2016–17 Motherwell F.C. season, Season review, January Transfers
On 26 January, Motherwell signed midfielder Elliott Frear from Forest Green Rovers, with Russell Griffiths joining the club on loan for the remainder of the season from Everton the following day. Also on the 27th, Luka Belić loan came to an end, Dean Brill was released by the club, Dylan Mackin joined Alloa Athletic on loan for the remainder of the season, and Zak Jules joined until the end of the season from Reading.


2016–17 Motherwell F.C. season, Season review, January Transfers
On 31 January 2017, Motherwell signed Sunderland goalkeeper Oliver Pain on loan until the end of the season and Shea Gordon to the U20's, whilst Luke Watt joined East Fife for the remainder of the season.


2016–17 Motherwell F.C. season, Season review, February
On 2 February, Stephen Pearson returned to the club, signing a contract until the end of the season.


2016–17 Motherwell F.C. season, Season review, February
On 28 February, manager Mark McGhee was sacked by the club, with Steve Robinson being put in temporary charge.


2016–17 Motherwell F.C. season, Season review, March
On 15 March, Robinson was given a permanent contract as the club's manager. On 23 March, Kieran Kennedy left the club by mutual consent.


2016–17 Motherwell F.C. season, Squad, On loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2016–17 Motherwell F.C. season, Squad, Left club during season
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2016–17 Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers men's basketball team
The 2016–17 Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers men's basketball team represented Mount St. Mary's University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Mountaineers, led by fifth-year head coach Jamion Christian, played their home games at Knott Arena in Emmitsburg, Maryland as members of the Northeast Conference. They finished the season 20–16, 14–4 in NEC play to win the regular season championship, their first championship in 21 years. In the NEC Tournament, they defeated Sacred Heart, Robert Morris, and Saint Francis (PA) to win the tournament championship. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. As a No. 16 seed in the East region, they beat New Orleans in the First Four before losing in the First Round to No. 1-seeded and ranked Villanova.


2016–17 Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers men's basketball team
Head coach Jamion Christian was named NEC Coach of the Year.


2016–17 Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers men's basketball team, Previous season
The Mountaineers finished the 2015–16 season 14–19, 10–8 in NEC play to finish in fifth place. They defeated St. Francis Brooklyn in the NEC Tournament before losing to Fairleigh Dickinson in the semifinals.


2016–17 Mumbai FC season
The 2016–17 season was Mumbai F.C. 's eighth season in the I-League since its establishment in 2007. Mumbai were relegated to I-League 2nd division at the end of the season.


2016–17 Mumbai FC season, Background
The club narrowly avoided relegation last season finishing with 19 from their 16 outings with four wins, seven draws and five losses. Following the disappointing campaign the club also parted company with former player and long-time head coach Khalid Jamil.


2016–17 Mumbai FC season, Background, Transfers
Keepers Sanjiban Ghosh and Pawan Kumar(Mohun Bagan)  headed for the exit. They are joined by defenders Srikanth Ramu, Thiyam Chingkheinganba and Ashutosh Mehta who has joined Aizawl FC. Midfielders Malemngamba Meetei (to  NEROCA FC), Taisuke Matsugae, Eric Brown, Asif Kottayil, Darren Caldeira(to Bengaluru FC and later Chennai City FC and Arata Izumi ( NEROCA FC) have moved on. The frontline will also have a new look to it with the departures of Rohit Mirza, Ryuki Kozawa, Jayesh Rane and Cletus Paul.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season
The 2016–17 Munster Rugby season was Munster's sixteenth season competing in the Pro12, alongside which they also competed in the European Rugby Champions Cup. It was Anthony Foley's third season as head coach and Rassie Erasmus's first season as director of rugby.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
In August 2016, Munster started using the new central training base at the University of Limerick campus, thus marking an end to the days of splitting training between Cork and Limerick.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
Munster opened their pre-season with a 17–0 victory over Zebre in a pre-season friendly at Waterford Regional Sports Centre on 19 August.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
The new Pro12 season was launched on 23 August at the Aviva Stadium. Munster began the new season on 3 September with an away game against Scarlets.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 26 August, Munster defeated Worcester in their final pre-season friendly at Musgrave Park, scoring seven-tries during the game.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 16 October 2016, head coach Anthony Foley died suddenly while in Paris with Munster. The team was preparing to face Racing 92 in their opening game of the 2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup. The match was postponed as a result of Foley's death.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 22 October Munster paid tribute to the late Anthony Foley with a 38-17 bonus-point win over Glasgow in the European Champions Cup. A minutes silence was observed before the match during which a special tribute took place in the West Stand with the words "AXEL" spelled out with the number 8 on either side. The Munster Rugby Supporter's Club Choir performed 'There Is An Isle', and soprano Sinead O'Brien joined the Choir to perform 'Stand Up And Fight.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 10 December, Munster defeated Leicester 38–0 at Thomond Park in their second European Rugby Champions Cup game of the season to go top of the pool with ten points after two games.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
Over the Christmas period, Munster defeated Leinster at Thomond Park on 26 December 29-17 to move five points clear of them at the top of the Pro12. They followed up that victory with a 16–9 victory over Connacht on 31 December at the Galway Sportsgrounds.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 7 January, Munster played the re-arranged game against Racing 92 in Paris and had a bonus point victory by 32–7.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 14 January, Francis Saili scored the winning try in Munster's 12–14 away win against Glasgow Warriors, a win that secured Munster's place in the quarter-finals of the 2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup. It was the 11th win out of the last 12 matches for Munster.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
In March, it was announced that Donnacha Ryan would leave Munster at the end of the season to join Racing 92.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 1 April, Munster reached their first European Champions Cup semi-final in three years with a 41–16 victory over Toulouse.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 22 April, Munster played Saracens in the European Champions Cup semi-final at the Aviva Stadium. They lost the game 26-10 to go out of the competition. Munster minus the injured Conor Murray scored the first penalty of the game but Saracens took control of the game and scored two tries to win comfortably in the end. It was also confirmed that coach Rassie Erasmus would remain in charge for the next season after much speculation that he would return to South-Africa.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 4 May, Tyler Bleyendaal was named as the Munster Player of the Year at an awards ceremony in Cork. The ceremony was attended by 250 guests with 11 awards presented on the day.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 20 May, Munster defeated the Ospreys by 23–3 in the Pro12 playoff semi-final to advance to the 2017 Pro12 Grand Final against Scarlets at the Aviva Stadium on 27 May. The match was Donnacha Ryan's and Francis Saili's final appearance for Munster at Thomond Park.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Events
On 27 May, Munster lost the 2017 Pro12 Grand Final to Scarlets 46–22.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, Senior Playing Squad 2016–17, Players Out
Note: Flags indicate national union as has been defined under WR eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-WR nationality.


2016–17 Munster Rugby season, 2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup
Munster faced Racing 92, Glasgow Warriors and Leicester Tigers in Pool 1 of the 2016-17 Champions Cup. They were seeded in the bottom tier following their sixth-placed position in the 2015–16 Pro12.


2016–17 Murray State Racers men's basketball team
The 2016–17 Murray State Racers men's basketball team represented Murray State University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Racers, led by second-year head coach Matt McMahon, played their home games at the CFSB Center in Murray, Kentucky as members of the West Division of the Ohio Valley Conference. They finished the season 16–17, 8–8 in OVC play to finish in third place in the West Division. As the No. 7 seed in the OVC Tournament, they defeated Tennessee Tech and Morehead State before losing to UT Martin in the semifinals.


2016–17 Murray State Racers men's basketball team, Previous season
The Racers finished the 2015–16 season 17–14, 10–6 in OVC play to finish in a tie for the West Division title. They defeated Eastern Illinois in the first round of the OVC Tournament to advance to the quarterfinals where they lost to Morehead State.


2016–17 Murray State Racers men's basketball team, Preseason
In a vote of Ohio Valley Conference head men’s basketball coaches and sports information directors, Murray State was picked to win the West Division of the OVC. Bryce Jones was selected to the All-OVC Preseason Team.


2016–17 Málaga CF season
The 2016–17 season is the 85th season in Málaga CF's history and it's 36th in La Liga.


2016–17 Málaga CF season, Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2016–17 Młoda Liga
2016–17 Młoda Liga was the 7th season of Młoda Liga (league under-23) organized by Professional Volleyball League SA (Polish: Profesjonalna Liga Piłki Siatkowej S.A.) under the supervision of Polish Volleyball Federation (Polish: Polski Związek Piłki Siatkowej).


2016–17 Młoda Liga
Two the best teams from 2016–17 Młoda Liga were qualified to Final Four of Polish Championship U23. In Final Four RCS Cerrad Czarni Radom beat BBTS Bielsko-Biała in the finale and achieved second title of Polish Champion under-23. Tomasz Fornal, outside hitter from RCS Cerrad Czarni Radom was awarded a title of the Most Valuable Player.


2016–17 Młoda Liga, Final Four
To Final Four of Polish Championship under-23 tournament were qualified two the best teams from 2016–17 Młoda Liga and two teams from PZPS competition.


2016–17 Młoda Liga, Dream Team line-up
The coaches of the participating teams and the Młoda Liga coordinators selected the best six and the libero of the season.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads
This article shows the rosters of all participating teams at the 2016–17 Młoda Liga in Poland.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, Asseco Resovia Rzeszów
The following is the Asseco Resovia Rzeszów roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, AZS IV LO Częstochowa
The following is the AZS IV LO Częstochowa roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, BBTS Bielsko-Biała
The following is the BBTS Bielsko-Biała roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, Cuprum Lubin
The following is the Cuprum Lubin roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, Effector Kielce
The following is the Effector Kielce roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, Indykpol AZS Olsztyn
The following is the Indykpol AZS Olsztyn roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, Jastrzębski Węgiel
The following is the Jastrzębski Węgiel roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, Lotos Trefl Gdańsk
The following is the Lotos Trefl Gdańsk roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, Łuczniczka Bydgoszcz
The following is the Łuczniczka Bydgoszcz roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, MKS Będzin
The following is the MKS Będzin roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, ONICO AZS Politechnika Warszawska
The following is the ONICO AZS Politechnika Warszawska roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, PGE Skra Bełchatów
The following is the PGE Skra Bełchatów roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, RCS Cerrad Czarni Radom
The following is the RCS Cerrad Czarni Radom roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 Młoda Liga squads, ZAKSA Kędzierzyn-Koźle
The following is the ZAKSA Kędzierzyn-Koźle roster in the 2016–17 Młoda Liga.


