Five former NC State football players made appearances in the NFL playoffs this season. Here are the alumni who made notable contributions to their team’s efforts.
Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks signal-caller and Offensive Player of the Year candidate Wilson returned to the playoffs this year with the hopes of wiping out the memory of last season’s Super Bowl-losing interception at the hands of the Patriots.
Seattle took on the Vikings in the Wild Card round, and though Wilson and the rest of the offense struggled for most of the game, they came through when it mattered most, rallying for 10 fourth-quarter points to squeak by Minnesota 10-9.
Wilson completed just half of his 26 passes for 142 yards, one touchdown and an interception. However, he was undoubtedly the key to the Seahawks lone touchdown drive, turning a seemingly broken play into a 35-yard pass before capitalizing two plays later.
The story in the Divisional Round in Carolina was less magical, but Wilson’s stats were significantly more impressive: 366 yards, 64.6 completion percentage, three touchdowns and two interceptions.
The Panthers rolled to a 31-0 lead by halftime, and it appeared the Seahawks were defeated both on the scoreboard and mentally. However, behind Wilson’s leadership, they rallied off 24 unanswered points to come within striking distance, though a failed onside kick finally did them in.
Jerricho Cotchery, Carolina Panthers
In two postseason games for the Panthers, Cotchery caught just five passes for 39 yards, but did come up with first downs on three of the five receptions, and quarterback Cam Newton threw just one incompletion when targeting the receiver. Also, the Panthers scored on all but one drive where he caught a pass.
Following Carolina’s 49-15 dismantling of the Arizona Cardinals, Cotchery now heads to the Super Bowl for the first time in his 12-year career. He may not be as dynamic of a playmaker as fellow wideouts Philly Brown or Ted Ginn Jr., but he is sure-handed and may just come up with the key third-down catch the offense needs to overcome arguably the best defense in the league in the Denver Broncos.
Stephen Hauschka, Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks kicker made two of three postseason field-goal attempts, with his lone miss coming from 55 yards out. Though the score was 31-0 in the Panthers favor at the time, this miss may have been the difference as Seattle came up seven points short in the end after settling for a field goal on its final drive.
J.R. Sweezy, Seattle Seahawks
Sweezy started two playoff games for the Hawks at right guard. Though the offensive line generally stood up to the Vikings in the Wild Card Round, the Panthers took advantage of it the following week to the tune of five sacks, including two by interior defensive linemen.
Ted Larsen, Arizona Cardinals
Larsen and the Cardinals offensive line allowed three sacks in both of their postseason games. However, this number doesn’t illustrate the extent to which quarterback Carson Palmer was under duress against the Panthers, as he was stripped of the ball twice and threw four interceptions.
