Chicago ? The Chicago Bears checked another item off their to-do list.

A division title, a first-round bye and now home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs have been secured.

But this much is also certain: Chicago will have to play better than it did in the second half Sunday or the stay in the postseason will be short.

The Bears squandered a big third-quarter lead, recovering in overtime behind plays from backups Rashied Davis and Adrian Peterson to beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 34-31.

“Obviously, you give up 31 points, it’s not our best game. It was good enough to win, though,” Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher said.

“We’re 12-2, we have home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. What more do you want from us at this point in time?”

Robbie Gould, who missed earlier in overtime from 37 yards, connected on a 25-yarder with 3:37 left to give the Bears the victory.

The win, coupled with Washington’s upset of New Orleans, clinched the home-field advantage for the NFC North champion Bears (12-2).

“It’s not like we’re going to shut down our team. We have a few things to correct going into the playoffs,” coach Lovie Smith said, looking ahead to remaining regular-season games against the Lions and Packers.

Gould’s field goal came after Davis made an over-the-shoulder catch of 28 yards on a third-and-eight pass from Rex Grossman to get to the Tampa Bay 20.

Ronde Barber, defending on the play, said it wasn’t a catch and questioned why there wasn’t a booth review.

“The fact that they want the game to be over and they don’t feel like it needs to be reviewed, it’s fine with me,” Barber said. “But that ball hit the ground, man.”

Replays in overtime are instigated from the booth, not by coaches’ challenges.

“If you are not going to make the call or you’re scared to make the call, then what’s the use of having replay in the first place?” Barber asked.

Davis’ view, predictably, was a little different: “I made an adjustment to catch it, and I caught it.”

Chicago bears running back thomas jones, top, leaps over Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Ronde Barber, bottom, during the second quarter. The Bears defeated the Buccaneers in overtime Sunday in Chicago.

Peterson, Chicago’s third-team tailback, then had runs of two and 11 yards to move the ball to the seven.

Trailing by three TDs, the Bucs (3-11) stunned the Bears with three fourth-quarter touchdowns, tying the game on Tim Rattay’s 44-yard TD pass to Ike Hilliard with 3:44 left.

Rattay, who replaced the struggling Bruce Gradkowski in the first half, also had a 64-yard TD pass to Joey Galloway that capped a 95-yard drive in the final quarter.

“Tim took charge and made great throws, stood in there and took a couple of shots and got us going,” Hilliard said.

Tampa Bay ended a 13-quarter drought without a touchdown when Mike Alstott scored on a 14-yard run with 25 seconds left in the third quarter.

That made it 24-10, and moments later the Bucs got back in the game when Bears rookie kick return star Devin Hester – who had two TDs last Monday – fumbled the ensuing kickoff after a hit by Blue Adams, with Wesly Mallard recovering at the Chicago 16.

Rattay hit Alex Smith with a 9-yard TD pass and suddenly the Bucs were within a touchdown.

But Grossman, who finished 29-of-44 for 339 yards – all career highs – hit four straight passes in a 77-yard drive, and Cedric Benson’s four-yard TD run made it a two-touchdown advantage with 9:23 to go.

But the Bears couldn’t put it away.

Chicago tight end Desmond Clark caught seven passes for 125 yards and a pair of touchdowns, all but one of the receptions in the first half when the Bears built a 21-3 lead.

Redskins 16, Saints 10

New Orleans – The Saints’ triumphant return to New Orleans now includes the franchise’s first playoff berth since 2000 – not that they’re in any mood to celebrate.

New Orleans (9-5) made the playoffs by default Sunday, losing 16-10 to the Washington Redskins while the Saints’ only remaining pursuer in the NFC South, Carolina, was eliminated from the division race by a loss to Pittsburgh.

The Redskins (5-9) punished the Saints’ defense with a running attack that racked up 161 yards.

Coming off a career-high 171 yards a week earlier, Ladell Betts gained 119 on 22 carriers, while blossoming quarterback Jason Campbell outplayed Drew Brees.

Ravens 27, Browns 17

Baltimore- Needing a victory over Cleveland to clinch a playoff berth, the Ravens had blown a 14-point lead and were without injured quarterback Steve McNair.

In the time it took Demetrius Williams to run under Kyle Boller’s long pass and take it into the end zone, everything changed.