2016–17 N1 League
The 2016–17 N1 League was the ninth season of the N1 League and the first year the competition was branded as N1 League. Seven clubs participated in the competition following a two-season hiatus. The teams played in an unknown length regular season that began on 29 October 2016 and ended on 19 February 2017.


2016–17 N1 League
The top four clubs based on their regular season standings qualified for the Final Four segment of the tournament, which determined the champion of the season. The semifinals were played in a two-leg aggregate series, while the championship round was played in a best two-of-three series.


2016–17 N1 League
Defending champions, Highlights won the title, winning the series 2-0 against Youths of the Future in the final. It was Highlights' fifth Nevisian title.


2016–17 N1 League, Table
This was the last reported table on 13 December 2016.


2016–17 NA Hussein Dey season
In the 2016–17 season, NA Hussein Dey competed in the Ligue 1 for the 41st season, as well as the Algerian Cup.


2016–17 NA Hussein Dey season, Squad list
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2016–17 NACAM Formula 4 Championship
The 2016–17 NACAM Formula 4 Championship season was the second season of the NACAM Formula 4 Championship. It began on 24 September 2016 at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas and ended on 18 June 2017 at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico City after eight triple-header rounds.


2016–17 NACAM Formula 4 Championship, Race calendar and results
The calendar was published on 28 July 2015. For the first time, the series expanded outside Mexico, hosting its opening round at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin. The series also hosted a full-championship round in support of the 2016 Mexican GP round, as opposed to the exhibition round held the previous season, and also extended its territory to Southeastern Mexico by holding two back-to-back rounds in the states of Yucatán and Quintana Roo.


2016–17 NACAM Formula 4 Championship, Race calendar and results
A mid-season revision of the calendar was made after the Southeastern events had taken place.


2016–17 NACAM Formula 4 Championship, Championship standings
Points were awarded to the top 10 classified finishers in each race. For this season, the series changed its scoring system following the unified FIA F4 rulebook.


2016–17 NBA Development League season
The 2016–17 NBA Development League season was the 16th season of the NBA Development League (NBA D-League). The NBA D-League is the official minor league basketball organization owned by the National Basketball Association (NBA). The following season, the league was rebranded to NBA G League as part of multi-year partnership with Gatorade and its parent company, PepsiCo.


2016–17 NBA Development League season, League changes
The league expanded to a record 22 teams for the 2016–17 season. Three expansion teams were introduced this season (Greensboro Swarm, Long Island Nets, and Windy City Bulls), each of them owned and affiliated with an NBA team. Along with these three new teams, the Bakersfield Jam were purchased by their 2015–16 affiliate, the Phoenix Suns, and relocated to become the Northern Arizona Suns. The Idaho Stampede, who were already owned by the Utah Jazz, were also relocated and became the Salt Lake City Stars.


2016–17 NBA Development League season, League changes
The Reno Bighorns were purchased by their NBA affiliate, the Sacramento Kings just prior to the start of the season. The addition of the three teams, as well as the purchases of existing teams, left just eight NBA teams without a D-League affiliate and only seven D-League teams not owned by an NBA team.


2016–17 NBA Development League season, League changes
The league consists of two conferences, each with 11 teams split into two divisions, two with six and two with five. The Greensboro Swarm and Long Island Nets were placed into the Atlantic Division. The Raptors 905 moved from the Atlantic Division, along with the newly formed Windy City Bulls, to the Central Division. With the addition of the three expansion teams, to even out the conferences, the Iowa Energy and Sioux Falls Skyforce moved from the Central Division of the Eastern Conference to the Southwest Division of the Western Conference.


2016–17 NBA season
The 2016–17 NBA season was the 71st season of the National Basketball Association. The regular season began on October 25, 2016, with the 2016 NBA champion Cleveland Cavaliers hosting a game against the New York Knicks. The 2017 NBA All-Star Game was played at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, on February 19, 2017, with the West defeating the East 192–182. Anthony Davis of the New Orleans Pelicans was named the All Star Game MVP after breaking Wilt Chamberlain's record by scoring 52 points in the All Star Game.


2016–17 NBA season
The original host of the game, Charlotte's Spectrum Center, was removed as the host on July 21, 2016 due to the league's opposition against North Carolina's Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act. The regular season ended on April 12, 2017, and the playoffs began on April 15, 2017 and ended on June 12, 2017, with the Golden State Warriors going 16-1 in the playoffs and beating the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games during their third consecutive matchup in the NBA Finals. This was the last season for the NBA to use Adidas jerseys. Starting with the 2017-18 NBA season, the jerseys were from Nike. Also, Kevin Durant signed with the Golden State Warriors, and Dwyane Wade with the Chicago Bulls, after playing their entire careers until then with one team (Seattle SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder and Miami Heat, respectively).


2016–17 NBA season, Transactions, Free agency
Free agency negotiations began on July 1, 2016 at 12:01 a.m. e.t. Players were allowed to sign starting on July 6, after the July moratorium ended.


2016–17 NBA season, Transactions, Coaching changes, In-season
There were no head coaching changes during the regular season. This was the first time since the 1963–64 NBA season that there was no in-season coaching changes, the fourth time this happened in league history.


2016–17 NBA season, Preseason
The preseason began on October 1, 2016 and ended on October 21, 2016.


2016–17 NBA season, Regular season
The regular season began on October 25, 2016. Christmas Day games were played on December 25, 2016. The regular season ended on April 12, 2017. The schedule was released at 6:00 p.m. ET on August 11, 2016.


2016–17 NBA season, Playoffs
The 2017 NBA Playoffs began on April 15, 2017. In May 2017, ESPN aired the Western Conference Finals and TNT aired the Eastern Conference Finals. The season ended with the 2017 NBA Finals which began on June 1, 2017 and ended on June 12, 2017 on ABC.


2016–17 NBA season, Awards, Yearly awards
Awards were presented at the NBA Awards ceremony, which were held on June 26. Finalists for voted awards were announced during the playoffs and winners were presented at the award ceremony. The All-NBA Teams were announced in advance in order for teams to have all the necessary information to make off-season preparations.


2016–17 NBA season, Awards, Players of the Week
The following players were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Week.


2016–17 NBA season, Awards, Players of the Month
The following players were named the Eastern and Western Conference Players of the Month.


2016–17 NBA season, Awards, Rookies of the Month
The following players were named the Eastern and Western Conference Rookies of the Month.


2016–17 NBA season, Awards, Coaches of the Month
The following coaches were named the Eastern and Western Conference Coaches of the Month.


2016–17 NBA season, Media
This was the first season of the new nine-year U.S. television contracts with ABC, ESPN, TNT, and NBA TV.


2016–17 NBA season, Media
In Canada, rights were divided between the TSN and Sportsnet groups of channels and NBA TV Canada. These rights are of indefinite duration, as NBA TV Canada is owned by the Toronto Raptors' ownership group, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment, which in turn is controlled by the parent companies of TSN and Sportsnet (Bell Canada and Rogers Communications, respectively).


2016–17 NBA season, Media
TSN and Sportsnet each have rights to 41 Toronto Raptors regular season games and over 100 other regular season games, and were expected (as in 2015–16) to share coverage of NBA All-Star Weekend, and split coverage of the playoffs and the NBA Finals. NBA TV Canada carried 105 additional regular season games, plus replays of other games carried on TSN and Sportsnet.


2016–17 NBB Cup
The 2016–17 NBB Cup (Dutch: 2016–17 NBB-Beker) was the 49th edition of the Netherlands' national basketball cup tournament. Donar won its fifth national cup title.


2016–17 NBB Cup, Format
In the first, second and third round teams from the Dutch second, third and fourth division participate. From the fourth round, teams from the Dutch Basketball League (DBL) enter the competition. Quarter- and semi-finals are played in a two-legged format. When a team form a tier lower than the DBL played a DBL team, one win is sufficient for the latter to advance to the next round.


2016–17 NBB season
The 2016–17 NBB season was the 9th season of the Novo Basquete Brasil, the Brazilian basketball league. Once again this tournament was organized entirely by the Liga Nacional de Basquete (LNB). The NBB also qualified teams for international tournaments such as Liga Sudamericana and FIBA Americas League.


2016–17 NBB season
This season fifteen teams played each other in the regular season. At the end of the home and away matches round the top four teams qualified for the quarterfinals of the playoffs automatically, while the teams finishing in the 5th and 12th place participated in the first round of the playoffs to determine the other four teams in the quarterfinals, in a five-match series. This season maintained 15/16's playoff method of best of 5 games, played on the 1-2-1-1 format.


2016–17 NBB season
For this season, the last two regular season placed teams were relegated to the Liga Ouro, the NBB second division. Only the Liga Ouro winner received the right to contest NBB in the next year.


2016–17 NBB season, Regular season
The regular season began on Saturday, November 5, 2016 at Ginásio Panela de Pressão, home of Gocil/Bauru Basket, who hosted a game against the Flamengo at 14:00 UTC−03:00. The regular season ended on Saturday, April 8, 2017.


