The Detroit Lions own a dubious piece of NFL history — with perhaps more on the way.
Detroit became the first 0-15 team ever when it was routed 42-7 by the New Orleans Saints on Sunday. The Lions will try to avoid a perfectly awful season in the finale at Green Bay, where they haven’t won since 1991.
Drew Brees threw for 351 yards and two touchdowns after four Saints ran for scores in the first half. Brees stayed in the game with a 35-point lead late in the fourth quarter to move closer to Dan Marino’s single-season record for yards passing. He needs 402 at home against Carolina to break Marino’s record of 5,084 set in 1984.
The Lions were outscored by a combined 176 points at home this season, smashing the previous record of 146 set by the 1981 Colts.
Only the expansion Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1976 went through a season winless in the modern era, but it was a 14-game schedule.
Brees connected with Marques Colston twice in the third quarter for a 42-7 lead and a single-season franchise record of 29 touchdowns. The Saints also set a team record with their 50th TD of the year.
SEAHAWKS 13, JETS 3
At Seattle, Maurice Morris had a season-high 116 yards and John Carlson scored the only touchdown on a short pass from backup Seneca Wallace as the lowly Seahawks ended New York’s stay atop the AFC East.
Mike Holmgren, Brett Favre’s confidant and former coach in Green Bay, went out a winner in his final home game as the leader in Seattle — largely because Favre came up short when the Jets (9-6) needed him most.
DOLPHINS 38, CHIEFS 31
At Kansas City, in the coldest game they ever played, the Dolphins stayed hot.
Chad Pennington threw three touchdown passes, continuing one of the most remarkable comeback seasons in NFL history. With their fourth victory in a row and eighth in nine games, the Dolphins (10-5) can clinch the AFC East next week just one year after finishing a league-worst 1-15.
All they’ll have to do is beat the Jets in the Meadowlands.
The temperature at kickoff was minus 12.2°C, with a wind chill of minus 24°C. Previously, the coldest game the Dolphins ever played was minus 10°C at Foxboro, Massachusetts, on Dec. 11, 1977.
It was the second-coldest game at Arrowhead Stadium, where the Chiefs (2-13) concluded the home portion of what’s certain to be the worst season in the 49-year history of the franchise. They were 1-7 at Arrowhead.
The loss, coming six days after the abrupt resignation of general manager Carl Peterson, would seem to cast the future of coach Herm Edwards in even greater doubt.
A Miami defense that hadn’t yielded a touchdown in three weeks gave up four TDs and a season-high 492 yards to the Chiefs.
GIANTS 34, PANTHERS 28
At East Rutherford, Derrick Ward ran for career-best 215 yards and set up Brandon Jacobs’ winning two-yard touchdown run with 9:57 left in overtime as the Super Bowl champion New York Giants earned the NFC’s top playoff seed with a 34-28 comeback victory over the Carolina Panthers.
New York (12-3) forced the overtime when Jacobs plowed into the end zone from a yard out, and Eli Manning hit Domenik Hixon on a slant pattern for the tying two-point conversion with 3:21 to play.
New York clinched a first-round bye earlier in the day when Atlanta beat Minnesota, but added the icing on this frosty night by beating Carolina (11-4) in the winner-take-all game for the NFC’s top seed.
The loss spoiled record-tying four-touchdown performance by Panthers running back DeAngelo Williams, who gave Carolina a 28-20 lead with a 30-yard TD run two minutes into the final quarter. He also scored on runs of 13, five and one yards.
The Panthers, who have qualified for the playoffs, can clinch the NFC South and the No. 2 seed with a win at New Orleans next weekend.
In other NFL action, it was:
• Titans 31, Steelers 14
• Falcons 24, Vikings 17
• Bills 30, Broncos 23
• Chargers 41, Buccaneers 24
• Patriots 47, Cardinals 7
• 49ers 17, Rams 16
• Bengals 14, Browns 0
• Redskins 10, Eagles 3
• Raiders 27, Texans 17
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