backing of quarterback Tom Brady, who said after the 19-16 win: "He ran really hard and was on a mission.

"He ran through arm tackles, ran hard, caught the ball well, pass protected well.

"This team has a lot of resiliency. We fight hard. 7-8 is not where we want to be, but got a chance at a championship game next week."

Russell Wilson conceded his inaugural season with the Denver Broncos has not been what he hoped for, though he made it clear that the necessary team improvements start with himself.

The quarterback threw three interceptions as the Los Angeles Rams ran out 51-14 victors on Christmas Day, leaving the Broncos 4-11 this year – the joint-third worst record across the NFL.

Wilson has struggled to perform following his mega trade from the Seattle Seahawks, with a pass completion of 60.1 per cent standing as the lowest-ever mark of his career.

Meanwhile, he has thrown a touchdown in just 2.9 per cent of his throws – again the worst record of his career.

Though the 34-year-old is not the only player to have disappointed this season, Wilson has vowed to "keep fighting" and remains confident of better displays in future campaigns.

"A lot needs to happen. I have to play to the standards that I know how to play to," he said, via Mike Klis of KUSA. "And I've been playing to my whole career. I'll never let a moment like tonight define me.

"We're at a low moment right now. I don't fear low moments because I know every time, I've always come out the other side. All I know how to do is keep fighting, keep battling.

"The reality is, it's been a storm. It's been a storm all year. It's not what we hoped for, not what we dreamed for. But it doesn't mean it's going to end that way for years to come. We got to change it, and it starts with me."

The Broncos travel to face the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, before concluding their season at home to the Los Angeles Chargers.

Tua Tagovailoa's performance in the Miami Dolphins' defeat to the Green Bay Packers is "something every quarterback goes through", according to coach Mike McDaniel.

The 2020 first-round pick threw three interceptions in the fourth quarter as the Dolphins blew a 10-point lead on Christmas Day against the Packers, eventually going down 26-20 at Hard Rock Stadium.

With just a handful of games left until the end of the regular season, the loss moves the Dolphins to an 8-7 record, having suffered four straight defeats.

Tagovailoa's performance was widely criticised afterwards, but McDaniel offered his full backing to his quarterback, suggesting they will work as a team to figure out how to bounce back from a poor performance.

"It's a challenge, but it's also something every quarterback goes through," he said. "It's one of those necessary things you have to really figure out.

"You can't let the past influence the present. I think there could be some portions that have to do with him snowballing in his own mind.

"But he's such a strong individual that I've very confidence he'll be able to get through that. This team needs him.

"This team needs myself to make sure all those situations are not putting him behind the eight-ball, and then the quarterback needs the rest of his team to execute so he doesn't have to do too much on his own."

The Dolphins travel to the New England Patriots on New Year's Day, before wrapping up their regular campaign against the New York Jets, likely needing to win both to reach the postseason.

Tom Brady feels the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are "comfortable" in down-to-the-wire situations after orchestrating an overtime comeback win against the Arizona Cardinals.

The Bucs rallied from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter to win 19-16 and keep a one-game lead atop the NFC South.

Brady completed 26 of 42 passes in regular time, with one touchdown pass to Rachaad White with eight minutes remaining, before throwing six from six to complete all of his passes in overtime.

It helped set up Ryan Succop's game-winning 40-yard field goal on the back of a nine-play 66-yard drive, and Brady acknowledged he and his team-mates believe they can thrive in pressure scenarios.

"If we keep it close in the fourth quarter, we know we've got a shot,” he said. "I think we’re all comfortable in those situations."

Leonard Fournette – who had nine receptions for 90 yards – was quick to pay tribute to Brady afterwards, suggesting their comeback was simply a by-product of what the seven-time Super Bowl champion brings to the field.

"That's just who he is," Fournette said. "He's been doing it for years. We're just playing a part in his greatness.

"[We] give him what he wants. He wants certain routes run certain ways. We're just here to try and make his job easier."

The Bucs have endured a tough year, with a 7-8 losing record, but they remain in with a postseason shot as they sit at the summit of NFC South ahead of the Carolina Panthers and the New Orleans Saints.

Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers rallied from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to claim a 19-16 overtime win over the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Sunday.

Ryan Succop kicked a 40-yard field goal with 3:41 remaining in overtime as the Bucs scored the final 13 points to put themselves in a position to win the NFC South with a victory next week against the Carolina Panthers. Tampa Bay are now 7-8 ahead of the 6-9 Panthers in that division.

The Cardinals had led 16-6 with 10:47 remaining after running back James Conner ran into the endzone for a 22-yard touchdown.

But the Bucs responded when it mattered after an uninspired first half, with Leonard Fournette's 44-yard run leading to Brady finding Rachaad White to cut the margin to 16-13.

Tampa Bay won the ball back when Cardinals third-string QB Trace McSorley tried a quick pitch on a third-and-one to rookie Keaontay Ingram whose fumble fell kindly to Bucs defensive end William Gholston.

That allowed Succop to kick a 42-yard attempt to square the game up, eventually going to overtime with McSorley attempting a hail Mary pass as the clock expired.

