Kishi gives Takeda a lesson in playoff baseball

TOKOROZAWA, Saitama Pref. — Shota Takeda has all kinds of talent. At the tender age of 19, the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks right-hander made 11 starts this season, winning eight and finishing the year with a 1.08 ERA.

Hear me roar: Former Japan Series MVP Takayuki Kishi helped the Lions avoid elimination on Sunday. KYODO

It could probably be said that Takeda has more raw talent than the Seibu Lions' Takayuki Kishi, the pitcher he opposed on Sunday at Seibu Dome. Kishi, however, is a veteran of six seasons and a former Japan Series MVP.

Talent can take you many places, but sometimes winning comes with experience.

The prodigious talent Takeda failed badly in his first postseason appearance, giving up five runs — four earned — and lasting just 2 1/3 innings in the Hawks' 8-0 loss to the Lions in Game 2 of the Pacific League Climax Series first stage.

"He's in his first year out of high school and doesn't have experience on a big stage like this," Lions shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima said. "I think that affected him."

Takeda, the first rookie to start a Climax Series game after being drafted out of high school, walked three batters in the third inning, which in turn helped lead to a seven-run Seibu outburst that Hawks wouldn't recover from.

"Our batters tried to study his pitches, draw walks, and put pressure on him," Lions manager Hisanobu Watanabe said. "Takeda is a young pitcher, and we got to him nicely."

Kishi, on the other hand, got himself in trouble early, but was able to work through it.

He gave up a one-out double to Yuya Hasegawa and a single to Seiichi Uchikawa to put runners on first and third in the opening frame. He threw three balls to cleanup hitter Wily Mo Pena before finally retiring him and struck out Nobuhiro Matsuda to end the inning.

"We were in a pinch in the first, but Kishi was patient and managed to get out of it," Watanabe said. "It was big that we didn't give up a run there.

"When our starting pitchers allow opponents to get on the board first, we have a higher tendency to lose, so it was really huge."

Kishi was given a big lead to work with after the Lions put up seven in the third, but worked hard to maintain his focus.

"I was a little relieved," he said of the run support, "but tried to stay balanced and and focus on what I needed to do on the mound. The thing is, no matter how big of a lead you get, you don't want to give up any runs."

Growing pains: Hawks rookie Shota Takeda had a roughing outing in his first postseason start. KYODO

That may have been the difference between the two starters on Sunday. Takeda burst out of the gates, all smiles and bluster, and got off to a good start. He couldn't maintain that pace and once things went south, he couldn't stop his outing from falling apart.

Kishi on the other hand, kept his cool, relied on his experience, and paced himself from the beginning.

He wasn't fazed when he got into trouble, even though he had reason to be. Kishi had finished 1-3 with a 3.18 ERA in five starts against Softbank during the regular season, and was coming off a dismal September that saw him go 0-3 with a 3.21 ERA in five starts.

"Today's not the last game we play, but I'm relieved I could give us a chance to win," Kishi said afterward.

Once he'd pitched his way into trouble, there was no panic. Kishi simply made the pitches he needed to make and reaped the rewards when his offense gave him a big lead.

For all his talent, Takeda didn't have what it took to overcome adversity in the biggest game of his young career. Kishi gave him a crash course on how to win in October, and because of that, the Lions will live on to roar another day.

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Settsu fires Hawks past Lions in playoff opener

TOKOROZAWA, Saitama Pref. — Tadashi Settsu was a long way from Fukuoka, wearing his road uniform and standing on the mound in another team's stadium.

Strong outing: Softbank starter Tadashi Settsu pitches against Seibu in Game 1 of the first stage of the PL Climax Series on Saturday. KYODO

Despite all that, the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks ace felt right at home.

Settsu threw eight scoreless innings, and reliever Masahiko Morifuku pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the ninth to help the reigning Japan Series champion Hawks edge the Seibu Lions 2-1 in Game 1 of the first stage of the Pacific League Climax Series on Saturday at Seibu Dome.

"I wasn't really thinking too much about anything as I pitched," Settsu said. "My mind was blank. Even after I got some run support, I kept pitching as if it didn't happen."

The victory gave the Hawks a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series. Softbank can advance to the final stage against Hokkaido Nippon Ham with a win or a tie in Game 2 on Sunday.

Settsu has owned the Lions at their place, improving to 7-0 with a 1.60 ERA and 39 strikeouts in his last eight starts at Seibu Dome.