2016–17 NBB season, Awards
Most Valuable Player: Desmond Holloway, PinheirosSixth Man of the Year Award: Arthur Pecos, Paulistano/CorporeDefensive Player of the Year Award: Jimmy de Oliveira, Mogi das Cruzes/HelborMost Improved Player of the Year Award: Georginho de Paula, Paulistano/CorporeNBB Coach of the Year (Ary Vidal Trophy): Gustavo de Conti, Paulistano/CorporeNBB's Revelation Player of the Year: Alexey Borges, FrancaNBB Finals MVP Award: Alex Garcia, Bauru Basket


2016–17 NBB season, Arenas
As both teams played their first NBB season, it was the first appearance of Campo Mourão's Ginásio de Esportes Belin Carolo and Vasco's Ginásio Vasco da Gama.


2016–17 NBB season, Final standings
Teams are ranked based on the playoff round in which they were eliminated and their regular season records.


2016–17 NBL Canada season
The 2016–17 NBL Canada season was the sixth season of the National Basketball League of Canada (NBLC).


2016–17 NBL Canada season, League changes
The league added two teams for 2016–17: the Cape Breton Highlanders in Sydney, Nova Scotia, and the KW Titans  in Kitchener, Ontario. The Saint John Mill Rats franchise also transferred ownership and was rebranded to the Saint John Riptide.


2016–17 NBL season
The 2016–17 NBL season was the 39th season of the National Basketball League since its establishment in 1979. A total of eight teams contested the league. The regular season was played between October 2016 and February 2017, followed by a post-season featuring the top four in late February and March 2017.


2016–17 NBL season
During the off-season Townsville Crocodiles folded with Brisbane Bullets returning.


2016–17 NBL season
Australian broadcast rights to the season were held by Fox Sports, in the second year of a five-year deal, with one game per week simulcast on SBS. In New Zealand, Sky Sport are the official league broadcaster.


2016–17 NBL season, Pre-season, 2016 Australian Basketball Challenge
A pre-season tournament featuring all eight teams and two invited CBA teams was held on 23–26 September 2016 at Brisbane Convention Centre, Brisbane. The winner will receive the fourth annual Loggins–Bruton Cup.


2016–17 NBL season, Ladder
The NBL tie-breaker system as outlined in the NBL Rules and Regulations states that in the case of an identical win-loss record, the results in games played between the teams will determine order of seeding.


2016–17 NBL season, Ladder
13-way Head-to-Head between Cairns Taipans (5-3), Perth Wildcats (4-4) and Illawarra Hawks (3-5).


2016–17 NBL season, Finals Series
The 2016–17 National Basketball League Finals were played in late February and March 2017, consisting of two best-of-three semi-final series and the best-of-five Grand Final series. In the semi-finals, the higher seed hosted the first and third games. In the Grand Final, the higher seed hosted the first, third and fifth games.


2016–17 NBL season, Finals Series, Playoff Seedings
The NBL tie-breaker system as outlined in the NBL Rules and Regulations states that in the case of an identical win-loss record, the results in games played between the teams will determine order of seeding.


2016–17 NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team
The 2016–17 NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team represented North Carolina State University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Wolfpack, led by sixth-year head coach Mark Gottfried, played its home games at PNC Arena in Raleigh, North Carolina and were members of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). They finished the season 15–17, 4-14 in ACC play to finish in a tie for 13th place. They lost in the first round of the ACC Tournament to Clemson.


2016–17 NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team
On February 16, 2017, head coach Mark Gottfried was fired, but the school allowed him to finish out the season. He finished at NC State with a six-year record of 123–86. On March 17, the school hired UNC Wilmington head coach Kevin Keatts as head coach.


2016–17 NC State Wolfpack men's basketball team, Previous season
The Wolfpack finished the 2015–16 season 16–17, 5–13 in ACC play to finish in 13th place. They defeated Wake Forest in the first round of the ACC Tournament before losing in the second round to Duke.


2016–17 NC State Wolfpack women's basketball team
The 2016–17 NC State Wolfpack women's basketball team represents North Carolina State University during the 2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Wolfpack, led by fourth-year head coach Wes Moore, return to play their home games at Reynolds Coliseum after a one year of renovation and were members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They finished the season 23–9, 12–4 in ACC play to finish in a tie for fourth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the ACC Women's Tournament  to Louisville. They received at-large bid of the NCAA Women's Tournament where they defeated Auburn in the first round before losing to Texas in the second round.


2016–17 NC State Wolfpack women's basketball team, Media
WKNC acts as the home for Wolfpack women's basketball. Patrick Kinas and Rachel Stockdale provide the call for the games. ESPN and the ACC RSN will televise select Wolfpack games during the season. All non-televised home conference games will be shown on ESPN3 using the radio broadcasters for the call.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings
Two human polls make up the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings, the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll, in addition to various publications' preseason polls.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings, USA Today Coaches Poll
The Coaches Poll is the second oldest poll still in use after the AP Poll. It is compiled by a rotating group of 31 college Division I head coaches. The Poll operates by Borda count. Each voting member ranks teams from 1 to 25. Each team then receives points for their ranking in reverse order: Number 1 earns 25 points, number 2 earns 24 points, and so forth. The points are then combined and the team with the highest points is then ranked No. 1; second highest is ranked No. 2 and so forth. Only the top 25 teams with points are ranked, with teams receiving first place votes noted the quantity next to their name. The maximum points a single team can earn is 775.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season
The 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 11, 2016. The first tournament was the 2K Sports Classic, and ended with the Final Four in Glendale, Arizona on April 3, 2017. Practices officially began on September 30, 2016.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Rule changes
The only rule change for the regular season was allowing coaches to ask for timeouts in situations of inbounds on offense or defense. Coaches are still not permitted to call timeouts in live-ball situations.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Rule changes
The NCAA approved a number of experimental rule changes for use in the 2017 postseason NIT:


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, New arenas
This proved to be the last season for four Division I teams in their then-current venues:


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Season outlook, Pre–season polls
The top 25 from the AP and USA Today Coaches Polls.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Regular season, Upsets
An upset is a victory by an underdog team. In the context of NCAA Division I Men's Basketball, this generally constitutes an unranked team defeating a team currently ranked in the Top 25. This list will highlight those upsets of ranked teams by unranked teams as well as upsets of #1 teams. Rankings are from the AP poll.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Regular season, Conference winners and tournaments
Each of the 32 Division I athletic conferences ends its regular season with a single-elimination tournament. The team with the best regular-season record in each conference is given the number one seed in each tournament, with tiebreakers used as needed in the case of ties for the top seeding. The winners of these tournaments receive automatic invitations to the 2017 NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament. This was the first season in which the Ivy League held a conference tournament.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Postseason, NCAA Tournament, Tournament upsets
For this list, an "upset" is defined as a win by a team seeded 7 or more spots below its defeated opponent.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Postseason, NCAA Tournament, Tournament upsets
This definition is based solely on seeding—in the Middle Tennessee–Minnesota game listed below, the #12 seed Middle Tennessee entered the game as a 1.5-point favorite in Las Vegas sports books.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Postseason, National Invitation Tournament
After the NCAA Tournament field was announced, the NCAA invited 32 teams to participate in the National Invitation Tournament. The tournament began on March 14, 2017 with all games prior to the semifinals being played at campus sites.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Postseason, National Invitation Tournament, NIT Semifinals and Final
Played at Madison Square Garden in New York City on March 28 and 30


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Postseason, College Basketball Invitational
The tenth College Basketball Invitational (CBI) Tournament began on March 14, 2017. This tournament features 16 teams who were left out of the NCAA Tournament and NIT.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Postseason, CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament
The seventh CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament began on March 13, 2017 and ended with the championship game on March 31. This tournament places an emphasis on selecting successful teams from "mid-major" conferences who were left out of the NCAA Tournament and NIT. 26 teams participate in this tournament.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season, Attendances
2016-17 College basketball teams average home attendances of at least 10,000:


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey rankings
Two human polls made up the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey rankings, the USCHO.com/CBS College Sports poll and the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll. As the 2016–17 season progressed, rankings were updated weekly.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey rankings, USA Today
^In the Week 13 poll (Jan 9) USA Today ranked Quinnipiac and St. Lawrence tied at 15th, with the Saints previously having been unranked in said poll.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season
The 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season began in October 2016 and ended with the 2017 NCAA Division I Men's Ice Hockey Tournament's championship game in April 2017. This was the 70th season in which an NCAA ice hockey championship was held, and the 122nd year overall in which an NCAA school iced a team.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season, Player stats, Scoring leaders
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season, Player stats, Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders lead the NCAA in goals against average while playing at least 33% of their team's total minutes.


