NFL playoffs 2017: Scores, highlights and more from this weekend’s Divisional round action

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce was fined $12,500 for his criticism of a game official after the Chiefs’ loss to the Steelers this past Sunday, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

Sunday night after the Chiefs’ 18-16 loss against the Steelers, Kelce said that the hold on Eric Fisher that negated the Chiefs’ successful two-point conversion was a bad call. Specifically, he said it was “horseshit.”

Pittsburgh Steelers. New England Patriots. What a rare opportunity it would be to one of these teams in the Super Bowl ...

... or not.

After the party it’s the Waffle House, if you ever been here you know what I’m talkin’ about, and today, we’re talking about recruiting rankings, stars, and the NFL Playoffs.

The NFC Championship game descends on dear Atlanta this weekend. The Falcons host the Packers and at one point in time nearly every player in this game was defined by their recruiting star rating.

Devin Hester, the greatest return man of all time, likely played his last game ever Saturday, and it was the 10th bullet point from that game. There was understandably a lot to say after Atlanta Falcons’ top-down win over the Seattle Seahawks — like how the Seahawks offensive line let down Russell Wilson once again, how the Falcons defense may be rounding into a championship unit, and how scary that is when paired with the league’s best offense.

Those are worthy topics, too, but in a better world we could have appreciated Saturday’s game solely for Hester. If it was his last game — as he hinted afterward, saying, “I told my wife it’s pretty much my last year” — then it was a beautiful ending. All he did was keep the Seahawks within a puncher’s chance of winning on a day when the offense was marauded and the defense looked worn.

Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin spoke to the media Tuesday, and he addressed the Facebook Live video posted by Antonio Brown. The video included a postgame speech from Tomlin with what he described as “regrettable” language.

“The language on the video is regrettable because this platform we have is a precious and awesome thing,” Tomlin said. “The responsibility associated with being in this thing, just from a role model standpoint, is something I personally embrace.”

This season was supposed to be different. The Chiefs rallied to an AFC West title behind a dominant defensive effort and an explosive offensive attack. Kansas City beat opponents like the Raiders, Broncos, and Falcons to establish itself as one of the league’s top teams.

But when the clock ran out on Sunday’s divisional playoff showdown with the Steelers, the end of the 2016 season ended just like the rest of the Chiefs’ most promising campaigns — with disappointment.

The NFL will launch an investigation into the MCL injury Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman played through this season, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll described the injury as “significant,” but Sherman only appeared on Seattle’s injury report once in 2016 with an injury designation, and it wasn’t for a knee injury.

“I’m feeling like I screwed that up with not telling you that,” Carroll said Monday. “He was okay, so I don’t know, he never missed anything I guess is probably why (it wasn’t reported).”

On Monday, Seattle Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said on 710 ESPN Seattle that cornerback Richard Sherman has been battling a “significant” MCL injury for several weeks.

The injury was affecting Sherman off the field, also, according to Carroll.

Sunday’s 18-16 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers was a tough one to take for Kansas City Chiefs fans. Reviewing a couple of missed opportunities by quarterback Alex Smith that might have changed the outcome of the game probably isn’t going to make it easier.

On this play, Smith has an intact pocket, and Hill has a clean release downfield. Still, with a Steelers defender lumbering up the middle, Smith scrambles.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are coming off of a 18-16 win over the Kansas City Chiefs that sends them to an AFC Championship showdown with the New England Patriots next week. Spirits were high in the locker room following the victory, and wide receiver Antonio Brown decided to share that with the world via video.

But putting the postgame celebration on Facebook Live may not have been the wisest idea.

The Houston Texans announced Monday they have mutually agreed to part ways with offensive coordinator George Godsey.

“I’m grateful for the tireless work ethic and contributions George has made to our team over the last three years,” said Texans head coach Bill O’Brien. “I wish him nothing but the best in the future.”

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown posted a Facebook Live video Sunday that featured a profanity-laced tirade about the New England Patriots from his head coach, Mike Tomlin. Patriots coach Bill Belichick was unbothered by it, saying Monday that he doesn’t care “what they put on InstaChat.”

“InstaChat” is the latest in a long line of Bill Belichick-created names for social media platforms he does not utilize. It joins other classics such as “SnapFace,” “InstantFace,” and “MyFace” in Belichick’s repertoire. At this point, it’s abundantly clear that he’s doing this on purpose.