Settsu is 6-1 overall in seven starts against the Lions this season.

"We knew he was a good pitcher," Seibu manager Hisanobu Watanabe said. "When you play like we did against him early in a game, you get beaten. So at the end of the day, we should've played differently."

On Saturday, Settsu allowed four hits and struck out five. He left the game after the eighth, and that's when things got interesting.

Reliever Brian Falkenborg walked Takeya Nakamura to start the inning and gave up a double to former teammate Jose Ortiz that put runners at second and third. He then walked Esteban German to load the bases, prompting Hawks manager Koji

Akiyama to bring lefty Morifuku out of the bullpen with the bases loaded and none out.

"I have no excuses," Falkenborg said. "That's just not very good pitching. "I just gotta throw strikes. Coming in, 2-0 lead, you gotta put the ball over the plate. I was extremely lucky today that Morifuku came in and did an outstanding job."

Lions pinch hitter Chris Carter hit an RBI groundout to cut the lead to one, but Tatsuyuki Uemoto popped out to short for the second out of the inning. Morifuku then retired Hisashi Takayama to end the game.

"I was pretty nervous out there," Morifuku said. "I was told to be the back up (in case Falkenborg struggled), so I was ready to go."

The Hawks needed a good performance out of Settsu, because they didn't do much with their bats. Softbank had six hits after three innings, but didn't record another until the ninth.

Kenta Imamiya gave the Hawks the lead with a squeeze bunt in the second and Seiichi Uchikawa doubled the advantage with an RBI single in the third.

Seibu starter Kazuhisa Makita kept the Hawks at bay with a valiant outing in defeat. The submarine hurler went the distance, allowing two runs on seven hits and striking out five. He retired 13 consecutive batters at one point.

Hawks third baseman Nobuhiro Matsuda collected the first of his two hits leading off the second. Matsuda took third on a hit by Hitoshi Tamura and came home when Imamiya was able to connect with a low pitch to lay down his squeeze bunt.

"I tried to make contact by any means," Imamiya said.

Yuichi Honda kicked off the third with a triple and Uchikawa's RBI single later in the inning made the score 2-0.

"Honda came up with the triple and (Yuya) Hasegawa didn't follow (with a hit), so I wanted to do whatever it took to give ourselves a run," Uchikawa said.

Before coming out, Settsu pitched himself into a jam in the eighth. He walked Takuya Hara to start the inning, then retired Hideto Asamura.

Shogo Akiyama reached on an error by first baseman Kenji Akashi, leaving Settsu to deal with runners on first and second with one out and Hiroyuki Nakajima and two-time defending PL home run champion Nakamura due up in the order.

Nakajima worked the count full, but hit a grounder to third, where Matsuda scooped it up and started an inning-ending double play, leaving Nakamura on deck.

The Hawks will try to wrap up the series on in Game 2 on Sunday. Softbank rookie Shota Takeda (8-1, 1.07 ERA) will take the mound against Seibu's Takayuki Kishi (11-12, 2.45).

Staff writer Kaz Nagatsuka contributed to this report.

NAGOYA — Kazuhiro Wada drove in three runs and scored two to lead the Chunichi Dragons to a 6-1 victory over the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in Game 1 of the Central League Climax Series' first stage on Saturday. The Dragons can now clinch a spot in the second stage with either a win or a tie.

Wada opened the scoring with a two-run homer in the fourth inning after Swallows southpaw Masahiro Ishikawa walked the leadoff man. Wada singled with one out in the sixth and scored the Dragons' third run, and singled in a run in their three-run seventh.

"I was just trying to build a rally," Wada said. "I wasn't thinking about who was coming up behind me and was able to make a very smooth swing."

The right-handed hitter dove into a low sinker over the plate and drove it into the stands in left.

Right-hander Kenichi Nakata allowed three hits over five scoreless innings to beat the Swallows for the third straight time this year. He struck out five without walking a batter and also set up a scoring opportunity with a one-out double in the third.

Ishikawa, who was 1-1 against Chunichi this season, lasted just four innings, allowing four hits and two walks. He scraped out of jams in the first and third innings when he couldn't throw strikes, and opened the fourth in similar fashion by walking Tony Blanco on five pitches.

The lefty was pulled for a pinch hitter with two on and two out in the top of the fifth, but Nakata retired veteran Atsushi Fujimoto for the final out.