2016–17 NCAA Division I men's ice hockey season, Player stats, Leading goaltenders
GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings
Two human polls make up the 2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings, the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll, in addition to various publications' preseason polls.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings, AP Poll
This poll is compiled by sportswriters across the nation. In Division I men's and women's college basketball, the AP Poll is largely just a tool to compare schools throughout the season and spark debate, as it has no bearing on postseason play.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings, USA Today Coaches Poll
The Coaches Poll is the second oldest poll still in use after the AP Poll. It is compiled by a rotating group of 32 college Division I head coaches. The Poll operates by Borda count. Each voting member ranks teams from 1 to 25. Each team then receives points for their ranking in reverse order: Number 1 earns 25 points, number 2 earns 24 points, and so forth. The points are then combined and the team with the highest points is then ranked #1; second highest is ranked #2 and so forth. Only the top 25 teams with points are ranked, with teams receiving first place votes noted the quantity next to their name. The maximum points a single team can earn is 800.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season
The 2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season began on November 11, 2016 and ended with the Final Four title game in Dallas on April 2, 2017, won by South Carolina. Practices officially began on September 30, 2016.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season, Pre-season polls
The top 25 from the AP and USA Today Coaches Polls.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season, New arenas
In addition, Alabama returned women's home games to Coleman Coliseum, home to Alabama men's basketball since the venue's opening in 1968. The Crimson Tide women began play in 1974 at Foster Auditorium, and split home games between the two facilities until moving full-time into the Coliseum in 1981. The women would move back to Foster near the end of the 2010–11 season, and used that as their main venue until returning to the Coliseum.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season, New arenas
This proved to be the final season for four Division I teams in their then-current venues.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season, Regular season, Early preseason tournament, Tournament upsets
For this list, an "upset" is defined as a win by a team seeded 7 or more spots below its defeated opponent.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season, Regular season, Conference winners and tournaments
Each of the 32 Division I athletic conferences ends its regular season with a single-elimination tournament. The team with the best regular-season record in each conference is given the number one seed in each tournament, with tiebreakers used as needed in the case of ties for the top seeding. The winners of these tournaments receive automatic invitations to the 2017 NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Tournament. This will be the first season in which the Ivy League holds a conference tournament.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season, Award winners, All-America teams
The NCAA has never recognized a consensus All-America team in women's basketball. This differs from the practice in men's basketball, in which the NCAA uses a combination of selections by the  Associated Press (AP), the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC), the Sporting News, and the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) to determine a consensus All-America team. The selection of a consensus team is possible because all four organizations select at least a first and second team, with only the USBWA not selecting a third team.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season, Award winners, All-America teams
However, of the major selectors in women's basketball, only the AP divides its selections into separate teams. The women's counterpart to the NABC, the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA), selects a single 10-member (plus ties) team, as does the USBWA. The NCAA does not recognize Sporting News as an All-America selector in women's basketball.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey rankings
Two polls make up the 2016–17 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey rankings, the USCHO.com poll and the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll. As the 2016–17 season progresses, rankings are updated weekly.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season
The 2016–17 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season began in September 2016 and ended with the 2017 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey tournament's championship game on 19 March 2017.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season, Pre-season polls
The top 10 from USCHO.com, September 19, 2016, and the top 10 from USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine, First place votes are in parentheses.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season, Player stats, Scoring leaders
The following players lead the NCAA in points at the conclusion of games played on March 19, 2017.


2016–17 NCAA Division I women's ice hockey season, Player stats, Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders lead the NCAA in goals against average at the conclusion of games played on March 19, 2017 while playing at least 33% of their team's total minutes.


2016–17 NCAA Division II men's ice hockey season
The 2016–17 NCAA Division II men's ice hockey season began on October 28, 2016 and concluded on February 25 of the following year. This was the 35th season of second-tier college ice hockey.


2016–17 NCAA Division III men's ice hockey season
The 2016–17 NCAA Division III men's ice hockey season began on October 28, 2016, and concluded on March 25, 2017. This was the 44th season of Division III college ice hockey.


2016–17 NCAA Division III men's ice hockey season
The Commonwealth Coast Conference, the primary league for six of the nine members of ECAC Northeast and one member of the NEHC, began sponsoring men's ice hockey this season. Because seven teams is the minimum requirement for a league to qualify for an automatic bid the new conference would be able to retain the qualifier formerly possessed by ECAC Northeast. The three remaining ECAC Northeast teams (Becker, Johnson & Wales and Suffolk) joined CCC as affiliate members for at least men's ice hockey.


2016–17 NCAA Division III men's ice hockey season
The NCAA also increased the number of participants in the National Tournament to twelve.


2016–17 NCAA championships
The 2016–17 NCAA championships were contested by the NCAA throughout the course of the 2016–17 college athletics season to determine the team and individual national champions of 23 different men's and women's sports at the Division I, Division II, and Division III levels. Some sports have championships at all three levels and others have just a single national championship.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games
The 2016–17 NCAA football bowl games were a series of college football bowl games which completed the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The games began on December 17, 2016, and aside from the all-star games ended with the 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship which was played on January 9, 2017.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games
The total of 41 team-competitive postseason games in FBS, including the national championship game, was unchanged from the previous year. While bowl games had been the purview of only the very best teams for nearly a century, this was the eleventh consecutive year that teams with non-winning seasons participated in bowl games. To fill the 80 available team-competitive bowl slots, a new record of 20 teams (25% of all participants) with non-winning seasons participated in bowl games—17 had a .500 (6–6) season, and three losing teams with sub-.500 records (one 6–7 and two 5–7). This was the fifth time in six years that teams with actual losing records were invited to bowl games. None of the six teams that played in bowls on December 26 had a winning record.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule
The schedule for the 2016–17 bowl games are below. All times are EST (UTC−5).


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule, College Football Playoff and Championship Game
The College Football Playoff system was used to determine a national champion of Division I FBS college football. A 13-member committee of experts ranked the top 25 teams in the nation after each of the last seven weeks of the 2016 season. The top four teams in the final ranking then played a single-elimination semifinal round, with the winners advancing to the National Championship game.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule, College Football Playoff and Championship Game
The semi-final games were held at the Fiesta Bowl and the Peach Bowl as part of a yearly rotation of three pairs of six bowls. Their winners advanced to the 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, on January 9, 2017.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule, College Football Playoff and Championship Game
As with the 2015 season, the two semi-final bowls were held on New Year's Eve (Saturday, December 31, 2016), as the Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl are guaranteed exclusive TV time slots on January 2 if New Year's Day fell on a Sunday (there is a gentleman's agreement to not play New Year's Day bowl games against NFL games, which are played as usual when New Year's Day falls on a Sunday), regardless of whether they will be hosting a semifinal game.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule, College Football Playoff and Championship Game
To reduce the impact of the semi-final games' New Year's Eve scheduling—a factor that led to lower viewership of the 2015 semi-finals in comparison to 2014, it was announced on March 8, 2016, that the kickoff times of the two bowls would be pushed forward to 3:00 pm and 7:00 pm ET. CFP commissioner Bill Hancock suggested that starting the games earlier would allow viewers to partake in both the CFP games and New Year's festivities.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule, College Football Playoff and Championship Game
As the earlier start intrudes on the early afternoon window for New Year's Six games, the 2016 Orange Bowl was instead held as a primetime game on December 30, 2016. As a result, the "New Year's Six" bowls were stretched across a period of four days, rather than two consecutive days of three games each. In July 2016, Hancock announced that future semi-finals, when not hosted by the Rose and Sugar Bowl games, will generally be held on the final Saturday of the year.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule, College Football Playoff and Championship Game
Of the Power Five conferences,  The Big Ten was represented with four teams in the New Year's Six, whereas the ACC, SEC and Pac-12 had two teams each. The Big 12 was again left out of the semifinals, and had just one team in the New Year's Six. The Group of 5 was represented by the MAC.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule, Non-CFP bowl games
On April 11, 2016, the NCAA announced a freeze on new bowl games until after the 2019 season.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule, Non-CFP bowl games
While bowl games had been the purview of only the very best teams for nearly a century, the NCAA had to lower its postseason eligibility criteria repeatedly (2006, 2009, 2010, 2012 and 2013), eventually allowing teams with losing records (5–7) to participate in bowls due to there being not enough bowl-eligible teams, while also having to allow teams from the same (Mountain West) conference to meet in the 2015 Arizona Bowl due to the lack of eligible teams to meet its other tie-ins. For the 2016–17 bowl season, 63% of the 128 teams playing in Division I FBS were deemed eligible and received invites to fill the 80 available slots.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule, Non-CFP bowl games
Prior to the moratorium, multiple new bowl games were proposed for or approved to begin play in 2016, including one in Myrtle Beach, the Medal of Honor Bowl (which planned to convert itself from an all-star game to a sanctioned bowl after the NCAA lifted its ban on postseason championships at pre-determined locations in South Carolina), the Sun Belt/American Austin Bowl, and a Mountain West/Pac-12 bowl in Melbourne, Australia. The Sun Belt subsequently announced that it would become a new primary tie-in for the Arizona Bowl.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Schedule, FCS bowl game
The FCS has one bowl game; they also have a championship bracket that began on November 26 and ended on January 7.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Selection of the teams, CFP top 25 teams
On December 4, 2016, the College Football Playoff selection committee announced their final team rankings for the year:


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Selection of the teams, CFP top 25 teams
In the third year of the College Football Playoff era, this was the first time that one of the four semifinalists (Ohio State) was not a conference champion.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Selection of the teams, Conference champions' bowl games
Only the Peach Bowl featured two conference champions playing against each other. Rankings are per the above CFP standings.


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Selection of the teams, Bowl-eligible teams
Number of bowl berths available: 80 Number of bowl-eligible teams: 76 Number of conditional bowl-eligible teams: 2 (Hawaii, South Alabama) Number of teams qualified by APR: 2 (North Texas, Mississippi State)


2016–17 NCAA football bowl games, Selection of the teams, Bowl-ineligible teams
Note: Being bowl-ineligible does not, in itself, exclude a team from the chance to play in a bowl game. Tiebreaker procedures based on a school's Academic Progress Rate (APR) allowed for the possibility of 5–7 teams to play in bowl games since not enough teams qualified to fill all 80 spots with at least a 6–6 record.


2016–17 ND Gorica season
The 2016–17 season is Gorica's 26th season in the Slovenian PrvaLiga, Slovenian top division, since the league was created in 1991 with Gorica as one of the league's founding members. Gorica compete in Slovenian PrvaLiga, Slovenian Football Cup and UEFA Europa League.


2016–17 ND Gorica season, Players
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


2016–17 NFL playoffs
The National Football League playoffs for the 2016 NFL season began on Saturday, January 7, 2017. The postseason tournament concluded with Super Bowl LI on Sunday, February 5, 2017, when the New England Patriots defeated the Atlanta Falcons at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas.


2016–17 NFL playoffs
As of the 2020–21 playoffs, this is the last postseason in which the third and fourth seeds from both conferences all won a playoff game. Both the conference runner-ups participated in Super Bowl XLV, which was the last Super Bowl appearance for each.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Participants
Within each conference, the four division winners and the two wild card teams (the top two non-division winners with the best overall regular season records) qualified for the playoffs. The four division winners are seeded 1 through 4 based on their overall won-lost-tied record, and the wild card teams are seeded 5 and 6. The NFL does not use a fixed bracket playoff system, and there are no restrictions regarding teams from the same division matching up in any round.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Participants
In the first round, dubbed the wild-card playoffs or wild-card weekend, the third-seeded division winner hosts the sixth seed wild card, and the fourth seed hosts the fifth. The 1 and 2 seeds from each conference then receive a bye in the first round. In the second round, the divisional playoffs, the number 1 seed hosts the worst surviving seed from the first round (seed 4, 5, or 6), while the number 2 seed will play the other team (seed 3, 4, or 5).


