Wolverines in the NFL: At least one former Michigan player will win Super Bowl for 10th straight year
Whatever happens in Vegas Feb. 11, at least one former Michigan football player will be crowned a Super Bowl champion. The Wolverines have four players on the two remaining active rosters, the San Francisco 49ers (kicker Jake Moody, cornerback Ambry Thomas and wide receiver Ronnie Bell) and the Kansas City Chiefs (defensive end Michael Danna).
Michigan was highlighted over the weekend, with more starters on on Championship Sunday than any other program nationally.
Neither the 49ers nor the Chiefs reached the Super Bowl without dramatics. The San Francisco 49ers came back from down 24-7 at halftime to win 34-31 over the Detroit Lions at Levi’s Stadium Sunday night, and Moody played a key role. After missing a 48-yard field goal in the first quarter, the former Michigan kicker bounced back to nail a 33-yarder to give his team a 27-24 edge early in the fourth.
Thomas, meanwhile, struggled in coverage and left the game for a spell with a leg injury. He tied for fourth on the team with 6 tackles, 5 of which were solo. Bell was inactive, as he was for the 49ers’ first playoff game, a 24-21 win over the Green Bay Packers in the Divisional Round.
The Lions are crushed after the loss, reaching the NFC championship game for the first time since 1991 but failing to cash in with their first-ever Super Bowl appearance.
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Three former Michigan players — defensive end Aidan Hutchinson, right guard Graham Glasgow and wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones — have now seen a dream season that included 14 wins come to an end.
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A Pro Bowler, Hutchinson has been one of Detroit’s top players all season, but the former Michigan Heisman Trophy runner-up was double teamed and chipped all night long, finishing with no sacks and no tackles. He did, however, bat down 2 passes, both key plays for Detroit. The Lions allowed 258 yards and a score through the air and 155 yards and 3 touchdowns on the ground.
The AFC championship game wasn’t as wild, but the Chiefs pulled off the upset over the top-seeded Ravens, 17-10, in Baltimore. Kansas City is heading to its fourth Super Bowl in the last five years, and Danna is set for his third in four seasons in the league. He won the championship at the end of last season, with the Chiefs taking down the Philadelphia Eagles, 38-35. The Chiefs are looking to become the first back-to-back Super Bowl winner since the New England Patriots in 2004-05.
The former Michigan defensive end finished with 2 tackles, starting as he has all season long. He laid 2 hits on quarterback Lamar Jackson. The Chiefs’ defensive front kept the vaunted Baltimore run game in check (16 rushes for 81 yards) and got 4 sacks.
The Ravens were led by head coach John Harbaugh, the older brother of former Michigan head man Jim Harbaugh, who was in Baltimore supporting before he gets to work with the Los Angeles Chargers. Former U-M defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald is in his second season coordinating the Ravens’ defense, which allowed only 329 total yards against quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Co.