In the sixth, Wada reached on an infield single, went to second on a groundout and scored on Takehiro Donoue's single.

The Swallows threatened to tie the game in the top of the seventh, when CL home run leader Wladimir Balentien went deep to open the inning off rookie right-hander Shinji Tajima. A pair of walks put the potential tying runs on base with one out, but Takuya Asao, the CL's 2011 MVP, stopped Yakult with two straight outs.

Dragons leadoff man Yohei Oshima, who went 3-for-5, singled to open the seventh against lefty Ryo Hidaka, who loaded the bases with another hit and a walk. With one out, Wada singled to start the runs flowing again. Hirokazu Ibata followed Wada with a sacrifice fly, and pinch hitter Ryosuke Hirata singled in the hosts' final run.

Trailing 6-1 in the eighth, the Swallows threatened against right-hander Jorge Sosa, but Daisuke Yamai got the final out with the bases loaded and pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to earn the save.

It was just the second time in 11 games against the Swallows at Nagoya Dome this year that the Dragons scored more than two runs. Yakult went 6-3 with one tie there during the regular season.

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Eagles stay in playoff contention

SENDAI — Kazuo Matsui's seventh homer of the season could not have come at a more important time as his two-run walk-off shot in the 10th inning gave the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles a 3-1 win against the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks on Monday.

The Eagle has landed: Tohoku Rakuten's Masahiro Tanaka pitches during the Golden Eagles' 3-1 win over the Hawks on Monday. KYODO

With one out and Kazuya Fujita on first, team captain Matsui took fellow former major leaguer Hideki Okajima (0-2) deep into the left-field bleachers for Rakuten's sixth sayonara win of the year.

"I had a couple of other chances earlier that I couldn't capitalize on and I was feeling bad about that," said Matsui, whose only hit of the game in five at-bats turned out to be the home run.

"But I'm glad we came away with the result we wanted in the end — in style, too. I've never homered for the right side of the plate (at Kleenex Stadium) so I wasn't sure where the ball was going when I connected."

The victory, the Eagles' third in five games, pulled Rakuten within three games of defending Japan Series champion Softbank for the Pacific League's third Climax Series spot. Rakuten has eight games remaining.

The Eagles nearly wasted a strong outing from their ace Masahiro Tanaka, who allowed one earned run on seven hits in nine innings, tying a season high with 13 strikeouts. Koji Aoyama (5-4) took the mound in the 10th for the win.

The Hawks, on the other hand, failed to provide run support for their starter Tadashi Settsu, who scattered seven hits and fanned nine over eight innings, allowing just one earned run.

Despite the morale-boosting victory, Matsui, who launched his fourth career walk-off blast, said his team cannot let up down the stretch run of the season.

"We won this one for all, all for one," Matsui said. "But we have to stay sharp because we just have no margin for error."

Marines 3, Buffaloes 0

At QVC Marine Field, Seth Greisinger threw his first shutout in three years for Chiba Lotte, pitching a three-hitter against Orix which tied a team worst with its 11th loss in a row and ensured itself of a last-place finish.

Greisinger (11-8) struck out six during a 102-pitch effort. The last shutout he pitched was on April 21, 2009, against the Yakult Swallows as a member of the Yomiuri Giants.

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Japan, Israel tied up after first day of David Cup World Group playoff

Japan and Israel are deadlocked 1-1 following the opening day of play in their Davis Cup World Group playoff at Ariake Colosseum on Friday.

Japan No. 2 Go Soeda beat Israel No. 1 Dudi Sela in four sets 6-2, 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in the opening match, while Israel No. 2 Amir Weintraub downed Japan No. 3 Tatsuma Ito 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 in the second singles contest.

Ito was playing in place of Japan No. 1 Kei Nishikori, who was ruled out Friday morning with a shoulder injury. Nishikori has not been completely scratched from the tie and could play in the reverse singles matches on Sunday.

Israel captain Eyal Ran was pleased to have the tie even after the first day of action.

"This was a classical day of Davis Cup with the players going all out and fighting for their country," he commented. "We are in this tie and I think we can do it now."

Soeda, ranked 55th in the world, displayed a strong forehand and played solidly from the baseline in recording the victory under a blazing sun on the hardcourt.

The win was the first for Soeda against Sela in four career matches.

"I knew I had to win. I couldn't lose," said Soeda. "I was under pressure to show my best. It was a tough match and a big win for me."

