LSU, Louisiana top performers, notes from Conference Championships to Super Bowl

The NFL’s conference championships Sunday marked a second straight week of playoff action that proved largely unkind to the league’s strong LSU contingent.

Philadelphia emphatically halted the historic rookie season of rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels and his Washington squad, 55-23, a win shy of the franchise’s first Super Bowl trip in 23 years.

And Kansas City continued its steady hold over Buffalo in a consistently memorable postseason series, ending another promising season for the Bills, veteran long snapper Reid Ferguson and, this time, also versatile blocker Will Clapp.

HEADING TO NEW ORLEANS

The bulk of the Louisiana connections are on the Philadelphia roster, which most notably for LSU fans includes a pair of former Tigers on the practice squad in running back Tyrion Davis-Price (Southern Lab, LSU) and safety Andre Sam (Iowa, LSU), as well as cornerback Parry Nickerson (West Jeff, Tulane).

One-time LSU defensive back Eli Ricks, whose family still lives in the Baton Rouge area, is also a reserve in the Eagles’ secondary; and former Louisiana Tech defensive lineman Milton Williams, a Texas native, starts at defensive tackle.

And current LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier’s father, former New Orleans Saints quarterback Doug Nussmeier, coaches the position on Nick Sirianni’s staff.

The Kansas City roster includes former Dutchtown star Justin Reid, brother of former LSU star Eric Reid, at safety where he has been among the Chiefs’ defensive leaders all season. The younger Reid played his college ball at Stanford. Their father, Eric Reid Sr., was a track national champion in the late 1980s.

CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP PERFORMANCES

Jayden Daniels (LSU)

Daniels’ prolific rookie season came to an end, but not without adding a few more records to his résumé. The young quarterback completed 29 of his 48 passes (60.4%) for 255 yards, a touchdown and a late interception with the game already out of reach and rushed six times for 48 yards and another score. He wrapped up his Commanders’ run first all-time in passing yards, rushing yards, total yards, rushing touchdowns, total touchdowns, completions and completion percentage among starting rookie quarterbacks in the postseason — among his long list of season accolades.

Reid Ferguson (LSU) and Will Clapp (Brother Martin, LSU)

The former Tigers earned respectable special teams grades from Pro Football Focus on their limited snaps a handful each on kicking units. The conference championship appearance marked the Bills’ second during their recent postseason run, for which Ferguson is the longest-tenured member of the roster. Clapp, in his first season with the team, played in his first conference championship in his seven-year career.

Justin Reid (Dutchtown)

The veteran safety finished fourth on the Chiefs’ defense with five tackles, including four solo stops and one of their three tackles for loss. And, according to Pro Football Focus, he was targets twice and gave up a combined 2 yards. He earned the Kansas City unit’s second-highest overall defensive grade from PFF and the league’s third-highest run defense grade for the weekend. His three highest overall grades of the season have now come in his past four games.

DeVonta Smith (Amite)

The 2020 Heisman winner was once again efficient with his opportunities, catching all four of his targets for 45 yards — including an early 20-yarder on a controversial toe-tap reception along the sideline. Smith has been a steady complement to leading receiver A.J. Brown all season and is now 46 yards from joining him across the 1,000-yard mark.

Milton Williams (Louisiana Tech)

The Eagles’ defensive tackle earned the league’s second-highest defensive grade from PFF this weekend with his two solo tackles, four quarterback hurries and a pair of deflected passes in the victory. The game was the second-highest graded by PFF of his four-year career, including his top pass-rushing grade to date.