Patriots stumble into wild-card weekend, while 'Black Monday' already off to wild start

The NFL playoff field is set!

And, for the first time in a decade, the New England Patriots will be playing on wild-card weekend. The road to Super Bowl LIV won't be going through Foxborough, and these playoffs -- especially in the AFC -- seem more wide open than usual.

The Miami Dolphins' shocking road win over the Patriots vaulted the Kansas City Chiefs into the AFC's No. 2 playoff seed behind the top-seeded Baltimore Ravens.

The San Francisco 49ers secured the NFC's top playoff seed with a wild win over the Seahawks in Seattle.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, "Black Monday" is here and the NFL coaching carousel has started spinning. The Cleveland Browns already moved on, firing coach Freddie Kitchens just hours after the team's Week 17 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, while the Washington Redskins fired team president Bruce Allen after a decade of futility. The New York Giants also fired coach Pat Shurmur after a 9-23 stint.

Quick hits: Catch up on Sunday's best

• 32 things we learned: The 2019 campaign came to an end for 20 NFL franchises, but the postseason still awaits for 12 other teams after the regular-season finales. 
• Playoff picture: The postseason field is complete after the 49ers outlasted the Seahawks to claim the top seed in the NFC.
• Jerry Jones knows he has a decision to make on Jason Garrett, but the Cowboys owner isn't ready to make a declaration about his coach just yet.
• Kevin Harlan had another magical moment on Sunday as he called the Chiefs-Chargers and Dolphins-Patriots games at the same time during a pivotal moment in the fourth quarter of both games.
• Bill Belichick broke down the final play in the Patriots' loss to the Dolphins in the most Bill Belichick way possible.
• Fans had fun ripping the Patriots after a loss to the Dolphins cost New England a first-round playoff bye.
• Ravens coach John Harbaugh showed how much he doesn't like the Steelers with a savage fake punt decision.
• Finishing the season with nearly as many interceptions as touchdown passes didn't sit well with Baker Mayfield.
• Eli Manning watched from the sideline Sunday as the Giants lost to the Eagles in what was likely his final game with the team.
• Philip Rivers got emotional while talking about what his time with the Chargers has meant to him.
• 'Dude is getting really good': Jarrett Stidham, the Patriots' fourth-round pick, is drawing rave reviews from teammates for his practice work, which has included some first-team reps.
• Revisiting all our worst preseason NFL predictions: Nobody is perfect. That's why we're confronting our predictions that went awry.
• 2020 NFL draft first-round order: Picks Nos. 1-20 are set after the conclusion of the regular season.

• PHOTOS: Best of Week 17 | Cheerleaders | NFL at 100

What our experts are saying

• Winners and losers: While Kyle Shanahan's 49ers are a squad to be feared in the postseason, the Seahawks let the NFC West and home-field advantage slip away, writes Lorenzo Reyes. 
• Browns need next coach to get team in order: The Browns couldn't meet the outsized hype they faced coming into the season. Freddie Kitchens' replacement must set things right, writes Mike Jones.
• Steelers' roller-coaster season ends with thud: Pittsburgh persevered for much of the 2019 season despite losing Ben Roethlisberger to injury, but things eventually collapsed on the Steelers, writes Tom Schad.
• Lions' miserable season ends as GM Bob Quinn gets a No. 3 pick and $50M to botch. The Lions' season came to a merciful end on Sunday. And there's no reason to think this offseason will go well under Bob Quinn. writes Jeff Seidel.

Week 17 rundown

• 49ers 26, Seahawks 21: Football is a game of inches, they say. This one came down to the smallest of margins.
• Broncos 16, Raiders 15: Looks like Denver might have something in Drew Lock, who won four times in five starts.
• Titans 35, Texans 14: Despite a 2-4 start and a midseason quarterback change, the Titans made the playoffs.
• Ravens 28, Steelers 10: Even with key players sitting this one out, the Ravens earned a convincing win over their division rival.
• Rams 31, Cardinals 24: The Rams closed out their brief tenure at the historic L.A. Coliseum with a victory.
• Eagles 34, Giants 17: The injury-depleted Eagles managed to get the win they needed to clinch the NFC East.
• Cowboys 47, Redskins 16: The Eagles' win over the Giants ended the Cowboys' tumultuous season.
• Jaguars 38, Colts 20: Will Minshew Mania return in 2020? The rookie QB made a strong case to remain Jacksonville's starter moving forward.
• Falcons 28, Buccaneers 22: Jameis Winston made history -- though not the kind of history you'd want -- setting a record for the most pick-sixes thrown in a single season.
• Saints 42, Panthers 10: While the Saints finished an impressive 13-3, the Panthers suffered their eighth straight loss.
• Bengals 33, Browns 23: The Bengals ended one of their most miserable seasons ever with a win over their long-time in-state rival.
• Bears 21, Vikings 19: The Bears now have won four straight against the Vikings.
• Dolphins 27, Patriots 24: After this stunning defeat, the Patriots will play in the wild-card round for the first time since 2009.
• Chiefs 31, Chargers 21: Coupled with the Patriots' loss, the Chiefs' win vaulted KC into the AFC's No. 2 playoff seed.
• Jets 13, Bills 6: Sam Darnold was 7-6 in games he started this season.
• Packers 23, Lions 20: After yet another underwhelming win, the Packers clinched a first-round playoff bye.

Coming this week

Monday: Make sure to monitor Paste BN Sports for the all the "Black Monday" developments as teams that had disappointing 2019 campaigns look to make sweeping changes.

Tuesday: Paste BN Sports' NFL experts offer their power rankings for all 32 NFL teams after Week 17. Also (ALSO!), we release our first mock draft of the year. A number of talented underclassmen already have declared their intentions to enter the 2020 NFL draft.

Saturday: Wild-card weekend kicks off with the Houston Texans hosting the Buffalo Bills and the New England Patriots hosting the Tennessee Titans.  

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