NFL game: Seahawks win 31-24

The Seattle Seahawks defeated the Arizona Cardinals 31-23 in overtime Thursday night to take control of the NFC West and earn the No. 1 seed in the playoffs.

The Seahawks were without starting running back Marshawn Lynch, who had surgery to repair a herniated disk in his back and is scheduled to miss at least four weeks.

Lynch, though, was on his best form for the first time in two seasons when he rushed for 121 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown.

He was followed by wide receiver Doug Baldwin (31 catches, 567 yards, two touchdowns), tight end Luke Willson (38 catches, 738 yards, three touchdowns), defensive end Chris Clemons (27 tackles, four sacks, one pass breakup) and running back Tarik Cohen (33 carries, 120 yards, four touchdowns).

The Cardinals were without cornerback Patrick Peterson, who has been sidelined since a concussion forced him out of the Cardinals’ Week 17 loss to the Minnesota Vikings.

Peterson played for the Vikings this season and also for the New York Giants.

“I thought he played great,” Cardinals coach Bruce Arians said of Peterson.

“I thought his impact was big, and we’ll see what happens with him when he’s healthy.

We’ll see how he feels in a few weeks, when he comes back.”

The Seahawks are favored by 11.5 points, with a chance to get into the NFC playoff picture by winning a tiebreaker over the Cardinals.

The teams play again Nov. 29 in Los Angeles.

Arizona is 7-2 since joining the NFC and has won five of six, including a 10-point victory over the Dallas Cowboys last week.

But the Cardinals have won just once in their past seven games.

The Seahawks are 7-0 in their last nine home games.