The Patriots lost big for winning, and what else we’re learning in Week 18

Cowboys: The biggest decision of the offseason figures to be the fate of Mike McCarthy, who can become a free agent if he’s not re-signed by Jan. 14. But that’s not the only big decision facing the Cowboys. Micah Parsons is heading into the final year of his contract and is due to make a guaranteed $21.3 million next season, which means the smart move would be to sign him to a long-term contract now. The Cowboys want to do it and he clearly deserves it. He had 2½ more sacks on Sunday and finished with 12 for the year, despite missing four games with injuries. The Cowboys like to wait on these things, but they’d be crazy not to get this deal done sooner than later. A big contract would lower his cap number for 2025 and give the Cowboys potentially another $10-15 million to spend in free agency. It’s a no-brainer move. — Ralph Vacchiano

Colts: We have learned nothing new about Anthony Richardson through two seasons. He’s a young quarterback with Superman-like physical traits and upside, but is still far from being a consistent, every-down passer in the NFL. It doesn’t help that he’s missed 17 of 32 possible games (15 due to injury). Development is the one thing he has needed more than anything else, but he hasn’t been consistently available. That complicates a Colts path to contention in the near future. The former No. 4 overall pick should at least begin 2025 as QB1, but if he doesn’t show growth then, Indy will be back at square one at the quarterback position — a place the franchise has been stuck in for years. — Ben Arthur  

Bucs: Tampa Bay was down 10, down six in the fourth quarter, and the defense stepped up in the second half as it has throughout the past month. Give credit to Baker Mayfield for huge passes and runs to pull off the comeback, but the defense made it possible. It had allowed just six total points in the second half of the past four games, and it held the Saints to just three points in the second half on Sunday to set the offense up for a comeback. The Bucs eked out the win they had to have to clinch the NFC South, and did it without the offense doing much until the fourth quarter. They did it without a takeaway — they’ve struggled to find those all year — and with only two sacks, though Vita Vea’s sack of Spencer Rattler in the fourth quarter was a huge play. — Greg Auman

Packers: Around the league, Week 18 games weren’t the most beautiful or digestible product. But Green Bay unfortunately reminded everyone why many teams rested their starters out of an abundance of caution. Quarterback Jordan Love left the game in the second quarter with a right elbow injury. Receiver Christian Watson left the field on a cart after a knee injury. The Packers have struggled against playoff contenders in recent weeks, so it was easy to doubt their playoff chances. And that was with Love and Watson in the starting lineup. Now, the Packers have to worry about the health of their QB and one of their top receivers. It’s a tough blow to the team — and at the worst possible time. — Henry McKenna

Falcons: Head coach Raheem Morris’ Falcons completed an embarrassing second-half collapse and fell to the Panthers at home in overtime in the final game of the year to be eliminated from the postseason. Morris is a defensive head coach, yet Atlanta’s defense allowed the Bryce Young-led Panthers to score a season-high 44 points. The Falcons lost six of their last eight games to finish the season 8-9 after a 6-3 start, and their fall off a cliff included benching quarterback Kirk Cousins after signing him to a free-agent contract that included $100 million in guaranteed money. The only saving grace for Morris is that Cousins’ replacement, first-round draft pick Michael Penix Jr., played reasonably well in his three starts, finishing with 775 passing yards and three touchdowns. Penix didn’t look overwhelmed by the moment as a starting quarterback in the NFL, which gives Atlanta some hope for 2025. — Eric D. Williams

Patriots: What was the point of this win? New England will not pick first overall, despite starting Sunday in pole position. With a Patriots victory over the Bills, the Titans took the No. 1 spot. The old cliché is that this sort of win builds culture in New England. Wins cure all ills, they say. I say: This win won’t do that. The 4-13 Patriots aren’t walking away from this win with their heads held high. And shortly after the game, New England fired head coach Jerod Mayo after one year on the job. So what did this win accomplish? Nothing. The Patriots clearly wanted to tank. They removed Drake Maye after one series and put in rookie quarterback Joe Milton, their third-stringer, for the remainder of the game. But for a team that has done so many things wrong, it makes sense that they won when they were supposed to lose. — Henry McKenna