After Sela broke Soeda's serve to open the match, the Japanese broke right back. Following the fifth game, Sela took an injury timeout.

Soeda broke in the sixth game with a volley to go up 4-2. He then broke again in the eighth game to take the set 6-2 in 46 minutes.

Soeda had eight winners in the first set, while Sela committed 21 unforced errors.

Sela, ranked 98th, served better in the second set, getting in 74 percent of his first serves, but after breaking Soeda in the first game and holding serve to go up 2-0, he came undone with several more unforced errors.

Soeda took six of the next eight games, breaking Sela in the 10th game to claim the set in 43 minutes.

Sela had 19 unforced errors in the second set.

The Israeli battled back in the third set, using an effective backhand to help record 14 winner's to Soeda two and claimed the set 6-3 in 34 minutes.

Sela broke twice and saw Soeda rack up 14 unforced errors in the set.

"I was tired in the third set and then Sela started playing really well," Soeda commented. "There was an overrule on a call and I lost focus and he took the momentum from me. Then in the fourth set I started playing aggressively again and was able to get it back."

The 28-year-old Soeda closed out the match by getting in 74 percent of his first serves in the fourth set and converting several key points to clinch the victory.

"The start of the match was tough," noted Sela. "I was short with my balls and he was aggressive. I felt better in the second set, but he was solid and didn't give me any free points."

Sela recognized fatigue in his opponent in the third set and capitalized on it.

"I was more aggressive in the third set. He was getting tired at the end of that set. If he kept playing like that, I thought I could win the match, but then he took the first two games of the fourth set at love. He deserved to win."

Weintraub routed Ito in the second match, registering the triumph in just 1 hour, 55 minutes. Weintraub didn't let his lower ranking (223) hold him back against Ito (67th), dominating in every phase of the game.

Weintraub exhibited a strong serve (11 aces) and excellent groundstrokes in the clinical victory. Ito was bedeviled by his 49 unforced errors in the defeat.

"I was surprised when I heard that Nishikori wasn't going to play, but I was concentrating on myself," said Weintraub. "It was good news for us. It wasn't easy against Ito, but of course Nishikori has a higher ranking."

In analyzing his performance, the 25-year-old Weintraub gave himself high marks.

"My serve was very good. He didn't break me the whole match," he said. "I used good combinations, mixing up speeds and playing strong from the baseline. This was one of the better wins in my career."

Saturday's doubles match will see Ito and Yuichi Sugita take on Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram.

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49ers, Giants renew playoff rivalry

SAN FRANCISCO — The Giants boasted a physical, intimidating defense with athletic linebackers and stout linemen capable of stifling the NFL's most productive offenses. San Francisco featured a high-powered passing attack led by an eventual Hall of Fame quarterback in his prime with receivers capable of turning short passes into big gains.

Title tilt tuneup: San Francisco tight end Vernon Davis runs with the ball at practice on Thursday as coach Jim Harbaugh looks on. AP

When the San Francisco 49ers host the New York Giants in the NFC Championship Game Sunday for a shot at the Super Bowl, the matchup conjures memories from a previous era of this great rivalry — even if the roles are somewhat reversed.

The elite quarterback now is New York's Eli Manning, who connects on big plays to Hakeem Nicks and Victor Cruz in a similar fashion to how Joe Montana and Jerry Rice did for the dominant Niners in the 1980s.

San Francisco's current front seven led by relentless defensive lineman Justin Smith, rookie pass-rushing specialist Aldon Smith and fierce linebackers Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman resembles that old Giants group featuring Hall of Famers Lawrence Taylor and Harry Carson.

And who could have predicted this surprising pairing?

The Giants (11-7) toppled defending champion Green Bay 37-20 last Sunday when everybody figured the road to the Super Bowl would go through Lambeau Field. Instead, New York is traveling West to San Francisco to face the upstart 49ers (14-3) in a meeting of franchises with so many fresh faces on the big stage.

Jim Harbaugh's "mighty men" as he calls them stunned Drew Brees and the favored Saints 36-32 when Alex Smith hit Vernon Davis for the game-winning 14-yard touchdown with 9 seconds remaining.

Smith knows both the 49ers and Giants showed it's anybody's game come playoff time.

"Look at last week, I think everybody thought the road was going to go through Lambeau. I think everybody assumed the NFC Championship Game was going to get played there and look what happens," Smith said. "These teams at this point, everybody's as good as each other and it's all going to come down to how you execute on that day. We're all capable of beating each other, that's for sure."