Boller threw two touchdown passes, including a 77-yard strike to Williams that snapped a tie.

Jamal Lewis ran 22 times for 109 yards and a touchdown for the Ravens (11-3), who are assured a spot in the playoffs for the first time since 2003. Baltimore will win the AFC North if Cincinnati loses to Indianapolis tonight.

Eagles 36, Giants 22

East Rutherford, N.J. – Jeff Garcia threw a 19-yard touchdown pass to Reggie Brown and a two-point conversion and Trent Cole returned an interception 19 yards for a touchdown 10 seconds later in the fourth quarter.

The error-plagued game unworthy of two playoff contenders was third straight victory for the Eagles (8-6) and left them in control of their playoff destiny. If they win at Dallas (9-5) next week and beat Atlanta at home two weeks later, they will win the division title.

The Giants (7-7) still have a shot at the playoffs despite losing for the fifth time in six games.

Rams 20, Raiders 0

Oakland, Calif. – The St. Louis Rams’ much-maligned defense finally found an offense it could dominate. The Rams took advantage of five Oakland turnovers, including two that set up touchdown runs by Steven Jackson.

Jackson finished with 127 yards on 31 carries, scoring on runs of four yards after Chris Carr fumbled a punt and 19 yards after Andrew Walter threw the first of two interceptions.

Broncos 37, Cardinals 20

Glendale, Ariz. – Jay Cutler has his first NFL victory as a starter, and Matt Leinart has more than a few aches and pains thanks to the Denver defense.

Cutler threw two touchdown passes and the Broncos (8-6) snapped a four-game losing streak to keep their playoff hopes alive.

In his third start, Cutler completed 21 of 31 passes for 261 yards and was intercepted once. Leinart was 20-of-35 for 214 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions for the Cardinals (4-10). He was sacked three times and hit as he threw on several other occasions.

Bills 21, Dolphins 0

Orchard Park, N.Y. – J.P. Losman kept Buffalo’s slim playoff hopes alive and provided further proof why he’s earned the Bills’ starting job beyond this season.

Losman overcame wet and blustery conditions and threw three touchdown passes. Buffalo (7-7) has won five of its last seven, rallying from a 2-5 start to the season.

The Dolphins (6-8), coming off a 21-0 victory over New England, were eliminated from postseason contention despite losing for only the second time in seven weeks.

Jets 26, Vikings 13

Minneapolis – Chad Pennington and the Jets kept their hands in the playoff chase for at least one more week. The Vikings are just about out of the running.

Pennington bounced back from a bad game with 339 yards passing and one touchdown in leading the Jets to their third straight road victory.

Packers 17, Lions 9

Green Bay, Wis. – Brett Favre broke Dan Marino’s career completions record, but Green Bay had to overcome three interceptions by the three-time MVP for the win.

It was only the second home victory all season for the Packers (6-8), who have won two in a row.

Favre connected on a 21-yard pass to receiver Carlyle Holiday just before halftime for his league-record 4,968th completion. But Favre threw his first two interceptions in the red zone, and the third nearly proved even more costly.

Titans 24, Jaguars 17

Nashville, Tenn. – The Tennessee Titans’ magical ride isn’t close to ending.

Vince Young and the offense couldn’t move the ball against the Jaguars. So the Titans’ defense beat up David Garrard and returned turnovers 83, 92 and 61 yards for TDs, and Tennessee won its fifth straight.

Adam “Pacman” Jones returned an interception 83 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter for a 7-0 Tennessee lead. Then the Titans broke open a 10-10 game in the third quarter despite the Jaguars running 32 consecutive offensive plays.

Patriots 40, Texans 7

Foxborough, Mass. – New England wasted no time reviving itself.

A week after their worst loss of the season raised doubts how far they could go in the playoffs, the Patriots dominated the Texans.

New England (10-4) leads the AFC East and can clinch the title with a win next Sunday at Jacksonville. The Texans (4-10) were outgained 147 yards to 76 in the first two quarters.

Steelers 37, Panthers 3

Charlotte, N.C. – Willie Parker rushed for 132 yards and a touchdown, and Ben Roethlisberger threw for a score and ran for another.

Parker, a Clinton, N.C., native and a little-used running back in college at North Carolina, ran all over his local team, including a 41-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter to put it away.