Falcons vs. Panthers 2013, Week 17: Carolina clinches NFC South, 1st round bye

Hey, Cam Newton, how are you feeling about leading the Panthers to the playoffs?

Be careful celebrating with your mouth wide open, Cam. Chris Bosh knows that can get you in trouble:

After doing this to the Falcons secondary and winning the NFC South on Sunday, Panthers RB Mike Tolbert is free to do whatever he damn well pleases, including letting his unsculpted paunch flow freely celebrating the day’s accomplishments:

via Jeremy Igo

Gonzalez finished with four catches for 56 yards in his team’s loss to Carolina, but it was an afternoon defined more by his legacy than a single start.

The most stalwart NFL veterans show signs of slowing, but not so for the 37-year-old who leaves the NFL as one of the league’s top tight ends in 2013. He finished with 83 catches for 859 yards and eight touchdowns. It was the 13th season with more than 800 receiving yards in Gonzalez’s 17-year career

Future Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez took to the field for the final time, but heated emotions and a strong start weren’t enough to hold off the Panthers, who won, 21-20.

It appeared the stage was set for a shocker when Cam Newton was unable to move the ball downfield without veteran wide receiver Steve Smith. Atlanta held a 10-point lead, but back-to-back touchdowns, including a pick six, put the Panthers on top at halftime.

Week 17 is all about the metaphors, and it’s good to compare this attempted tackle by Moore to his early-season effort, provided you need a pictorial version of how Atlanta’s season has progressed.

Poor Atlanta.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, so this is clearly an homage to Tony Gonzalez in his final game -- but this didn’t go so well. At least hold onto the ball man!

This dunk attempt capped off a wholly bizarre sequence that saw the Panthers gain over 50 yards on a screen pass before fumbling inside the red zone, then Matt Ryan throwing a pick six to set up this dunk attempt.

Game Date/Time and Location: Sunday, Dec. 29, 1 p.m. ET at the Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Ga.

TV schedule and distribution map: FOX; The506.com

The Falcons are still in the running for the No. 3 pick in the draft, though they’re No. 8 as things stand now. James Rael at The Falcoholic explains:

Carolina, on the other hand, actually still has an outside shot at grabbing the NFC’s No. 1 seed, but needs considerable help to do so. BW Smith at Cat Scratch Reader breaks down the scenario that would land the Panthers home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Panthers offense struggled without Smith in Week 16. It took some late-game heroics by Cam Newton to pull the team back to win against the Saints, but it was clear the team did not have a plan to mitigate the lack of its veteran receiver.

• NFL Week 17 picks for every game | Watchability Index

The over/under for Sunday’s matchup is 46.5 points. The Panthers are 9-5-1 against the spread, while the Falcons are 6-9. The Panthers are averaging 23 point per game on offense, while allowing just 14.73 point on defense. The Falcons are averaging a score of 22.2 points, but are giving up 28.13 points to opponents.

The Panthers have gone 5-10 with the over/under this season, while the Falcons are 9-6 with the total points.