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Participants
The two surviving teams from each conference's divisional playoff games then meet in the respective AFC and NFC Conference Championship games, hosted by the higher seed. Although the Super Bowl, the fourth and final round of the playoffs, is played at a neutral site, the designated home team is based on an annual rotation by conference.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, AFC: Houston Texans 27, Oakland Raiders 14
The Raiders were one of the most dominant teams in the AFC during the season, but in the final two weeks of the regular season, they lost starting quarterback Derek Carr and second-string quarterback Matt McGloin to injuries. The Raiders lost the last game and ended up going into the playoffs with Connor Cook under center, making Cook the first quarterback in the Super Bowl era to make his first NFL start in the postseason.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, AFC: Houston Texans 27, Oakland Raiders 14
Houston also had plenty of problems during the season as well, scoring only 25 touchdowns, the lowest number by a playoff team since the NFL expanded to a 16-game season in 1978. But in this game, they proved more than a match for the Raiders, holding them to just 202 total yards and 2-for-16 on third down conversions while scoring 27 points, without losing any turnovers or allowing any sacks.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, AFC: Houston Texans 27, Oakland Raiders 14
Early in the first quarter, Shane Lechler's 30-yard punt pinned the Raiders back at their own 7-yard line. Oakland gained only two yards on their ensuing drive and Marquette King's 31-yard punt gave the Texans excellent field position on the Raiders' 40-yard line, which they converted on a Nick Novak field goal from 50 yards. Three plays into Oakland's next drive, Houston lineman Jadeveon Clowney intercepted a screen pass from Cook and returned it three yards, with an unnecessary roughness penalty on Menelik Watson adding another 15 yards and giving the Texans a first down on Oakland's 4-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, AFC: Houston Texans 27, Oakland Raiders 14
Lamar Miller then scored on a 4-yard touchdown run to give Houston a 10–0 lead with just over six minutes left in the first quarter. Both teams had to punt on their next possession and Jalen Richard returned Lechler's 51-yard kick 37 yards to the Texans' 38-yard line. Latavius Murray then rushed four times for 31 yards as the team drove to a touchdown on his 2-yard run, cutting the deficit to 10–7.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, AFC: Houston Texans 27, Oakland Raiders 14
In the second quarter, Houston quarterback Brock Osweiler completed passes to tight end C. J. Fiedorowicz for yardage gains of 18 and 17 yards respectively, while Miller added a 19-yard carry as the team drove 75 yards in 10 plays to score on Novak's 38-yard field goal, making the score 13–7. Later on, the Texans got the ball on their own 40-yard line with 2:25 left in the half.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, AFC: Houston Texans 27, Oakland Raiders 14
Osweiler completed a 19-yard pass to Will Fuller and a 38-yard pass to DeAndre Hopkins, then finished the drive with a 2-yard touchdown pass to Hopkins that gave his team a 20–7 halftime lead. The third quarter started with six consecutive punts. With 28 seconds left in the period, Houston returner Tyler Ervin muffed King's 56-yard punt, but teammate Eddie Pleasant recovered the ball and returned it 12 yards to the Texans' 47-yard line. Houston then drove 53 yards in nine plays, including a 19-yard reception by Fuller, to score on Osweiler's 1-yard touchdown run and go up 27–7.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, AFC: Houston Texans 27, Oakland Raiders 14
After being completely shut down up to this point, Oakland's offense finally managed to respond, moving the ball 75 yards in 11 plays, with Cook completing 5 of 9 passes for 50 yards on the drive; three completions went to Andre Holmes for 37 yards, the last one an 8-yard touchdown pass to make the score 27–14. Oakland's defense then forced a three-and-out with 6:27 left, but safety Corey Moore ended the drive with an interception of a high pass intended for Amari Cooper. Cook was intercepted again in the final two minutes, by A. J. Bouye.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, AFC: Houston Texans 27, Oakland Raiders 14
Osweiler was 14-of-25 passing for 168 yards and a touchdown, while also rushing for 15 yards and a touchdown. Defensive back Johnathan Joseph had 10 solo tackles, while linebacker Whitney Mercilus had seven tackles (five solo) and two sacks. In his first start, Cook completed 18 of 45 passing attempts for 161 yards and a touchdown, with three interceptions.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, NFC: Seattle Seahawks 26, Detroit Lions 6
Seattle dominated the Lions, holding them to just 231 total yards, 13 first downs and 2-for-11 on third down conversions.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, NFC: Seattle Seahawks 26, Detroit Lions 6
All drives in the first quarter ended in punts, except for the last one in which the Lions drove to a 4th-and-1 situation on the Seattle 38-yard line. On the first play of the second quarter, Matthew Stafford completed a pass to tight end Matthew Mulligan, but linebackers Bobby Wagner and K. J. Wright tackled him for a two-yard loss, causing a turnover on downs. Seattle then drove 60 yards in 14 plays, nine of them rushes by Thomas Rawls for 49 yards.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, NFC: Seattle Seahawks 26, Detroit Lions 6
Faced with 4th-and-goal on the Lions' 2-yard line, quarterback Russell Wilson threw the ball to Paul Richardson, who made a diving one-handed catch in the back of the end zone despite tight coverage (and a pass interference penalty) by safety Tavon Wilson, giving Seattle a 7–0 lead. Following a punt by the Lions, Rawls' 26-yard run and Wilson's 19-yard completion to Richardson set up Steven Hauschka's 43-yard field goal, increasing Seattle's lead to 10–0. Getting the ball with 1:55 left on the clock, Detroit responded as Stafford's completions to Anquan Boldin and Marvin Jones for gains of 16 and 30 yards led to a 51-yard Matt Prater field goal that made the score 10–3 with 20 seconds left before halftime.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, NFC: Seattle Seahawks 26, Detroit Lions 6
After forcing Seattle to punt on the opening drive of the second half, Stafford led the Lions 61 yards in 10 plays, featuring a 23-yard completion to fullback Zach Zenner, to score on Prater's 53-yard field goal, cutting their deficit to 10–6. But after this, Seattle completely took over the game. They responded by driving 65 yards in 10 plays, including a 32-yard run by Rawls, scoring on Hauschka's 27-yard field goal three plays into the fourth quarter.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, NFC: Seattle Seahawks 26, Detroit Lions 6
Then after a punt, Wilson's 42-yard completion to Doug Baldwin initiated an 82-yard drive that ended on Rawls' four-yard touchdown run, making the score 19–6 after Hauschka missed the extra point. Another Detroit punt got them the ball back with less than eight minutes remaining and they went on to put the game away with an 11-play, 84-yard drive. The key play was Wilson's 27-yard completion to Richardson on 3rd-and-5 from the Seattle 33-yard line. Wilson eventually finished the drive with a 13-yard touchdown pass to Baldwin, making the final score 26–6.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Saturday, January 7, 2017, NFC: Seattle Seahawks 26, Detroit Lions 6
Wilson completed 23 of 30 passes for 224 yards and a pair of touchdowns. His top target was Baldwin, who caught 11 passes for 104 yards and a touchdown. Rawls set a franchise playoff record with 161 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries. Defensive end Cliff Avril had three tackles and two sacks. For the Lions, Stafford completed 18 of 32 passes for 205 yards; Jones caught four passes for 81 yards while defensive end Ezekiel Ansah had nine combined tackles (five solo) and two sacks. Prater made NFL history with two field goals greater than 50 yards in a playoff game.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 30, Miami Dolphins 12
In their regular season meeting, Miami racked up 474 yards as they defeated Pittsburgh 30–15, but this game would have a very different outcome. The Steelers gained 387 yards, forced three turnovers, recorded five sacks and scored three touchdowns in the first half on the way to a dominant 18-point win.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 30, Miami Dolphins 12
Pittsburgh took the opening kickoff and drove 85 yards in 5 plays, scoring on Ben Roethlisberger's pass to Antonio Brown, who hauled in the short screen and took it 50 yards to the end zone. Then after a punt, the Steelers moved the ball 90 yards in 6 plays on the way to a 62-yard touchdown completion from Roethlisberger to Brown. This time Miami managed to respond, aided by Kenyan Drake's 33-yard kickoff return to the 41-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 30, Miami Dolphins 12
Faced with 3rd-and-13 after two plays, Matt Moore completed a 36-yard pass to receiver Kenny Stills, setting up Andrew Franks' 38-yard field goal that cut their deficit to 14–3. But after getting the ball back, Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell carried the ball 9 times for 79 yards on a 10–play, 83-yard drive that ended with his 1-yard touchdown run, giving the team a 20–3 lead after Chris Boswell missed the extra point.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 30, Miami Dolphins 12
Miami then drove 39 yards in 12 plays, scoring on Franks' 47-yard field goal with less than 5 minutes left in the second quarter. Pittsburgh responded with a drive to the Dolphins' 34-yard line, but with 1:12 left, Roethlisberger threw a pass that bounced off the outstretched hands of Brown and was intercepted by safety Michael Thomas, who returned it 16 yards to the Dolphins' 27-yard line. Miami subsequently moved the ball to the Steelers' 8-yard line, featuring a 37-yard completion from Moore to DeVante Parker. But on the next play, Moore lost a fumble while being sacked by James Harrison and Steelers defensive end Stephon Tuitt recovered the ball, allowing Pittsburgh to go into the half maintaining their 20–6 lead.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 30, Miami Dolphins 12
Early in the third quarter, safety Mike Mitchell forced a fumble while sacking Moore that Leterrius Walton recovered for the Steelers at their 41-yard line. Bell then rushed 3 times for 49 yards on the way to a 34-yard Boswell field goal that increased their lead to 23–6. Then on the first play after the kickoff, linebacker Ryan Shazier intercepted a pass from Moore and returned it 10 yards to the Dolphins' 25-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 30, Miami Dolphins 12
Miami's defense managed to force a 4th down, but a neutral zone infraction penalty against Dolphins defensive back Tony Lippett on the field goal attempt gave Pittsburgh a new set of downs. The Steelers took full advantage of the opportunity, scoring on Bell's 8-yard touchdown run that made the score 30–6 with 2 minutes left until the fourth quarter. Miami responded with a drive to the Steelers' 42-yard line, but lost the ball when Tuitt tackled Moore for a 2-yard gain on 4th-and-4.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 30, Miami Dolphins 12
Miami finally managed to get a touchdown in the fourth quarter – with 5:57 left – moving the ball 70 yards in 9 plays and scoring on Moore's 4-yard pass to running back Damien Williams. After a failed onside kick attempt, the Dolphins got one last chance to score when Xavien Howard intercepted Roethlisberger's pass and returned it 11 yards to the Miami 43-yard line. But the Steelers forced a turnover on downs at the Steelers' 33-yard line and ran out the clock to win the game.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 30, Miami Dolphins 12
Roethlisberger completed 13 of 18 passes for 197 yards and two touchdowns, with 2 interceptions. Brown caught 5 passes for 124 yards and two scores, while Bell rushed 29 times for 167 yards – surpassing the previous franchise playoff record of 158 yards set by Franco Harris in Super Bowl IX – and a touchdown. Linebacker Lawrence Timmons had 14 tackles (8 solo) and 2 sacks. James Harrison had 10 tackles (6 solo), 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble. Moore finished with 29 completions on 36 passing attempts for 298 yards and a touchdown, with one interception. His top receiver was Jarvis Landry, who caught 11 passes for 102 yards. Another notable moment from this game was when Steelers linebacker Bud Dupree made a helmet to helmet hit on Matt Moore. He was called for a 15 yard penalty, and later fined $18000


