CHARLOTTE — There's a new top team in the NFC South, after the Panthers took a one-game lead over the Bucs Sunday with a crucial win down the stretch. The two teams will face off again in Week 18, a matchup shaping up as a division winner.

Additionally, both the Saints and the Falcons won, setting up some interesting tiebreakers down the stretch for the Panthers' playoff chances. It's a convoluted situation we won't attempt to explain here; read all about it in this story.

The current standings look like this:

1. Carolina Panthers 8-7
2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 7-8
3. Atlanta Falcons 6-9
4. New Orleans Saints 5-10

Catch up with the complete division wrap-up.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-8, 2-3): Drop the first in the series to the Panthers

In what is essentially a two-game series with Carolina for a playoff spot, Tampa Bay dropped the first game on Sunday, a 23-20 loss in Charlotte. It means the Bucs have lost six of their last seven games, the one win coming in Week 13 and bracketed by three straight losses.

"We know (where) we're at right now," said quarterback Baker Mayfield. "We've got to win out to win the division and get in the playoffs. It's as clear as it can be. Wish we would have taken care of business today, but the situation doesn't change.

"It sucks—too many penalties on offense today. We just keep shooting ourselves in the foot. We've got to finish with seven points in the red zone instead of three. Same story, different day."

The story, to Mayfield's point, has been sacks and turnovers at inopportune times. The Panthers' defense got to him twice on Sunday and notched an interception on the final drive to seal the Carolina win. Mayfield explained the turnover as a miscommunication between him and Mike Evans.

"I was trying to find a lane to step through and make a throw to him, and he thought I was going to scramble, which, based on some of the scrambles earlier today, you can't blame him," Mayfield explained. "It's just a sucky situation."

The Bucs ran 61 plays total, and 33 of them were runs, more than half. Bowles told reporters that it was a strategy that had worked in both games against the Panthers last season. It's also a number Bowles felt would be a winning strategy again on Sunday.

"You play well when you rush over 30 attempts per game statistically speaking, and I think we had some runs in there and a chance to throw it, but we controlled the time of possession and the clock all the way down to the end," said coach Todd Bowles after the game.

On defense, the backbreaker for Tampa Bay was a touchdown the Panthers added right before half, with 0:07 left to be exact, as Bryce Young hit Tetairoa McMillan on a 22-yard pass. McMillan was locked in a one-on-one with Jamel Dean, and the rookie got past him for the score.

"They got behind Dean before the half, which can't happen," said Bowles. "No timeouts – they have to throw it inbounds and they have to throw it out of the end zone. He should have been back and made that play; he did not make it."

If Tampa Bay wants to make the playoffs now, they must win out against Miami this week and the Panthers in Week 18.

"We understand that," said Bowles. "The biggest thing is our confidence is good, camaraderie is good, and that's high, but that's not enough right now. It's the execution that we're lacking; we're missing a few things here and there. We shot ourselves in the foot enough today to lose this ballgame by three. And we understand that…we definitely understand that.

"We've got to take it one day at a time and, again, I think the guys are accountable, the coaches are accountable. We're going to load up, we're going to come back Monday, and hopefully in two weeks we get a chance to see them again and play for something."

Atlanta Falcons (6-9, 2-3): Robinson reaches rare NFL accomplishment in win

Former Panthers cornerback CJ Henderson notched the win for the Falcons on Sunday with a fourth-quarter interception on Jacoby Brissett that sealed the Falcons' 26-19 victory, giving them back-to-back wins. Henderson had only been active in one other game this season, going back and forth between the game day roster and practice squad, before Atlanta signed him to the active roster on Saturday.

"The player I expect of myself is that I never waver," Henderson said. "No matter the circumstance."

But the headline of the day was, as is usually the case, Bijan Robinson. The running back finished with 16 rushes for 76 yards, as well as seven receptions for 92 yards and a receiving touchdown. It was enough to surge past 2,000 scrimmage yards on the season (2,026), becoming just the third Falcons player to do so in a single season in franchise history.

