Patriots get 11th victory, knocked out

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A year after Patriots perfection, New England will be sitting out the playoffs.

A season that began distressingly with quarterback Tom Brady's injury, concluded just short of a postseason berth despite an 11-5 record. New England's blustery 13-0 victory over the Buffalo Bills at Orchard Park, N.Y., on Sunday wasn't enough to get the Patriots in the playoffs.

Miami won the AFC East later in the day and Baltimore took the only available wild-card spot when it beat Jacksonville. The Patriots had to settle for a fun day on the field.

The wind was gusting so hard at Ralph Wilson Stadium that when it was blowing at 39-year-old Junior Seau's back, the Patriots' linebacker felt 20-something again.

"I felt like (Gary) Guyton and (Jerod) Mayo: I picked up more speed than I could handle," Seau said, referring to his two younger teammates. "I felt young, it was really fun."

The Patriots are the first NFL team with an 11-5 record to miss the playoffs since Denver in 1985.

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick looks on from the sidelines during the first half of a game against the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008. New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick looks on from the sidelines during the first half of a game against the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., Sunday, Dec. 28, 2008. Photo: David Duprey, AP Photo: David Duprey, AP Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Patriots get 11th victory, knocked out 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

"We can walk out of this locker room with our hats high," center Dan Koppen said.

LaMont Jordan scored on a 2-yard run and Stephen Gostkowski hit two of three field-goal attempts.

The conditions were so bad that the goalposts had to be centered three times before game time, and again in the second quarter before Gostkowski missed a 26-yard attempt. Another stoppage came in the third quarter, when referee Gene Steratore had his hat blown off and was forced to chase it 20 yards downfield in front of a cheering crowd.

Panthers 33, Saints 31: John Kasay's 42-yard field goal with a second left locked up the NFC South title and the second seed in the conference for the visiting Panthers. ... Carolina, the only team to go 8-0 at home this season, will get a first-round playoff bye and then a chance to extend its perfect record in Charlotte in the divisional round. ... Kasay hit four of five field-goal attempts. ... Carolina's DeAngelo Williams rushed for 178 yards to set the franchise single-season record. His 1,515 yards eclipse Stephen Davis' 1,444 in 2003.

Falcons 31, Rams 27: Jerious Norwood ran for two touchdowns, including the go-ahead 45-yard run with 3:41 left, and host Atlanta clinched the No. 5 seed in the NFC. ... The Falcons overcame three turnovers, including two in the fourth quarter, to give the Rams their 10th straight loss under Jim Haslett. ... Michael Turner had 25 carries for 208 yards and a touchdown to counter Steven Jackson's 30 carries for 161 yards and two touchdowns for St. Louis.

Ravens 27, Jaguars 7: Le'Ron McClain ran for two touchdowns and Baltimore routed visiting Jacksonville to clinch a wild-card spot. ... It was 24-7 at halftime, as the Jaguars committed four turnovers and were held scoreless over the final 45 minutes. ... The Ravens' Ed Reed had two interceptions.

Texans 31, Bears 24: Chicago's playoff chances ended in Houston. ... Andre Johnson had two touchdowns for the Texans, who finished 8-8 for the second straight year. ... Johnson rebounded from the previous Sunday's two-catch performance against the Raiders with 10 receptions for 148 yards. It was his eighth 100-yard game of the season.

Steelers 31, Browns 0: Willie Parker's 34-yard touchdown run with 4:07 left in the second quarter broke a scoreless tie and was playoff-bound Pittsburgh's longest run this season. ... It wasn't supposed to end this way for the Browns (4-12), who had so much hope after they went 10-6 in 2007.

Cardinals 34, Seahawks 21: Kurt Warner sent host Arizona into the playoffs as a winner. ... Warner threw four touchdown passes, his most in seven years, then sat out the fourth quarter as the Cardinals spoiled the final game of Mike Holmgren's decade as Seahawks coach. ... Holmgren has a 174-122 career NFL record, 90-80 with Seattle.

Colts 23, Titans 0: Peyton Manning hit 4,000 yards for a ninth straight season, three more than Dan Marino's previous NFL mark, before host Indianapolis yanked its starters. ... Marvin Harrison moved into second place on the all-time receptions list (1,102), and Dallas Clark broke John Mackey's single-season franchise record for most yards receiving by a tight end (Clark now has 848), a mark that had stood since 1966.

Bengals 16, Chiefs 6: Cedric Benson ran for 111 yards and a touchdown and host Cincinnati completed its late-season surge. ... The Bengals closed out the season with three straight wins.