Eagles: There was really nothing to learn about the Eagles from this game, considering they declared 11 of their starters inactive for the game and rested several others. They knew that nothing mattered more than making sure they were as healthy as possible for what they hope will be a long playoff run. There is a bit of a mystery with quarterback Jalen Hurts, who was last seen two weeks ago when he suffered a concussion in Washington. He’s also dealing with a broken finger on his left (non-throwing) hand. All indications have been that he’ll be OK for the first round. If he is, that could be the first of many playoff games for the Eagles over the next month. — Ralph Vacchiano

Titans: The Titans have secured the No. 1 overall pick — a result of their loss and the Patriots beating the Bills — putting them in position to take Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward. But I’m not entirely convinced that the Titans are going to draft a quarterback. If coach Brian Callahan and general manager Ran Carthon are retained, they could be leaning toward self-preservation. In other words, doing what it takes to win in 2025 — and not necessarily what’s best for the franchise in the long term. That could mean pursuing a veteran quarterback (someone like Sam Darnold or Russell Wilson) and using the No. 1 pick on Colorado’s Travis Hunter or Penn State’s Abdul Carter or trading back, acquiring the draft capital needed to build up a young core that is underwhelming. — Ben Arthur 

49ers: Though receiver Jauan Jennings got ejected for fighting 25 yards short of 1,000 receiving yards on the season, it was backup quarterback Joshua Dobbs who took over the spotlight for San Francisco. Starting in place of Brock Purdy against his former team, Dobbs threw for a career-high 326 passing yards. He also ran for a touchdown and threw for two TDs, including one to rookie Ricky Pearsall, with the Arizona native playing in front of his hometown fans for the first time as a pro. Dobbs signed a one-year, $2.25 million deal with the 49ers in free agency and showed that he could be a capable backup for Purdy moving forward with his ability to scramble, throw on the run and lead. However, with San Francisco ending the year on a four-game losing streak, there could be a lot of turnover for the underachieving 49ers.

Cardinals: While the second half of the season wasn’t the finish head coach Jonathan Gannon wanted, Arizona can take some momentum into the offseason with a win over San Francisco. Quarterback Kyler Murray finally played like the MVP candidate he looked like earlier in the year, finishing with 242 passing yards and four touchdowns, tying a career high. Murray also showed some chemistry with rookie receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., as the Ohio State product finished with five receptions for 63 yards and a score. While Arizona was shut out of the postseason again, Gannon did double his win total from last season and showed that the Cardinals, with a little more talent added to the roster, are capable of challenging for the NFC West crown. — Eric D. Williams

Seahawks: While they missed the playoffs, Geno Smith and Seattle still finished the season on a positive note. The veteran QB threw for 222 passing yards, completing 74% of his passes with four passing touchdowns. By posting those numbers and leading Seattle to a win, Smith reached $6 million in contract incentives. And Mike Macdonald earned his 10th victory this season, passing Mike Holmgren and Chuck Knox for the most victories for a first-year head coach in franchise history. While the Seahawks did not reach the postseason after moving on from the most successful coach in franchise history in Pete Carroll, Smith and Macdonald showed that the franchise is in capable hands heading into the offseason. 

Rams: With the Rams resting their starters, including quarterback Matthew Stafford, Jimmy Garoppolo got his first start this season. Garoppolo, who’s on a one-year, $3 million deal with the Rams, showed promise, throwing for 334 yards and two touchdowns. But, of course, it’s Garoppolo, so he also had an interception. Rookie receiver Jordan Whittington was Garoppolo’s favorite target, finishing with three receptions for 86 yards. Rookie kicker Joshua Karty, who struggled at times this season, finished 4-for-4 on field goals, including a career-long 58-yarder. Even with a loss that drops his team to the No. 4 seed, Sean McVay should be pleased with how Karty and key reserves like Garoppolo and Whittington played, while also getting out of the last regular-season game unscathed and ready for the postseason. — Eric D. Williams 

Dolphins: Word would have spread as the Dolphins entered the fourth quarter that they were knocked out of the playoffs with Denver’s win over Kansas City. But there wasn’t a whole lot of urgency prior to that on Miami’s part, anyway. The Dolphins are dealing with plenty of injuries as they end the season, most notably to quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. But where does Miami go from here? They paid Tagovailoa prior to the season but didn’t invest properly in the offensive line. That manifested not only in the QB dealing with pressure but also in Miami’s inability to run the football behind a line that ranked in the bottom five in run blocking, per PFF’s grades. It’s unlikely sweeping changes are coming to the Dolphins, but shoring up various position groups, the offensive line chief among them, should be the priority this offseason. 