Robinson now has 5,376 career scrimmage yards, the third-most by a player 23 years old or younger in NFL history. He was able to do so back in front of a home crowd. Robinson is from Tucson, Arizona.

"It meant a lot," Robinson said of reaching the accomplishment back at home. "To do this in front of Arizona, in front of people who supported me as a kid, obviously with my whole entire family being here; for me, this is a huge moment.

"It's all God. Countless prayers this offseason for this season. Just trying to do as much as I can for my team, for my offense. To see what the Lord has brought me through throughout this time — and brought the team through as well. The ups and downs, they are learning lessons, and how we come out of that is what drives us as players."

Added coach Raheem Morris, "Everything that we ask from our players and what a Falcon looks like is Bijan Robinson."

Tight end Kyle Pitts brought in seven receptions for 57 yards and a touchdown, bringing his season total to five touchdowns, which is a new single-season career-high.

Before the game, the Falcons released their primary return man, Jamal Agnew. He returned 15 punts for a total of 114 yards, an average of 7.6 yards; his longest return went for 17 yards. Agnew returned 30 kickoffs for 741 yards, an average of 24.7 yards; his longest return went for 45 yards. Agnew has been credited with three fumbles this year. Coming into 2025, Agnew led the NFL with seven return touchdowns.

Atlanta also placed receiver KhaDarel Hodge on injured reserve and signed safety Jammie Robinson, another former Panther.

New Orleans Saints (5-10, 3-2): Three-game winning streak down the stretch

Are the Saints a team to watch heading into 2026? It certainly seems so, as Kellen Moore and crew have put together three straight wins, bringing them to 5-10 on the season and four of those wins coming since shifting to Tyler Shough as starting quarterback.

"We've talked a lot about making December football meaningful, and I feel like our guys have really been jumping on that opportunity," coach Kellen Moore said after the 29-6 win. "To win a few down the stretch here and have a couple more opportunities—the energy, the juice, the way our guys are playing together—is really, really special. It's a special group in that locker room."

The defense kept the Jets out of the end zone all day, holding New York to two field goals, while adding four field goals of their own and two touchdowns. The defense also sacked Jets quarterback Brady Cook eight times.

"I thought it was just credit to our guys—the relentless effort, the finish, the way they're playing together," Moore said. "Those sacks, there's coverage associated with that, and the way our guys are covering on the back end. The guys just took advantage of opportunities, and it was really cool to see."

Shough set a new career high in just his seventh career start, throwing 32-of-49 for 308 yards and a touchdown.

The Saints also leaned on Taysom Hill. The Swiss Army knife rushed 12 times for 42 yards, hauled in four receptions for 36 yards, successfully ran for a fake punt, and threw a 38-yard touchdown.

Sunday was a unique day for Hill and Cam Jordan, who finished with 2.0 sacks. It was the final home game of the season for the Saints, and for now, the final home game for two franchise players. Neither guy is under contract with New Orleans beyond this season, as of now.

Both had family and friends on hand in Week 16, just in case it was their final bow in Caesars Superdome. But both also expressed an interest after the game to return next season.

"I can tell you, I have so much love for the city of New Orleans and this fan base and the way that they've embraced me and my family," Hill said. "It's been really special. I wouldn't want to play somewhere else, but there's a lot of circumstances that are out of your control. And I understand the nature of this business. I'm not thinking that way right now, but we'll tackle that when we get there."

Hill is the only player in the Super Bowl era with 1,000 yards passing, rushing, and receiving.

Jordan echoed the sentiment.

"I've never seen myself not being in Black and Gold. I've stated, since (former Saints coach) Sean Payton and (executive vice president/general manager) Mickey (Loomis) called me on draft night (in 2011), I said, 'All right, let's do this.' When I say, 'Let's do it,' I mean do it together. So, 15 years later, I still say, 'Let's do this.' I see a bright future with all the guys that we have."

Jordan's 2.0 sacks on the night brought his season total to a team-high 8.5, and his career total to 130, which is a franchise record for the Saints.