2024 NFL Week 17 winners and losers: Saquon Barkley, Baker Mayfield explode as Cowboys, Jets crumble

Another Sunday, another full slate of NFL action nearly in the books. And Week 17 has been chock-full of drama, from the New York Giants upsetting the Indianapolis Colts to throw a wrench in their path to the No. 1 pick in the 2025 draft to the Buffalo Bills cruising over an AFC East rival for their ninth win in 10 games.

Here are some of Sunday’s biggest winners and losers:

On a day the Philadelphia Eagles lost backup quarterback Kenny Pickett to an aggravated rib injury, the Birds still rolled over the rival Dallas Cowboys, with Barkley effortlessly eclipsing 165 yards on the ground to become just the ninth player in NFL history to hit 2,000 rushing yards on the season. Now he’s got a real chance to break Eric Dickerson’s all-time record against his old team, the New York Giants, in Week 18.

Loser: Mike McCarthy

The Cowboys have repeatedly defended McCarthy throughout an otherwise lost season, but all their fight vanished after the opening minutes of Sunday’s rematch with the Eagles, who torched Mike Zimmer’s defense and bottled up the Cooper Rush-led offense for a monster 41-7 victory. Yes, his lineup is battered to the core, but he had no real answers for an Eagles squad missing two quarterbacks by the finish line.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers bet big bucks on Mayfield after his 2023 rejuvenation, and the former No. 1 overall pick has more than lived up to the new deal this year. Sunday was just a cherry on top, with Mayfield throwing as many touchdowns (5) as incompletions in a rout of the rival Carolina Panthers. While Tampa Bay’s defense has been iffy this year, Mayfield has the Bucs positioned to make noise in January.

All season has been a losing effort for the former Green Bay Packers star, but his New York Jets didn’t even look remotely competitive in a rematch with the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. Rodgers himself was part of the problem, throwing just 112 yards with two picks for one of the least effective outings of his entirely underwhelming Gang Green career. The clock is ticking on Rodgers’ inevitable 2025 exit.

The Las Vegas Raiders may not have enjoyed what you’d call a fun 2024 season, but Bowers once again reminded silver and black faithful on Sunday they can look forward to potentially many years of rooting for one of the game’s top young pass catchers. The 22-year-old had seven catches in a win over the New Orleans Saints to break Hall of Famer Mike Ditka’s all-time record for rookie receiving yards at the spot.