Jets: You know who can expect sweeping changes this offseason? The Jets. They fired head coach Robert Saleh early in the season and fired general manager Joe Douglas at the halfway point. The biggest question remaining is if quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who is still under contract in New York, will stay, retire or force his way out. Per Spotrac, the Jets could designate Rodgers as a post-June 1 release and spread out his dead cap hit of $49 million over the next two seasons. The Jets have been nothing but an absolute mess this season, in all facets of the organization. From knee-jerk personnel reactions, to scathing reports of upper management dysfunction, to unveiling the Jets flag upside down on the field pregame on Sunday. New York should have a high draft pick to look forward to, though heading into Saturday, they could have picked as high as No. 2. After the results around the league and the Jets win, they’re now slated to pick at No. 7. — Carmen Vitali

Chiefs: There’s no reason to worry, even though clearly the Chiefs are not as deep as maybe they’ve been in the past, and obviously they’re in a lot of trouble if Patrick Mahomes ever goes down. Backup QB Carson Wentz and his second-stringers were basically no-shows against the Broncos on Sunday. Big picture, though, the Chiefs at full strength may not be what they were, but they’re still pretty dangerous. They’re not an offensive juggernaut, and 11 of their 15 wins have come by a touchdown or less. But that doesn’t make them vulnerable. It makes them battle-tested. It makes them good at winning the fourth quarter. That’s what good teams do in the playoffs. So they are still a really strong bet to emerge from the AFC and make a run at the NFL’s first-ever three-peat. They’ll probably have to get through the Buffalo Bills — the only team to beat them this season before Sunday — but they wouldn’t see them until the AFC Championship Game. 

Broncos: Their mini-slump late in the season — back-to-back losses at the Chargers and Bengals — made the race for the playoffs interesting. And Denver clearly caught a big break facing a Chiefs team in Week 18 that had the No. 1 seed locked up and was resting all its starters. But the Buffalo Bills would be smart not to look past the Broncos in their first-round matchup next weekend. Sean Payton has a well-coached team with a defense that doesn’t give up many points (top five in scoring defense). And rookie Bo Nix has been very good, especially in the second half. He’s thrown 21 touchdown passes during their 5-3 finish and six interceptions (five came in a two-game swing against the Browns and Colts). His picks come in bunches — he’s thrown none or one in 13 of 17 games this season. Nix is probably no match for a Josh Allen-led team, but if he can avoid making mistakes, the Broncos could still push Buffalo to the limit. — Ralph Vacchiano

Chargers: This was the convincing, easy win Los Angeles needed going into the playoffs, a no-doubt victory on both sides of the ball to lock up the No. 5 seed and a first-round trip to Houston. To end the regular season with three straight wins after a stretch where the Chargers dropped three of four, this is a team that can go to Houston with confidence. Jim Harbaugh turned this team from 5-12 to 11-6 in his first season, and his immediate success will be even more impressive if L.A. can win a playoff game or two. Justin Herbert threw for 346 yards and two touchdowns Sunday — that’s four straight games with multiple touchdowns to finish the year. If Quentin Johnston (a career-best 186 yards) can emerge as a complement to rookie Ladd McConkey, that’s a huge advantage in the postseason.

Raiders: Now all that’s left is to wonder if Antonio Pierce gets to come back as head coach. The Raiders finished 4-13, and honestly, two late-season wins did little except knock them out of the draft spot they might need to get one of the top two quarterbacks in this draft class. A 10-game losing streak defined their season, and this was a team all year that had the least to offer at quarterback — Aidan O’Connell, Gardner Minshew, Desmond Ridder — and it showed consistently. Perhaps more disappointing is Pierce’s defense, which gave up 32 or more points six times, including the Chargers’ 34 on Sunday. The Raiders have given up more than that on average just one other time in the Super Bowl era. Will Pierce get another year to try to fix it? — Greg Auman