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 38, New York Giants 13
This was the first wild card game between two former Super Bowl MVP quarterbacks. The Packers got revenge on the Giants with a 38–13 blowout after losing to the Giants in 2007 and 2011.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 38, New York Giants 13
After the game started with a few punts, Giants quarterback Eli Manning completed passes to Sterling Shepard for gains of 26 and 13 yards as the team drove 54 yards to score on Robbie Gould's 26-yard field goal. Meanwhile, their defense would keep Green Bay pinned down for the entire first quarter, holding them to just 7 net yards. To make matters worse, Packers receiver Jordy Nelson, their leading receiver during the season, was injured and did not return to the game. New York also suffered a big loss through injury though, defensive back Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, the team's regular season leader in interceptions.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 38, New York Giants 13
In the second quarter, Green Bay punter Jake Schum pinned the Giants back at their 8-yard line with a 58-yard kick. A few plays later, Manning's 51-yard completion to tight end Will Tye set up another Gould field goal, increasing their lead to 6–0. Green Bay had to punt again on their next drive and once again they pinned the Giants back at their own 8-yard line with Schum's kick. This time, New York could not gain any net yards and safety Micah Hyde returned Brad Wing's 37-yard punt 7 yards to the Giants' 38-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 38, New York Giants 13
With excellent field position, the Packers' offense, that had been held in check all game, scored two touchdowns in the final 2:20 of the half. First, Aaron Rodgers completed a 31-yard pass to Davante Adams; then after a short running play, Rodgers threw the ball to Adams in the back left corner of the end zone, who made a diving catch past the outstretched arms of defensive back Coty Sensabaugh for a 5-yard touchdown reception. New York then had to punt in 3 plays after Bobby Rainey was stopped for no gain on 3rd-and-1.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 38, New York Giants 13
Taking the ball back on their own 20-yard line with 1:38 left, Green Bay used nearly all that time to drive to a 4th-and-2 on the Giants' 42-yard line. With six seconds left, Rodgers aired out a Hail Mary pass into the end zone, over the heads of numerous players and was caught by receiver Randall Cobb, giving the Packers a 14–6 halftime lead.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 38, New York Giants 13
Following a pair of punts to start the second half, Green Bay found themselves facing 3rd-and-1 on their own 42-yard line. This time the Giants would make a defensive stand; fullback Aaron Ripkowski was stopped for no gain by safety Landon Collins, then Ty Montgomery tried to run left tackle, but Collins and linebacker Jonathan Casillas tackled him for a 1-yard loss. One play after the turnover on downs, Manning threw a 41-yard touchdown pass to receiver Tavarres King, putting the Giants within one point at 14–13.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 38, New York Giants 13
However, this was all New York could do as Green Bay went on a run of 24 unanswered points. Christine Michael returned the ensuing kickoff 31 yards to the 37-yard line. Then Rodgers hit Jared Cook for 13 yards, Adams for 20 yards and Cobb for a 30-yard touchdown pass that gave the team a 21–13 lead. New York then went three-and-out and Hyde returned Wing's 50-yard punt 23 yards to the Giants' 37-yard line. Rodgers' subsequent 23-yard completion to Adams set up Mason Crosby's 32-yard field goal, upping their lead to 24–13.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 38, New York Giants 13
Three plays into the fourth quarter, New York had to punt again. Green Bay went on to drive 80 yards in 10 plays and go up 31–13 on Rodgers' 16-yard touchdown pass to Cobb. The key play of the drive was a 34-yard reception by Montgomery on 3rd-and-10 from the Packers' 30-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 38, New York Giants 13
Though the game was virtually over at this point, a few plays into New York's next drive, linebacker Clay Matthews III hit Manning as he was winding up for a pass. Since the ball went forward, both teams thought the result was an incomplete pass; Matthews realized no whistle had been blown and raced 10 yards downfield to recover the ball, plowing through running back Paul Perkins in the process. The ball was deemed live and was classed as a fumble recovery for Green Bay on the Packers' 45-yard line. Green Bay then drove 55 yards in 9 plays to make the final score 38–13 on Ripkowski's 1-yard touchdown run. New York responded with a drive to the Packers' 13-yard line, but Damarious Randall intercepted a pass from Manning with seconds remaining.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Wild card playoffs, Sunday, January 8, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 38, New York Giants 13
Rodgers completed 25 of 40 passes for 364 yards and four touchdowns. Cobb caught three touchdown passes out of five receptions, for 116 yards, while Adams had eight catches for 125 yards and a touchdown. Hyde had six tackles and five punt returns for 50 yards. For New York, Manning completed 23 of 44 passes for 299 yards, with a touchdown and an interception.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 36, Seattle Seahawks 20
The Falcons' league-leading offense put up 422 total yards on their way to a 36–20 win over the Seahawks and their first trip to the NFC Championship since 2012.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 36, Seattle Seahawks 20
On the game's opening possession, Seattle mounted a 14-play, 81-yard drive that lasted 8:36; Russell Wilson completed all four of his passes for 40 yards and rushed for 16 yards on the drive, eventually finding tight end Jimmy Graham for a seven-yard touchdown. Atlanta responded with their own 13-play, 75-yard drive on their first possession and tied the game with Matt Ryan's 7-yard touchdown pass to Julio Jones on the second play of the second quarter.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 36, Seattle Seahawks 20
Devin Hester returned the ensuing kickoff 50 yards to the Seattle 45-yard line and the Seahawks advanced into Falcons territory with Wilson's 33-yard pass to Paul Richardson, who made a diving catch and then ran to the end zone. His catch was initially ruled a touchdown, but replays showed he was touched by Jalen Collins as he was falling to the ground, thus nullifying the scoring play. The drive ended up stalling and Seattle settled for a 33-yard field goal by Steven Hauschka.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 36, Seattle Seahawks 20
After Atlanta went three-and-out on their next drive, Hester returned the punt 80 yards to the Falcons' 7-yard line, but Seattle's Kevin Pierre-Louis was called for holding and the Seahawks were pushed back to their own 7-yard line. On the second play of the next drive, center Justin Britt accidentally stepped on Wilson's leg after the snap, causing Wilson to fall backwards into the end zone where he was downed by Ben Garland for a safety. Atlanta added two scores before the end of the half; first, Eric Weems returned the free kick 18 yards to the Falcons' 41-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 36, Seattle Seahawks 20
Ryan then completed a 37-yard pass to Taylor Gabriel that set up Matt Bryant's 35-yard field goal to give the Falcons a 12–10 lead. Seattle had to punt on their next drive and Jon Ryan's 60-yard kick pinned them back at their own 1-yard line. However, Atlanta advanced the ball all the way to the end zone, in nine plays. Ryan hit Mohamed Sanu for 22 yards, Gabriel for 18 yards and Jones for 20 yards before finishing the drive with a 14-yard touchdown pass to running back Tevin Coleman, increasing Atlanta's lead to 19–10 with 53 seconds left in the half.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 36, Seattle Seahawks 20
The Falcons increased their lead on the opening drive of the second half, moving the ball 75 yards – 29 yards of which from three carries by Coleman – in 13 plays on the way to Devonta Freeman's one-yard touchdown run that put them up by 16 points. This time, Seattle were able to respond, driving 80 yards in 14 plays, including a 40-yard completion from Wilson to Richardson. Hauschka finished the possession with a 31-yard field goal, cutting the score to 26–13.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 36, Seattle Seahawks 20
Atlanta took the kickoff; on 3rd-and-4, Ryan dumped off a short pass to Freeman, who then took off for a 53-yard gain to the Seahawks' 16-yard line, setting up Bryant's 31-yard field goal on the opening play of the fourth quarter. Seattle were able to get into Falcons territory later in the quarter, but Wilson threw an interception to Ricardo Allen who returned it 45 yards to the Seahawks' 46-yard line. Atlanta then drove 46 yards in 8 plays, the last one Ryan's three-yard touchdown pass to Sanu with 3:40 remaining to put the Falcons up by 23 points. Seattle were able to get back within 16 points after Hester returned the kickoff 78 yards and Wilson threw a 31-yard touchdown to Doug Baldwin, but Atlanta effectively sealed the game when Sanu recovered the resulting onside kick. On Seattle's final drive, Wilson was intercepted by Deion Jones.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 36, Seattle Seahawks 20
Ryan finished as the game's leading passer with 26 completions on 37 attempts for 338 yards and three touchdowns. Freeman rushed for 40 yards and a touchdown, while also catching four passes for 80 yards and a touchdown. Wilson threw for 225 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, and also finished as the Seahawks' leading rusher with 49 yards. Hester returned five kickoffs for 198 yards.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 34, Houston Texans 16
New England's defense intercepted Houston three times, while running back Dion Lewis scored three touchdowns – one rushing, one receiving and one kickoff return – as the Patriots advanced to the AFC Championship Game for the sixth year in a row.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 34, Houston Texans 16
Big plays enabled New England to take a 14–3 lead after just 6 offensive plays. Following a three-and-out from both teams, Texans defensive back A. J. Bouye committed a 30-yard pass interference penalty while trying to cover Chris Hogan, giving New England a first down on Houston's 35-yard line. Quarterback Tom Brady completed two consecutive passes—the first to Hogan for 22 yards and the second to Lewis for a 13-yard touchdown completion. Houston responded by moving the ball 62 yards in 14 plays to score on Nick Novak's 33-yard field goal. On the ensuing kickoff, Lewis returned the ball 98 yards for a touchdown, the first kickoff return touchdown for the Patriots in postseason history.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 34, Houston Texans 16
