It proved a mixed day for local favorites in the NFL.

From the Panthers through the Bears, four great games were played Sunday featuring teams of interest in North Carolina. All were thrilling, although only two ended the way most fans wanted them to end.

The Panthers put their playoff chances in peril when coach Riverboat Ron Rivera went for two points after the Cats had cut Detroit’s lead to 20-19 in the closing 67 seconds of play. Yes, Graham Gano had already missed a short field goal and extra point, but surely he could have tied the game.

Rivera left the offense on the field, and even after the Lions called a timeout to brief their defense, Cam Newton dropped straight back and despite plenty of time in the pocket missed his target in the end zone. A run-pass option seemed like a better choice, and the Panthers left Motor City with their second straight defeat and a 6-4 record with a tough remaining schedule left.

Over on CBS, North Carolina’s team before the Panthers were born had two big losses while falling to the Texans. The Redskins’ lead in the NFC East not only dropped to one game in front of the Cowboys, they lost quarterback Alex Smith to a gruesome ankle injury that could sideline him for the rest of the season. Veteran back-up Colt McCoy kept the Skins in the game but could not get them close enough for the potential winning field goal, which fell short in the agonizing 23-21 defeat.

The Pittsburgh Steelers seem to be a favorite of transplanted fans in this state, and they looked like losers for most of their game at Jacksonville, which led 16-0 lead late in the third quarter. Big Ben Roethlisberger recovered from a dismal performance to engineer the comeback and capped it with a one-yard dive into the end zone for a 19-16 lead and the Steelers’ sixth straight win that put them in position for a first-round bye in the playoffs.

Then in the Sunday night game, UNC’s Mitch Trubisky led the Bears to a 7-3 record with a stirring victory over the Minnesota Vikings. In his second year, the second overall pick in the 2017 draft keeps getting better and making fewer mistakes, while the Bears defense is channeling the old Monsters of the Midway. The Bears have game and a half lead over the Vikings in the NFC North with their toughest remaining tests at home. Like the Steelers, they are trending up while the Panthers and Redskins are not.

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