NEW YORK — Rob Lowe is taking on another role — pigskin prognosticator.

The actor lit up social media Wednesday when he tweeted that Peyton Manning was done. Lowe said he'd heard from "my people" that the Indianapolis Colts quarterback would retire later in the day.

No official word yet from Manning, ESPN's Chris Mortensen tweeted that Manning's father, Archie, laughed at Lowe's report and said it wasn't true.

Lowe currently is on the NBC hit "Parks and Recreation" that's set in Indiana. He's also friends with Colts owner Jim Irsay.

Irsay tweeted his response to Lowe, saying "sources" say Lowe will star in an "epic remake" of a porn movie.

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Giants cruise to playoff berth

EASTRUTHERFORD, New Jersey — Thanks to Eli Manning and Victor Cruz, an all-or-nothing game was all New York Giants and nothing but frustration for the Dallas Cowboys.

Manning threw three touchdown passes, including a 74-yarder to Cruz early, and the Giants claimed the final spot in the NFL playoffs, beating the Cowboys 31-14 on Sunday night to win the NFC East.

"I knew we were going to fight and keep playing until the end, I feel good about the way we're handling the ups and downs, and it comes down to finishing," Manning said after throwing for 346 yards and no interceptions.

New York (9-7) won three of its final four games for 65-year-old coach Tom Coughlin and earned a wild-card home game next Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons (10-6).

"We've had a lot of ups and down, but when our team needed it most we responded," said the up-and-coming Cruz, who has capped his team-record setting season with six catches for 178 yards. "We were able to keep level-headed when we were on the four-game skid."

The Cowboys (8-8) lost four of their final five games in their first full season under coach Jason Garrett.

"It's extremely painful and it's a damn shame," Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. "We have a good team and I thought we would be going to the playoffs, but that didn't happen. We have to be able to take some of the good with the bad and move on. We did a lot of good things this year, but to point to one thing why this happened would be subjective. We're 8-8 and we have to be better than that."

Patriots 49, Bills 21: In Foxborough, Massachusetts, Tom Brady led the Patriots back from a three-touchdown deficit as they scored 49 straight points.

Brady finished the regular season with the second-most yards passing in NFL history, 5,235, after throwing for 338. Drew Brees, who last week broke Dan Marino's record of 5,084 with the Miami Dolphins in 1984, added 389 Sunday for the New Orleans Saints and ended with 5,486.

Chiefs 7, Broncos 3: In Denver, Tim Tebow fell short in his latest comeback bid and former Bronco Kyle Orton got his revenge in leading Kansas City to a win over Denver.

Ravens 24, Bengals 16: In Cincinnati, Ray Rice had a pair of long touchdown runs that gave the Ravens their third AFC North title.

Chargers 38, Raiders 26: In Oakland, Philip Rivers threw three touchdown passes and Richard Goodman returned a kickoff 105 yards.

Steelers 13, Browns 9: In Cleveland, Isaac Redman replaced an injured Rashard Mendenhall and ran for a touchdown as Pittsburgh limped into the playoffs.

Saints 45, Panthers 17: In New Orleans, Drew Brees threw for 389 yards and five touchdowns.

Jaguars 19, Colts 13: In Jacksonville, Maurice Jones-Drew ran for a season-high 169 yards, clinching the NFL rushing title and breaking Fred Taylor's single-season franchise record.

Titans 23, Texans 22: In Houston, Matt Hasselbeck threw two touchdown passes as the Titans edged the Texans.

Dolphins 19, Jets 17: In Miami, Mark Sanchez threw three interceptions and the Jets were eliminated from the wild-card race.

Packers 45, Lions 41: In Green Bay, backup Matt Flynn threw a touchdown pass to Jermichael Finley with 1:10 left to finish off his record-setting day of 480 yards and six TD passes.

Bears 17, Vikings 13: In Minneapolis, Charles Tillman's interception return in the second quarter helped Chicago end a five-game losing streak.

Eagles 34, Redskins 10: In Philadelphia, Michael Vick threw three touchdown passes, including a 62-yarder to DeSean Jackson, as the Eagles closed the season with four straight wins.

49ers 34, Rams 27: In St. Louis, Michael Crabtree caught two touchdown passes, one from kicker David Akers on a perfectly executed trick play.

