FSU Alums: NFL title games show defensive dominance of Noles
By Jason Parker
FSU will be well represented in this weekend’s conference championship games – with all of the former Noles being on one side of the ball.
When you look at rosters across the National Football League, you notice there is plenty of former FSU football talent that dots over two thirds of the rosters. The big names tend to be on the offensive side of the ball, as Jameis Winston set records in Tampa Bay and Devonta Freeman went to the Super Bowl last year with Atlanta.
One look at the four teams left in the postseason – Philadelphia, Minnesota, New England and Jacksonville – shows that as much as the former Seminoles do good on offense, it’s the Noles on defense who are still playing with a chance to head to the Super Bowl in two and a half weeks.
The two defenses that have been the best this season are the Vikings and Jaguars, who rank as the top two teams in both total defense (Minnesota then Jacksonville) and total passing defense (Jacksonville then Minnesota).
The men in purple, who are trying to be the first team to play in their home season for a league title, are led by cornerback Xavier Rhodes – who has been a shutdown corner since being drafted in 2013, finishing this season with two interceptions and proving his worth when the Saints scored last week with him off the field.
Over in Jacksonville, the Jaguars are one game away from their first Super Bowl thanks to two members of the 2013 title team in Jalen Ramsey and Telvin Smith. Ramsey has five picks this season, which includes one two weeks ago against Buffalo, and was the instrumental figure behind shutting down top receivers all season.
Smith, meanwhile, essentially won last weeks game against the Pittsburgh Steelers when he returned a fumble for a score – the second time he took a turnover to the house against the Steelers – to go along with 27 tackles so far in the postseason.
The Eagles, meanwhile, bring the fourth best total defense in the league (and the top rush defense, ahead of No. 2 Minnesota) with former FSU stars Nigel Bradham leading the team in tackles, Patrick Robinson leading the team in interceptions and pass deflections (with Ronald Darby second in picks) and Tim Jernigan adding stability to the front line.
Yes, both the Vikings and Jaguars have former FSU offensive players on the payroll but both Dalvin Cook and Rashad Greene have spent most of the season on IR – and the Patriots aren’t cool enough to have a former Nole on either side of the ball, so they don’t matter.
Next: Telvin Smith dominates against vs. Pittsburgh
We at least know that one former FSU defensive star will make it to the Super Bowl thanks to the NFC matchup – and you can be willing to bet that Ramsey and Smith will do whatever it takes to join them.