Houston had to punt after three plays, but on the first play of the second quarter, Brady threw a pass that went off the hands of Michael Floyd and was intercepted by Bouye, who returned it 7 yards to the Patriots' 27-yard line. Houston failed to get the ball into the end zone, but Novak kicked another field goal to make the score 14–6. Texans linebacker Akeem Dent forced and recovered a fumble from Lewis on the kickoff, getting the ball back for his team on the New England 12-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 34, Houston Texans 16
This time, Houston was able to take it all the way, scoring on Brock Osweiler's 10-yard touchdown pass to tight end C. J. Fiedorowicz that made the score 14–13. After three consecutive punts, Brady's 48-yard completion to Julian Edelman gave New England a first down on the Houston 16-yard line. Eventually they got a first and goal from the 3-yard line, but could not score a touchdown, with a Stephen Gostkowski field goal giving the Patriots a 17–13 lead at halftime.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 34, Houston Texans 16
After punts from each team at the start of the second half, Brady completed two passes to Edelman for 40 yards and one to Hogan for 22 yards before finding running back James White in the end zone for a 19-yard touchdown, putting the Patriots up 24–13. Later in the quarter, Devin McCourty's interception of an Osweiler pass gave New England the ball on their 44-yard line, but could not convert this into points. After a few punts, Brady threw a pass that was intercepted by Andre Hal, who returned it 6 yards to the Patriots' 34-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 34, Houston Texans 16
Houston capitalized with Novak's third field goal on the second play of the fourth quarter, making it 24–16. New England had to punt on their next drive, but in what turned out to be a crucial play, Osweiler's first pass after the punt was intercepted and returned 23 yards by Logan Ryan, giving New England the ball on the Texans' 6-yard line. After a 5-yard carry, Lewis added a 1-yard touchdown run that gave the Patriots a 31–16 lead.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 34, Houston Texans 16
The Texans were unable to achieve a first down on their next drive and New England drove 43 yards in 10 plays for Gostkowski's 43-yard field goal that gave them a 34–16 lead with under 7 minutes left. Houston's final drive resulted in Osweiler's third interception, this one to Duron Harmon.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Saturday, January 14, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 34, Houston Texans 16
Brady completed 18 of 38 passes for 287 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions, equaling his regular season total. Lewis rushed for 41 yards, caught two passes for 23 yards and returned three kickoffs for 124 yards, and became the first player in NFL postseason history to score touchdowns by rushing, receiving and kick return. Edelman caught eight passes for 137 yards and returned four punts for 24 yards, while Hogan had four receptions for 95 yards. Osweiler completed 23 of 40 passes for 198 yards and a touchdown, with three interceptions. The Patriots advanced to the AFC Championship Game for the sixth consecutive year, surpassing the Oakland Raiders of 1973 to 1977 for most consecutive appearances in conference championship games.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31
In a hard-fought back-and-forth game in which both teams gained over 400 yards of offense, Packers kicker Mason Crosby propelled the team to victory with two 50+ yard field goals in the final two minutes of the game, the second one set up by Aaron Rodgers's 36-yard completion to Jared Cook on 3rd-and-20 with three seconds left.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31
Dallas took the opening kickoff and drove 43 yards in 8 plays, scoring on Dan Bailey's 50-yard field goal to take a 3–0 lead. Green Bay appeared to go three-and-out when Aaron Rodgers threw an incompletion on 3rd down, but a defensive holding penalty on Benson Mayowa gave them a first down. Taking advantage of their second chance, Ty Montgomery rushed for 15 yards and Randall Cobb caught a pass for 16 yards before Aaron Rodgers finished the drive with a 34-yard touchdown pass to tight end Richard Rodgers II. The next time Green Bay got the ball, they scored again, driving 90 yards in 13 plays, including a 32-yard completion from Aaron Rodgers to Davante Adams. On the third play of the second quarter, Montgomery finished the drive with a 3-yard touchdown run, making the score 14–3.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31
Following a punt, Aaron Rodgers led the Packers back for more points, completing 6 of 7 passes for 59 yards, the longest a 26-yard completion to Geronimo Allison. Fullback Aaron Ripkowski also made a big impact with a 20-yard run, while Montgomery finished the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to give the team a 21–3 lead. After being dominated until now, Dallas scored 10 points before halftime. On their ensuing drive, Dak Prescott made two key completions to receiver Dez Bryant, the first for 21 yards and the second a 40-yard touchdown pass that cut their deficit to 21–10.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31
On the kickoff, Packers returner Christine Michael muffed the kick and was downed on the 6-yard line, leading to a three-and-out that gave Dallas good field position when Cole Beasley returned the punt 8 yards to his own 49-yard line. Dallas then drove 36 yards in 10 plays, including an 18-yard catch by Beasley on 3rd-and-4, to score on Bailey's 33-yard field goal, cutting the score to 21–13 going into halftime.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31
Green Bay took the second half kickoff and scored quickly, with Aaron Rodgers hitting Cobb for 25 yards, Adams for 14 yards and Cook for 26 yards, before finishing the drive with a 3-yard touchdown pass to Cook. Dallas responded with a drive to the Packers' 19-yard line, only to lose the ball when safety Micah Hyde intercepted Prescott's screen pass and returned it 18 yards to the Green Bay 39-yard line. Dallas' defense took the ball back with an interception by safety Jeff Heath, who returned the ball 27 yards to the Cowboys' 41-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31
From there, Prescott completed 5 passes for 69 yards, the last a six-yard touchdown pass to tight end Jason Witten, making the score 28–20 with 11:39 remaining. After a Green Bay punt, Dallas drove 80 yards in 11 plays; the key player of the drive was rookie running back Ezekiel Elliott, who rushed five times for 34 yards. Bryant also played a major role, catching three passes for 24 yards, the last a 7-yard touchdown catch. Prescott scored the subsequent two-point conversion with a quarterback draw and the game was tied at 28–28.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31
Green Bay got the ball back with 4:08 left and drove to a first down on the Cowboys' 35-yard line. A big play on the drive was a pass interference penalty against Anthony Brown that eliminated an interception. Two runs by Montgomery resulted in a net loss of 3 yards and an incompletion subsequently forced Crosby to try a franchise record 56-yard field goal with 1:38 left. Crosby's kick was good, the third longest in NFL postseason history, and the Packers took a 31–28 lead.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31
Following a touchback on the kickoff, Prescott's completions to Terrance Williams, Witten and Beasley for gains of 24, 11 and 7 yards respectively got the team close enough for Bailey to make a 52-yard field goal, tying the game back up at 31–31 with 40 seconds remaining. Following a touchback, Aaron Rodgers completed a 17-yard pass to Montgomery, but was then sacked for a 10-yard loss by Heath. On 2nd-and-20, Rodgers threw an incomplete pass toward Cook on the right side.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31
On 3rd-and-20, with 12 seconds left on the clock and one timeout remaining, Aaron Rodgers took the snap, rolled left and launched a 35-yard pass to Cook, who caught the ball while just barely keeping his feet in bounds along the left sideline. One referee initially ruled him out before another overturned him and called it a catch. After a booth review, the catch was upheld, giving Green Bay the ball at the Dallas 33-yard line with 3 seconds left. After being "iced" by the Cowboys on his initial kick, Crosby successfully kicked again from 51 yards, giving Green Bay a 34–31 win.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, NFC: Green Bay Packers 34, Dallas Cowboys 31
Aaron Rodgers completed 28 of 43 passes for 355 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, his first in 9 games. Cook caught six passes for 104 yards and a touchdown, while Montgomery rushed for 41 yards, caught four passes for 34 yards and scored two touchdowns. Hyde had four tackles, a sack and an interception. Crosby's two field goals extended his postseason record streak of consecutive field goals made to 23. Prescott finished the game 24-for-38 for 302 yards, three touchdowns – the first rookie to do so in the postseason in the Super Bowl era – and an interception. Bryant caught 9 passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns, while Elliott had 22 carries for 125 yards.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Kansas City Chiefs 16
This game was supposed to have started at 1:05 PM, EST, but was pushed back to 8:00 due to inclement weather, making this game the first ever divisional round playoff game in NFL history to premiere on Sunday Night Football. Although Pittsburgh was unable to get into the end zone, Chris Boswell's postseason record six field goals were enough for them to become the first team to win a playoff game without scoring a touchdown since the 2006 Indianapolis Colts on their run to a victory in Super Bowl XLI.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Kansas City Chiefs 16
The Steelers scored on the game's opening drive, moving the ball 65 yards in 11 plays on the way to Boswell's 22-yard field goal. Kansas City quickly struck back after Demetrius Harris returned Boswell's short kickoff 25 yards to their 45-yard line. The Chiefs then drove 55 yards in six plays, including a 21-yard catch by Travis Kelce, to score on Alex Smith's 5-yard touchdown pass to Albert Wilson, giving them a 7–3 lead. Pittsburgh stormed right back, as Ben Roethlisberger's 52-yard completion to Antonio Brown led to another Boswell field goal that made the score 7–6.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Kansas City Chiefs 16