Cardinals 23, Seahawks 20 (OT): In Glendale, Arizona, Larry Fitzgerald's spectacular one-handed grab set help up a 28-yard field goal by Jay Feely.

Falcons 42, Buccaneers 24: In Atlanta, Julio Jones caught two touchdown passes in a span of 26 seconds, Michael Turner ran for two scores and the Falcons put up a team-record 42 first-half points.

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Packers earn NFC's top seed, extinguish Bears' playoff hopes

GREEN BAY, Wisconsin — With the first five-touchdown game of his NFL career, Aaron Rodgers ensured that the Green Bay Packers' playoff road will go through Lambeau Field.

He also made sure the rival Chicago Bears will be spending the playoffs at home.

Rodgers broke a close game wide open by leading three quick scoring drives in the second half, and the Packers beat the Bears 35-21 on Sunday night.

Rodgers noted that he once threw six touchdowns in junior college — also in a rivalry game — but acknowledged this one was a little bit bigger.

"Yeah, this one's pretty special," Rodgers said.

With the win, the Packers (14-1) nailed down the No. 1 seed in the NFC and claimed another round of bragging rights in the NFL's most storied rivalry by knocking the Bears out of the playoff chase.

"We wanted the path to go through Lambeau," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said.

Rodgers threw a pair of touchdown passes to Jordy Nelson, another two to James Jones, and found tight end Jermichael Finley for a score. Rodgers was 21 of 29 for 283 yards and five touchdowns with no interceptions when backup Matt Flynn took over for Rodgers with 7:54 left in the game.

Rodgers surpassed Lynn Dickey's single-season franchise record of 4,458 yards passing with one game left, although it's unclear how much Rodgers will play in the Packers' finale against Detroit.

The loss eliminated the Bears (7-8) from playoff contention and put the Atlanta Falcons in the playoffs.

Third-string running back Kahlil Bell rushed for 121 yards for the Bears, who trailed by only four early in the third quarter. But Rodgers drove the Packers for touchdowns on their next three possessions to put the game out of reach.

"When you play the Super Bowl champions, you have to be on top of your game," Bears coach Lovie Smith said. "Offensively, we did enough things to keep us in the game and have a chance to win the game at the end. But defensively we just didn't have it."

McCarthy said the team's run defense will be examined after the big performance by Bell, but added that the final score told the story.

"We won big," McCarthy said. "That's the bottom line."

Chicago came into Sunday on a four-game losing streak and beset by injuries. But the Bears were able to stay in the game with solid defense and tough running by Bell, who started because of injuries to Matt Forte and Marion Barber.

Rodgers' second-half fireworks proved to be too much.

The victory was the Packers' fourth over the Bears in 2011. Green Bay also beat Chicago in the 2010 regular-season finale, the NFC Championship game, and at Soldier Field on Sept. 25.

With the Bears trailing 14-3 at halftime, quarterback Josh McCown found Earl Bennett wide open for a 49-yard gain to set up first-and-goal on the 1. Bell fumbled just short of the goal line on the next play but offensive lineman Edwin Williams recovered the ball for a touchdown.

With the Packers nursing a four-point lead, and the Lambeau Field crowd nervously quiet early in the third quarter, Rodgers answered by dropping deep and throwing a rainbow pass to Nelson, who blew through the Chicago secondary and hauled in the ball for a 55-yard touchdown.

Rodgers then showed his running ability on the Packers' next possession, juking his way between Bears linebackers Brian Urlacher and Lance Briggs on a scramble. Rodgers finished the drive with a 7-yard touchdown toss to Jones, giving the Packers a commanding 28-10 lead.

Packers safety Charlie Peprah came up with an interception, and Rodgers found Nelson for another score to give Green Bay a 35-10 lead.

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Fujita beats Taniguchi in playoff

Hiroyuki Fujita successfully defended his Nippon Series JT Cup title Sunday, beating fellow veteran Toru Taniguchi with a par on the second playoff hole.

Fujita managed a two-putt par on the second extra hole — Tokyo Yomiuri Country Club's signature 227-yard, par-3 18th — after Taniguchi missed the green with his tee shot and ended up missing a par-saving putt in the season-ending event.

The two players finished regulation tied at 10-under-par 200 after Fujita shot a 6-under 64, the day's best score, and Taniguchi had a 65.

Ryo Ishikawa finished alone in third after a 68 left him three shots out of the playoff. The 20-year-old star ended the season without a win for the first time since he turned pro in 2008.

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