SAN FRANCISCO -- The San Francisco 49ers followed Joe Nedney's game-ending field goal with an even bigger bang, swiftly confirming that coach Mike Singletary will be back next year.
Nedney kicked a 39-yard field goal as time expired, and the 49ers dramatically finished their late-season surge under their no-longer-interim coach with a 27-24 victory over the Washington Redskins on Sunday.
A few minutes after Nedney's kick sneaked inside the upright to cap a cool 60-second drive led by Shaun Hill, the 49ers officially announced Singletary will keep his job. San Francisco won five of its final seven games and went 5-4 overall under Singletary, the Hall of Fame linebacker who took over for Mike Nolan on Oct. 20.
Hill passed for 245 yards and drove the 49ers (7-9) 51 yards in the waning seconds, hitting Michael Robinson and Bryant Johnson with long passes before Nedney won it with his second field goal of the final minutes.
Hill, whose promotion by Singletary clearly sparked the 49ers' second-half surge, went 21-for-30, rushed for an early score and threw a TD pass while remaining unbeaten in five games as a starter at Candlestick Park.
Washington (8-8), which finished coach Jim Zorn's rookie year with four losses in five games, tied it with 1:09 to play on Shaun Suisham's extra point after a 3-yard TD run on fourth down by Jason Campbell, who led an impressive 55-yard drive -- but left too much time for Hill.
Campbell passed for 156 yards and Clinton Portis rushed for 80 and a score for the Redskins, who finished in last place in the NFC East after a 6-2 start. Full story
Falcons 31, Rams 27
ATLANTA -- Jerious Norwood ran for two touchdowns, including the go-ahead 45-yard run with 3:41 left, and Atlanta held on to clinch the No. 5 seed in the NFC.
The Falcons improved to 11-5, completing their improbable run to the playoffs after a 4-12 finish in 2007. But Atlanta's hopes of winning the NFC South and a first-round bye in the playoffs ended with Carolina's 33-31 win at New Orleans. The Falcons hoped for a home game but will instead travel to NFC West champion Arizona for a wild-card game next week.
Atlanta overcame three turnovers, including two in the fourth quarter, to give the Rams (2-14) their 10th consecutive loss.
Atlanta's 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.
Bengals 16, Chiefs 6
CINCINNATI -- Cedric Benson ran for 111 yards and a touchdown and Cincinnati completed its late-season surge with a victory over Kansas City that sent both teams into an offseason of big decisions.
The Bengals (4-11-1) closed out the year with three consecutive wins, two of them against teams that seemed to care less than they did. They shut out the Browns 14-0 and had little trouble with the lackluster Chiefs, who crossed midfield only once in the first three quarters.
The game served as a preview of next year's offense for Cincinnati, which was missing both tackles and top receivers Chad Ocho Cinco and T.J. Houshmandzadeh to injury. Benson, who is a free agent after the season, scored on a 2-yard run and had his third 100-yard rushing game.
The Chiefs finished 2-14 for the worst season in their 49-year history. Kansas City didn't get closer than Cincinnati's 37-yard line until their final drive, which ended with Tony Gonzalez's 5-yard touchdown catch.
Cardinals 34, Seahawks 21
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Kurt Warner threw four touchdown passes, his most in seven years, then sat out the fourth quarter as Arizona spoiled the final game of Mike Holmgren's decade as Seattle's coach.
The Cardinals (9-7), who had been blown out twice since clinching the NFC West title, finished the regular season with a winning record for the first time in a decade and only the second time since 1984. They will play a first-round playoff game at home against Atlanta next weekend.
Warner completed 19-of-30 for 263 yards and was intercepted once. His four touchdown passes gave him a franchise-record 30 for the season. Two of Warner's TDs went to Larry Fitzgerald, who caught five passes for 130 yards. Matt Leinart played the final quarter in relief of Warner and directed the team to a pair of field goals.
Seneca Wallace threw two touchdown passes and was intercepted twice for the Seahawks (4-12). Arizona finished 6-0 against NFC West foes.
