Owls in the NFL - Week 18 (End of Regular Season)

The NFL regular season came to a close this weekend, but a few former Owls have made the playoffs and will continue their path towards Super Bowl LVI at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on February 13.

Bruce Arians (1983-88) and his Tampa Bay Buccaneers look to become the first team to win back-to-back Super Bowls since the 2003-04 New England Patriots. The NFC's #2 seed will rely on the skills of Tom Brady who was under center for that Patriots' dynasty. Tampa Bay, like New England, will have to beat the Philadelphia Eagles to accomplish its goals. The Eagles have an Owl of their own, Shaun Bradley (2016-19) got the first start of his career last Sunday and made five tackles before exiting the game with an injury. For the year, Bradley played in 15 games with 23 tackles.

Michael Dogbe (2014-18) and his Arizona Cardinals earned the NFC's #5 seed and will play in Los Angeles on Monday Night. Dogbe's Cardinals have already beaten the Rams at SoFi this season. For the year, Dogbe played in 16 games with 28 tackles and 1.0 sack.

In another rematch of a regular season game, Dion Dawkins (2013-16), Tyler Matakevich (2012-15) and the Buffalo Bills host the New England Patriots on Saturday night. Like the Cardinals and Rams, these division rivals split the regular season series. Dawkins missed the first game of his career this season (week 15 due to COVID protocols) and earned his first Pro Bowl berth. Matakevich played all 17 games, had 19 tackles and his first career interception, and is recognized as a captain for the Bills.

Chris Myarick (2015-19) joined the Cincinnati Bengals last week after his release from the New York Giants. The Bengals are the #3 seed in the AFC and host the Raiders on Saturday. Myarick played in eight games for the Giants (three starts) and registered three catches for 17 yards and one touchdown.

Daniel Archibong (2016-20) and his Pittsburgh Steelers held their collective breaths on Sunday night as the drama of the NFL playoffs unfolded. After they won an overtime contest at Baltimore in the early afternoon, their playoffs wishes were secure unless the Sunday evening game between the Chargers and Raiders ended in a tie. The Chargers scored 15 fourth quarter points to tie the game and both teams scored in overtime with the Raiders prevailing 35-32. Archibong, who played in two games and made two tackles for the Steelers as a rookie, faces off against the Chiefs on Sunday night.

Ryquell Armstead (2014-17) was the leading rusher for the Jacksonville Jaguars in the day's biggest upset. Armstead gained 52 yards on nine carries leading the Jags to a 26-11 win against Rock Ya-Sin's (2018) Colts, knocking Indianapolis out of playoff contention. In only two games, Armstead rushed for 80 yards and added 16 more on three receptions. Chapelle Russell (2015-19) played in 16 games for Jacksonville this season and collected 18 tackles. Ya-Sin started eight of his 13 games this year and amassed 31 tackles and eight passes defensed.

Two games pitted Owl versus Owl. Matt Hennessy (2016-19) and his Atlanta Falcons faced Sharif Finch's (2013-17) New Orleans Saints. The Saints won, 30-20. Hennessy finished his second season, his first starting all 17 games. Finch, who did not play in this contest, played in two games in 2021 with five tackles.

In a battle of former #9s, Matt Ioannidis (2012-15) and the Washington Football Team defeated Quincy Roche's (2016-19 ) New York Giants, 22-7. Ioannidis started for the sixth time this season and had two tackles. For the year, he played in 16 games with 38 tackles, and 2.5 sacks. Roche finished his rookie season with a two-tackle performance giving him 38 stops and 2.5 sacks, in 14 games.

Jacob Martin (2014-17) started for the Houston Texans and had one tackle in a loss to Tennessee, 28-25. For the year he started 14 of 17 games with 23 tackles and 4.0 sacks.

Tavon Young (2012-15) made his seventh start of the year and had oner tackle in the Baltimore Ravens' aforementioned, overtime loss to Pittsburgh. Young played all 17 games in 2021, after an injury plagued 2020 season, and made 35 tackles.

The Denver Broncos lost to the Kansas City Chiefs, 28-24, and the Minnesota Vikings lost to Green Bay, 37-10. Denver and Minnesota let their head coaches go on Monday so Brandon McManus (2009-12), Nate Hairston (2012-16), and Harrison Hand (2019) will have to impress a new staff this year. McManus has been a mainstay in Denver and had another strong season. He played all 17 games and made 26 of 31 field goal attempts and all but one of 34 PATs. Hairston also played in all 17 games, with one start, and had nine tackles and four passed defensed in a reserve role. For the Vikings, Hand played in nine games with five tackles.

Kenny Yeboah (2016-19) played in nine games for the New York Jets and had two catches for 36 yards on the season.

Matt Rhule (2013-16) and the Carolina Panthers closed out the season against Arians' Buccaneers in what NFL Network's Rich Eisen billed two weeks earlier as a "game brought to you by Temple University." In the season finale, Robby Anderson (2011-13, 2015) had seven catches for 50 yards and one touchdown, Haason Reddick (2012-16) had three tackles, and Sam Franklin (2016-19) contributed six stops. For the year, Anderson played in 17 games with 16 starts, and hauled in 53 passes for 519 yards and five scores. Reddick was among the NFL leaders in sacks with 11.0 and added 68 tackles in 16 games earning the nod of Pro Bowl alternate. Franklin played in 16 games and notched 24 tackles in a reserve role. Sean Chandler (2014-17) played in 15 games with seven starts and recorded a career-high 48 tackles. P.J. Walker (2013-16) played in five games and the Panthers won his only start. He has never lost a professional game as a starter and he inked a one-year contract extension with the Panthers on Monday. Colin Thompson (2014-16) played in 11 games as a backup tight end, including two starts. Keith Kirkwood (2014-17) played in just three games, including the finale in Tampa, missing most of the season due to injury. He finished with three catches for 17 yards.

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Owls in the NFL - Week 18 (End of Regular Season)

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