The Kansas City Chiefs appeared to tie the game with a successful two-point conversion in the final minutes against the Pittsburgh Steelers, but a holding penalty on Chiefs left tackle Eric Fisher nullified the score. After the 10-yard penalty, the Chiefs were unable to score again and lost 18-16.

“Obviously, I’m frustrated with the call,” Fisher said, via Arrowhead Pride. “With the game on the line and for me to let the team down it’s going to be a hard one to let go.”

When we talk about Rutgers on the internet, it’s usually about how bad they are at something. When Bill Belichick talks about Rutgers, he’s singing their praises in that trademark monotone postgame drawl.

There are three Rutgers players on New England’s active roster, and all three of them got interceptions in the win over Houston in Saturday’s playoff game. Belichick selected Duron Harmon and Logan Ryan within eight picks of each other in the 2013 draft, and Devin McCourty is a six-time captain in New England.

Millions tuned in for the thrilling finish between the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers and among the viewers was New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.

After winning against the Houston Texans on Saturday, the Patriots advanced to a sixth consecutive AFC Championship, but Brady said he made sure to tune in for the NFC matchup to watch one player, in particular.

The Dallas Cowboys’ return to the spotlight was short lived, and the team’s 13-3 season and top seed in the NFC didn’t yield a deep postseason run. Instead, the Cowboys were eliminated by the Green Bay Packers in the Divisional Round with a 34-31 loss.

In the last 20 years, the Cowboys have played in 10 postseason games, but carry a 2-8 record in those games without a single appearance in an NFC Championship.

The Green Bay Packers’ last-second victory over the Dallas Cowboys gave plenty of reason to second-guess every decision made by Jason Garrett in the final minutes of the game, but the Cowboys coach is sticking by his calls.

In particular, a decision to spike instead of calling a timeout may have been costly for Dallas.

Imagine feeling so defeated by a football game you’ll do anything to get out of the stadium as fast as you can.

That’s how some Chiefs fans felt after Sunday’s loss to the Steelers in the Divisional round of the playoffs.

ARLINGTON, Texas — Aaron Rodgers hurled it and watched, lurking on his toes. Jared Cook caught it inches from the sideline, a ballet on his toes.

Receivers Davante Adams and Randall Cobb had just helped clear the area.

The Kansas City Chiefs were trying to get themselves pumped before attempting to make one last defensive stop against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Defensive lineman Chris Jones was swaying his head, and eventually threw up, spitting it into the thin, cold Kansas City air.

Despite not making it into the end zone a single time, the Pittsburgh Steelers were able to defeat the Kansas City Chiefs in divisional play by a final score of 18-16.

Special teams efforts ended up being key for the Steelers. It was clear early in the game that Pittsburgh was well-prepared for Kansas City’s dynamic return man, Tyreek Hill. The Steelers swarmed him on every return, trying to limit the productivity of a player who scored three return touchdowns during the regular season.

After converting on a fourth-and-2, the Chiefs were able to get into the end zone, making it an 18-16 game.

They went for the 2-point conversion, and it appeared that they had made it in easy fashion, after Alex Smith found a receiver wide open in the back of the end zone.

Final score: Steelers 18, Chiefs 16

The Steelers started with bad field position, but Ben Roethlisberger found Antonio Brown for a huge third down and they were able to run out the clock for the win.

Steelers safety Sean Davis earned an illegal hit penalty for dropping his head for a helmet-to-helmet hit that separated Chiefs wide receiver Chris Conley from a potential touchdown pass.

The hit came on a key third-and-9 play from deep inside Pittsburgh territory. Conley, a second-year wide receiver, got a tenuous grasp on the ball before getting swarmed by a fast-closing Davis. Davis may have been trying to lead with his shoulder, but instead landed a head-to-head shot on the defenseless Kansas City wideout.

We’re all still shocked at the game we saw between the Packers and the Cowboys. After the Packers jumped out to a 21-3 lead, the Cowboys fought back, before the Packers went on one last drive to put themselves in position for the game-winning field goal.

On that drive, Aaron Rodgers hit Jared Cook with a perfectly placed pass that Cook turned into an even more spectacular catch.