Charlie Whitehurst threw a four-yard touchdown pass as the Seahawks became the first ever 7-9 division winner.

Indianapolis Colts clinched their place in the play-offs with a 23-20 victory over Tennessee Titans. Peyton Manning threw two touchdown passes to help secure a third straight victory for the Colts.

A heavy 34-17 defeat against Houston Texans ended the play-off hopes of Jacksonville. The Jaguars needed to win and for Indianapolis to lose to make the post-season, but Arian Foster exposed a shaky defence scoring two touchdowns.

Green Bay Packers claimed the NFC’s remaining wild-card berth with a 10-3 success over Chicago Bears, Aaron Rodgers providing the vital touchdown pass to Donald Lee in the fourth quarter.

Victory for the Packers meant New York Giants missed out on a play-off place despite beating Washington Redskins 17-14. Touchdowns for Eli Manning, Brandon Jacobs and Mario Manningham proved in vain for the Giants.

Jason Witten touched down with less than a minute remaining as Dallas Cowboys sneaked past Philadelphia Eagles 14-13. San Diego Chargers were 33-28 winners over Denver Broncos with Ryan Mathews contributing three scores.

San Francisco snapped a two-game losing streak with a comprehensive 38-7 victory at Arizona Cardinals.

Brett Favre watched on from the sidelines in what was likely to be the final game of his 20-season career as Minnesota lost 20-13 to Detroit. Atlanta earned home-field advantage in the play-offs with a 31-10 win over Carolina.

Pittsburgh ended the season top of the AFC North with Ben Roethlisberger throwing two touchdown passes in a 41-9 win over Cleveland. Tampa Bay beat New Orleans 23-13 but it proved in vain as they failed to progress.

Tom Brady threw two touchdown passes as New England won their eighth straight game by beating Miami 38-7. New York Jets ended their regular season on a positive note, hammering the Buffalo Bills 38-7.

Baltimore will go into the play-offs on the back of a four-game winning streak after their 13-7 win over Cincinnati.

Oakland finished the season unbeaten in their division for the first time since the 1970 merger but still missed out on the play-offs despite beating Kansas City 31-10.