AP Sports SummaryBrief at 11:08 a.m. EST

Fans mourn Pelé at public viewing in Brazil stadium

SANTOS, Brazil (AP) — Mourners began paying their respects to Pelé in a solemn procession past his coffin at the Vila Belmiro Stadium in his hometown of Santos. The Brazilian soccer great died Thursday after a battle with cancer. He was 82. Pelé’s coffin was placed on the field where he scored scored some of the best goals of his career. Mourners walked past his casket in the 16,000-seat stadium outside Sao Paulo. His burial will take place in a cemetery only 600 meters away on Tuesday. Fans arrived at the stadium in the early hours of Monday. Pelé’s casket will be ushered through the streets of Santos before his burial. Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and other dignitaries are expected to attend.

Analysis: NFC is wide open heading into final weekend of NFL

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tom Brady again was at his best when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers needed him most. The 45-year-old, seven-time Super Bowl champion had one of the best statistical games of his 23-year career in a 30-24 victory over the Carolina Panthers that clinched Tampa’s second straight NFC South title. Another old quarterback who also wears No. 12 is one way win away from joining Brady in the playoffs. Aaron Rodgers and Green Bay Packers routed Minnesota 41-17 for their fourth straight win. One more next week at home against Detroit secures a wild-card spot that seemed improbable when the Packers were 4-8. On a day where the NFC’s top teams struggled, the Buccaneers and Packers proved they can’t be counted out despite mediocre records.

Bills, Bengals AFC showdown highlighted by Allen vs. Burrow

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) — The Bills showdown at the Bengals on Monday night features the first of what’s expected to be many more quarterback matchups between Buffalo’s Josh Allen and Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow. The two have established themselves as being among the NFL’s top young stars and transformed their respective teams into contenders. The matchup alone is must-watch TV for many, with the outcome playing a big role in determining who finishes first in the AFC.

Martina Navratilova diagnosed with throat, breast cancer

NEW YORK (AP) — Tennis great Martina Navratilova says she has been diagnosed with throat cancer and breast cancer. The 18-time Grand Slam singles champion and member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame said in a statement released Monday that her prognosis is good and she will start treatment this month. The 66-year-old Navratilova said she noticed an enlarged lymph node in her neck while attending the season-ending WTA Finals in Fort Worth, Texas, in November, and a biopsy showed early stage throat cancer. While Navratilova was undergoing tests on her throat, the unrelated breast cancer was discovered.

Brady, Bucs rally to beat Panthers 30-24, clinch NFC South

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Tom Brady threw for 432 yards and three long touchdowns to Mike Evans, helping the Tampa Bay Buccaneers clinch their second straight NFC South championship with a 30-24 come-from-behind win over the Carolina Panthers. Evans finished with 10 catches for 207 yards while scoring on receptions of 63, 57, and 30 yards and becoming the first player in NFL history to begin a career with nine consecutive seasons with 1,000-plus yards receiving. The Panthers led 14-0 early and 21-10 after Sam Darnold’s third TD pass of the day, 10 seconds into the fourth quarter. It was all Bucs from there.

Rodgers, Packers rout Vikings 41-17, control playoff fate

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers threw a touchdown pass and ran for a score, and the Green Bay Packers continued their improbable playoff push by shutting down Justin Jefferson and the Minnesota Vikings in a 41-17 blowout. Keisean Nixon scored on a 105-yard kickoff return and Darnell Savage had a 75-yard pick-6 of Kirk Cousins to help Green Bay build a 27-3 halftime lead. Aaron Jones rushed for 111 yards on 14 carries and A.J. Dillon had a 2-yard touchdown run as the Packers won their fourth straight. Green Bay would make the playoffs with a win over Detroit in its regular-season finale.

Utah faces Penn State as the sun sets on a Rose Bowl era

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — The sun is setting on an era of Rose Bowl history when No. 7 Utah faces No. 9 Penn State in an intriguing matchup. The 109th edition of the Granddaddy of Them All is the last that’s guaranteed to feature the game’s time-honored pairing of Pac-12 and Big Ten teams. The game’s status as a College Football Playoff semifinal next season and the expanded playoff in 2024 has put the future in flux for the sport’s oldest active bowl game. This matchup has everything it needs to go out with a bang.

No. 24 Mississippi State faces Illinois with heavy hearts

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Mississippi State players and staff felt they knew what Mike Leach would want them to do following the death of the Bulldogs coach due to complications from a heart condition. That would be play in the ReliaQuest Bowl against Illinois. Zach Arnett was promoted from  defensive coordinator to head coach and says there’s no better way to honor Leach than to line up and compete against the Illini. Illinois will be without running back Chase Brown. The nation’s second-leading rusher in the regular season with 1,643 yards has decided to enter the NFL draft and will not play in the game.

Duggan vs. Bennett: 2 onetime underdogs fight for CFP title

GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — TCU thought so much of Max Duggan at the beginning of the season that he lost his job. Georgia seemed like it spent years trying to give its starting quarterback job to anyone not named Stetson Bennett. If they gave out five stars for resiliency, these two guys would have been some of the highest-rated recruits in the country. Now the underdogs-turned-legends at their respective schools will fight it out for the national championship on Jan. 9 in Inglewood, California. No. 3 TCU upset No. 2 Michigan 51-45 and No. 1 Georgia rallied to beat No. 4 Ohio State 42-41 in a pair of semifinal games that were among the best the College Football Playoff ever has produced.

Big dunk leaves rim crooked, delays Celtics-Nuggets game

DENVER (AP) — The rim was bent, nobody seemed to know how to fix it and for 35 minutes Boston Celtics and Denver Nuggets players struggled to stay warm in a bizarre scene that left Celtics star Jaylen Brown fuming. Boston’s Robert Williams III seemed to be the culprit, after he hung on the rim following a thunderous dunk with 8:06 left in the fourth quarter in Denver. Soon after, that rim was leaning a bit to the left. Finally, after a long delay, a worker put the rim back up and it appeared it was level. The crowd roared as the teams ran through layup lines to get loose again in the middle of the fourth quarter. Soon play resumed and the Nuggets won 123-111.