In the first half, both sides had scored field goals in each quarter, while Cardinals defensive end J.J. Watt's three tackles were a feature. Brady threw a third-quarter interception for Marco Wilson, his second of the game.

Brady completed 32 of 48 passes for 281 yards with one TD and two interceptions, while Fournette had 72 rushing yards from 20 carries along with 90 yards on nine receptions.

McSorley threw 24 of 45 passes for 217 yards, including a 47-yard gain for Marquise Brown, setting up Matt Prater's third field goal to give them the lead for the first time in the third quarter.

Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers rallied from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to claim a 19-16 overtime win over the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Sunday.

Ryan Succop kicked a 40-yard field goal with 3:41 remaining in overtime as the Bucs scored the final 13 points to put themselves in a position to win the NFC South with a victory next week against the Carolina Panthers. Tampa Bay are now 7-8 ahead of the 6-9 Panthers in that division.

The Cardinals had led 16-6 with 10:47 remaining after running back James Conner ran into the endzone for a 22-yard touchdown.

But the Bucs responded when it mattered after an uninspired first half, with Leonard Fournette's 44-yard run leading to Brady finding Rachaad White to cut the margin to 16-13.

Tampa Bay won the ball back when Cardinals third-string QB Trace McSorley tried a quick pitch on a third-and-one to rookie Keaontay Ingram whose fumble fell kindly to Bucs defensive end William Gholston.

That allowed Succop to kick a 42-yard attempt to square the game up, eventually going to overtime with McSorley attempting a hail Mary pass as the clock expired.

In the first half, both sides had scored field goals in each quarter, while Cardinals defensive end J.J. Watt's three tackles were a feature. Brady threw a third-quarter interception for Marco Wilson, his second of the game.

Brady completed 32 of 48 passes for 281 yards with one TD and two interceptions, while Fournette had 72 rushing yards from 20 carries along with 90 yards on nine receptions.

McSorley threw 24 of 45 passes for 217 yards, including a 47-yard gain for Marquise Brown, setting up Matt Prater's third field goal to give them the lead for the first time in the third quarter.

The Los Angeles Rams enjoyed their most dominant win of the season on Sunday as they pummelled the Denver Broncos 51-14.

It was a miserable game from beginning to end for the Broncos, conceding a field goal on the opening drive before quarterback Russell Wilson threw an interception from their third play, gifting the Rams the field position to score again and take a 10-0 lead.

Things went from bad to worse when the Broncos' second drive also ended in a Wilson interception, with Rams running back Cam Akers delivering a second touchdown in the first quarter to jump ahead by three scores.

The Rams went on to score touchdowns on both of their next two drives, with Akers and Tyler Higbee both collecting two by half-time to blow out the margin.

Akers put the exclamation point on the drubbing with his third touchdown run of the game to open the fourth quarter, before Wilson finally found a consolation score, firing a touchdown pass to Greg Dulcich.

Mayfield, in his third start since being picked up off the waiver wire, completed a superb 24 of his 28 passes for 230 yards, two touchdowns and no turnovers. Higbee was his top receiver, catching nine passes for 94 yards and both of Mayfield's touchdowns.

Wilson was 15-of-27 for 214 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions, although Jerry Jeudy was excellent, bringing in six catches for 117 yards. For Wilson, it was his first game with three interceptions since October 2020.

The Green Bay Packers' defense played a spectacular fourth quarter to deliver a 26-20 win against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.

It was the third consecutive win for the surging Packers, who were 4-8 before the streak, but now have a chance to make the playoffs if they can defeat the Minnesota Vikings and the Detroit Lions in a pair of January games at Lambeau Field to close the season.

Against the Dolphins, the Packers fell behind in the first quarter after Jaylen Waddle took a pass 84 yards for the longest offensive touchdown to ever occur in a Christmas Day game.

They tied things up with a touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers to Marcedes Lewis, before a Jeff Wilson Jr goal-line touchdown run put the Dolphins up 20-13 at halftime.

The Green Bay defense was a completely different beast after the break, holding the Dolphins scoreless as they made quarterback Tua Tagovailoa's life miserable down the stretch.

Entering the fourth quarter tied at 20-20, all three of the Dolphins' possessions in the last period ended in interceptions, gifting the Packers the field position needed for a pair of field goals to take the lead and the win.

Rodgers completed 24 of his 38 passes for 238 yards, one touchdown and one interception, while Tagovailoa was 16-of-25 for 310 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions.

The Dolphins have now lost four in a row, dropping to a murky 8-7 after appearing destined for the playoffs at 8-3.

Starting right tackle for the Cincinnati Bengals La'el Collins suffered a torn ACL and MCL during Saturday's win against the New England Patriots.

Collins, 29, was enjoying a strong first season with the Bengals after spending his first six years with the Dallas Cowboys.

He started all 15 games up to this point after being brought in to stabilise Joe Burrow's protection, and it has been the first of Burrow's three seasons where he has averaged fewer than three sacks per game.

The Bengals are currently one of the hottest teams in the NFL, riding a seven-game winning streak with nine victories from their past 10 outings, but the loss of Collins will undoubtedly be a massive blow.