On their next drive, they went 53 yards in 14 plays, scoring on Boswell's third field goal, to give them a 9–7 lead with just over 9 minutes left in the half. The Steelers soon got another chance to score when linebacker Ryan Shazier intercepted a pass from Smith on the Chiefs' 44-yard line. Three plays later, Roethlisberger returned the favor with an interception to Eric Berry in the end zone. Kansas City ended up punting after three plays and Brown returned it 6 yards to the Chiefs' 45-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Kansas City Chiefs 16
Le'Veon Bell then carried the ball 5 times for 32 yards on a drive that ended with Boswell's 4th field goal, this one from 45 yards, that increased their lead to 12–7. Shortly before halftime, the Steelers had one last scoring chance when defensive back Artie Burns recovered a fumble from Charcandrick West on the Chiefs' 40-yard line. Roethlisberger then completed a 29-yard pass to Brown, but he was tackled on the 11-yard line as time expired.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Kansas City Chiefs 16
On Pittsburgh's first possession of the second half, Bell carried the ball five times for 49 yards, including a 38-yard rush on the first play, as the team drove to a 43-yard Boswell field goal that put them up 15–7. Both teams had to punt on their next possessions and Jordan Berry's 35-yard kick gave Kansas City the ball with good field position on the Steelers' 46-yard line. Smith then completed a 20-yard pass to Jeremy Maclin that set up Cairo Santos' 48-yard field goal, cutting their deficit to 15–10 with 10 seconds left in the third quarter.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Kansas City Chiefs 16
Roethlisberger's completions to Eli Rogers and Jesse James for gains for 14 and 23 yards respectively on their next drive moved the team into position for Boswell to kick a record-setting sixth field goal of the game, which he made from 43 yards to give the team an 18–10 lead. For the Chiefs, Smith hit Kelce for a 24-yard gain on their first play and then Spencer Ware gained 11 yards on the ground.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Kansas City Chiefs 16
After a penalty pushed them into a 2nd-and-25, Smith completed a 17-yard pass to Kelce and a 12-yard completion to Chris Conley on 4th-and-8 allowed them to keep the ball. Several plays later, they faced 4th-and-2 on the Steelers' 4-yard line, but converted again with Smith's 3-yard pass to fullback Anthony Sherman. Ware scored on a 1-yard touchdown run on the next play that cut their deficit to 18–16.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Kansas City Chiefs 16
Smith completed a pass to Harris on the two-point conversion play, but was negated by a holding penalty on Eric Fisher as he tried to block an outside blitz from linebacker James Harrison. The second attempt was incomplete. With 2:43 left and one timeout remaining, Kansas City still had a chance to get the ball back, especially after Justin Gilbert was tackled on the 5-yard line during the kick return. However, Roethlisberger made completions to Rogers and Brown for gains of 5 and 7 yards respectively, picking up a first down allowing the Steelers to run out the clock.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Divisional playoffs, Sunday, January 15, 2017, AFC: Pittsburgh Steelers 18, Kansas City Chiefs 16
Roethlisberger completed 20-for-31 passes for 221 yards and an interception; Brown caught six passes for 108 yards and returned two punts for 9 yards, while Bell rushed 30 times for 170 yards, giving him the highest total of combined yards by any running back in history over his first two playoff games. Bell also joined Terrell Davis as the only two players to rush for at least 160 yards in consecutive postseason games. Smith finished the game 20-for-34 for 172 yards, a touchdown, an interception and nine rushing yards. This was the 5th consecutive home playoff loss for Kansas City, setting a new NFL record.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 44, Green Bay Packers 21
In the final football game played at the Georgia Dome, Atlanta racked up 493 yards, scored on eight of their first nine drives, and converted 10 of 13 3rd downs as they advanced to their first Super Bowl since 1998.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 44, Green Bay Packers 21
In the first half alone, the Falcons gained 325 yards as they stormed to a 24–0 lead. On the game's opening drive, they moved the ball 80 yards in 13 plays, featuring a 31-yard reception by seldom-used fullback Patrick DiMarco. Matt Ryan finished the drive with a 2-yard touchdown shovel pass to Mohamed Sanu that gave them an early 7–0 lead.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 44, Green Bay Packers 21
Green Bay responded with a drive to the Falcons' 23-yard line, mainly the result of Jordy Nelson's two receptions for 41 yards, but they were unable to score as Mason Crosby, who had made an NFL record 23 consecutive postseason field goals before this game, missed from 41 yards. Ryan then led the Falcons back for more points, completing 4 of 7 passes for 56 yards on a 14-play, 59-yard drive. Matt Bryant kicked a 28-yard field goal that increased the lead to 10–0 with 14 seconds left in the first quarter.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 44, Green Bay Packers 21
Green Bay's next drive was remarkably similar to their last one: two key receptions from one receiver (Randall Cobb) picked up 39 yards as they drove to the Falcons' 23-yard line, but lost the ball with a fumble from fullback Aaron Ripkowski, forced and recovered by defensive back Jalen Collins. Back on offense, Ryan completed passes to Julio Jones for gains of 17, 20, and 19 yards respectively before he scrambled for a 14-yard touchdown. Later in the quarter, Falcons safety Ricardo Allen intercepted a pass from Aaron Rodgers on the Falcons' 32-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 44, Green Bay Packers 21
This time, Ryan completed 5 of 7 passes for 59 yards and rushed for 9 additional yards on a 68-yard drive. Faced with 3rd-and-1 on the Packers' 5-yard line with 7 seconds left in the half, he finished the possession with a touchdown pass to Jones; the Falcons led 24–0, having scored on 4 of their 5 first half drives.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 44, Green Bay Packers 21
Atlanta scored another touchdown in the first minute of the second half after forcing Green Bay to punt. From his own 27-yard line, Ryan threw a 10-yard pass to Jones, who caught the ball and broke two tackles as he raced all the way to the end zone for a 73-yard touchdown completion. This time Green Bay managed to respond, with tight end Jared Cook catching 3 passes for 50 yards on a 75-yard drive that ended with Rodgers' 2-yard touchdown toss to Davante Adams, cutting the deficit to 31–7.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 44, Green Bay Packers 21
Atlanta extended this to 37–7, with Devonta Freeman rushing 5 times for 28 yards on their own 75-yard drive, and finishing it off with a 4-yard touchdown catch. Rodgers rushed for a 28-yard gain on the first play of Green Bay's next possession, and later completed an 18-yard pass to Cook. With 38 seconds left in the third quarter, he finished the drive with a 3-yard touchdown pass to Nelson; Ripkowski scored a 2-point conversion that cut the score to 37–15. Sanu recovered the ensuing onside kick attempt, returning it 9 yards to the Packers' 32-yard line.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, NFC: Atlanta Falcons 44, Green Bay Packers 21
Atlanta then drove to their final score of the game, a 3-yard run by Tevin Coleman three minutes into the fourth quarter. Green Bay then drove 75 yards in 14 plays to score on Rodgers' 1-yard touchdown pass to Cook with six minutes left, culminating the scoring at 44–21. Ryan completed 27 of 38 passes for 392 yards and four touchdowns, as well as three carries for 23 yards and a touchdown. Jones caught nine passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns, while Freeman rushed for 42 yards, caught 4 passes for 42 yards, and scored a touchdown. Rodgers completed 27 of his 45 passing attempts for 287 yards with three touchdowns and an interception.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 36, Pittsburgh Steelers 17
New England advanced to their seventh Super Bowl in the last 16 seasons under quarterback Tom Brady and coach Bill Belichick, racking up 431 yards and 26 first downs. Pittsburgh's offense had 368 yards, but could only score 17 points, eight of them on a touchdown late in the game with the outcome already decided. Meanwhile, the Steelers' rushing attack, that had been so critical to their earlier playoff wins, was crippled by an early injury to running back Le'Veon Bell, finishing the game with just 54 total yards on the ground.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 36, Pittsburgh Steelers 17
On the game's opening drive, Brady's 41-yard completion to Julian Edelman set up Stephen Gostkowski's 31-yard field goal, giving New England a 3–0 lead less than two minutes into the game. Following several punts, the Patriots went on an 80-yard, 11-play drive, the longest gain being a 26-yard catch by receiver Chris Hogan. Brady finished it off with a 16-yard touchdown pass to Hogan, for a 10–0 lead. On the second play of Pittsburgh's next drive, Bell suffered a game-ending groin injury. However, his replacement DeAngelo Williams caught two passes for nine yards and rushed four times for 25 yards, the last carry a five-yard touchdown run to complete the 13-play, 84-yard drive early in the second quarter. Chris Boswell missed the extra point, with the score remaining 10–6.


2016–17 NFL playoffs, Conference Championships, Sunday, January 22, 2017, AFC: New England Patriots 36, Pittsburgh Steelers 17
New England stormed right back, driving 82 yards in nine plays and scoring on Brady's 34-yard touchdown pass to Hogan on a flea flicker play. Pittsburgh then moved the ball to the Patriots' 19-yard line, where Ben Roethlisberger threw a pass to tight end Jesse James that was initially ruled a touchdown, but a replay review determined James was down on the 1-yard line. On the next play, Williams was dropped for a one-yard loss by Dont'a Hightower and Patrick Chung. On second down, Williams was tackled for a three-yard loss by nose tackle Vincent Valentine. On third down, Roethlisberger's pass was incomplete, so the team settled for Boswell's field goal to make the score 17–9.