According to Enquirer's Kelsey Conway, the team's initial on-field ACL exam appeared to indicate he had not suffered a tear, but an ensuing MRI produced much more dire results.

They finish their season with home games against the Buffalo Bills and the Baltimore Ravens, but with a playoff berth already secured, the priority will now be to reach the postseason as healthy as possible.

The Pittsburgh Steelers remain in the playoff hunt for at least one more week after some rookie heroics led to a 13-10 victory against the Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday.

With both teams entering the contest at 6-8, it meant anything but a win would spell an early end to the season, and it was the Raiders controlling the contest throughout.

Playing on the road, Hunter Renfrow gave the Raiders the lead in the first quarter after an impressive contested catch near the sideline, before staying inbounds and juking the safety on his way to the endzone

The two sides would kick a field goal each in the second quarter, and besides another Chris Boswell field goal early in the fourth period to cut the Raiders' lead to 10-6, there were no other points scored in the second half until the final minute.

Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett got the ball back for his game-winning drive with 2:55 remaining, proceeding to march 76 yards down the field in 10 plays in the freezing temperature and driving snow. 

It culminated in a quarterback sneak to convert a fourth-and-one, before Pickett found fellow rookie George Pickens in the endzone for a 14-yard touchdown with 46 seconds on the clock.

The Raiders had one late chance to work their way into field goal range and potentially force overtime to keep their season alive, but it all came crashing down when Derek Carr threw his third interception of the game. It tied Carr's career-high for interceptions in a season with 14, with two games remaining.

Pickett, on the other hand, played a strong game considering the conditions, completing 26 of his 39 passes for 244 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

The Steelers will need to beat the Baltimore Ravens and the Cleveland Browns in the final two weeks to give themselves a chance to make the playoffs.

Despite playing without their starting quarterback, the Philadelphia Eagles put up a strong fight on the road against the Dallas Cowboys before ultimately going down 40-34.

Entering the contest at 13-1, the Eagles were missing Jalen Hurts for the first time this season, meaning backup Gardner Minshew would run the show.

One of the more capable backups in the league, Minshew played well, rushing for a touchdown in the first half before throwing one to begin the third quarter to put his side ahead 27-17. The Cowboys fought back to tie things up, but Minshew was not done, tossing his second touchdown of the game to pull ahead 34-27 early in the fourth.

However, Dallas had too much firepower down the stretch, highlighted by receiver CeeDee Lamb's big outing.

Lamb scored the Cowboys' only touchdown in the first half, and he struck again with his side trailing in the last quarter, tying the game at 34-34 to cap a 12-catch, 120-yard performance.

Dallas finally stuck their noses back in front when Brett Maher converted a 26-yard field goal with 2:19 remaining on the clock, leaving the Eagles with plenty of time to mount a game-winning drive, but it ended abruptly after Miles Sanders' fumble on the very first play.

Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott completed 27 of his 35 passes for 347 yards, three touchdowns and one interception, while his counterpart Minshew was 24-of-40 for two scores and two picks.

With the win, Dallas improved their record to 11-4 and secured their place in the playoffs, although they will need the Eagles (13-2) to lose their last two for any chance at stealing the division.

Bosa, Kittle lead eighth consecutive 49ers victory

The San Francisco 49ers (11-4) remain the hottest team in the NFL after rattling off their eighth straight win, defeating the Washington Commanders 37-20.

It continues rookie quarterback Brock Purdy's dream start to his career, with four wins from his first four starts since Jimmy Garoppolo's injury. He completed 15 of his 22 passes for 234 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, but the stars of the game were tight end George Kittle and pass-rusher Nick Bosa.

Kittle – who had only four touchdowns for the season prior to last week's game – now has four touchdowns in the past two weeks, following up a 93-yard, two touchdown performance with Saturday's 120-yard, two-touchdown showing.

Meanwhile, Defensive Player of the Year favourite Nick Bosa sacked Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinicke twice, taking his league-leading sack total to 17.5 in 14 games.

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson broke his team's franchise record for most receiving yards in a season on Saturday as he starred once again in a win over the New York Giants.

Jefferson caught 12 of his 16 targets for 133 yards and a touchdown in the 27-24 win, which was decided by a 61-yard field goal in the final seconds after Jefferson's final catch brought them into range.

Four games ago Jefferson broke Randy Moss' record for most receiving yards in a player's first three seasons, and he took Moss' name out of the record books once again as he eclipsed his single-season Vikings record.

Moss set the record back in 2003, catching 111 passes for 1632 yards in 16 games, but Jefferson blew past it to reach 1756 yards in just 15 games. With the NFL season now extended to 17 games, he may have a chance to shatter the mark and potentially approach 2000 yards if he plays in Week 18.

Saturday was the 11th time this season Jefferson has registered at least 98 receiving yards in a game, although his total of 133 was only his seventh-best of the campaign, highlighted by a 223-yard performance against the Detroit Lions.

A former first-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, Jefferson burst onto the scene to win Offensive Rookie of the Year honours with 1400 yards and seven touchdowns in his debut season, before going even bigger in 2021 with 1616 yards and 10 scores.