Nine Mississippi State players prepare for NFL Playoff run

It’s playoff time in the NFL and Mississippi State fans have at least nine reasons to tune in to an action-packed Wildcard Weekend.

Nine is the number of former Bulldog greats that will participating in this weekend’s loaded slate of games beginning on Saturday afternoon. State has two of its three Pro Bowl selections taking part and looking to move forward to the Divisional Round next week.

Cleveland Browns at Houston Texans – Saturday, 3:30 p.m. on NBC

Former MSU cornerback Martin Emerson is slated to make his playoff debut this week with the Browns as the team finished off an impressive season led by its defense. Emerson was a big part of the surge from Cleveland this year in a strong AFC North as he was one of the highest rated coverage corners in the league.

The second-year shutdown defender from Florida started in 12 of the 16 games he played this season and solidified himself in the defensive backfield midway in the season. He made 59 tackles with 14 pass deflections and four interceptions this season and has 29 pass breakups now in just two years.

He will have a tough task this week as the Browns take on a division champion Texans team led by first-year head coach DeMeco Ryans and Rookie sensation CJ Stroud at quarterback.

Miami Dolphins at Kansas City Chiefs – Saturday, 7:15 CT on Peacock

Two teams led by hot-shot quarterbacks seem to be going in different directions and former Bulldog defenders Willie Gay and Chris Jones smell blood in the water.

Winners of last year’s Super Bowl, the Chiefs have been in this situation before. KC has won two Super Bowls since Jones arrived and Gay now has a ring of his own. The Chiefs have fluctuated this year starting 6-1, going to 8-5 and now they’ve won back-to-back to close the season with a division title. The Dolphins were 9-3 but lost three out of the last five games down the stretch.

Jones has been a big part of two Super Bowl wins for the Chiefs and he just finished off his fifth All-Pro season with his second first-team selection. He also has five-straight Pro Bowl selections now after earning 10.5 sacks and notching double digit quarterback bags for the third time in his career.

For Gay, the Starkville native was on the field more this year than his previous three seasons with a career-high 15 starts and he had 58 tackles, 4.0 TFL, 1.0 sack, four pass deflections, three fumble recoveries and an interception.

Green Bay Packers at Dallas Cowboys – Sunday, 3:30 p.m. CT on Fox

Pressure in Dallas remains high to compete for a World Championship due to the talent on the roster. Dak Prescott is a big reason for that.

In year eight, Prescott has had arguably his best season. He was top three in the league in almost every major passing category as he threw for 4,515 yards, 36 touchdowns and just nine interceptions a year after leading the league in picks with 15. Prescott’s 69.5% competition percentage is a career high and he tied his best year with 410 completions while throwing for 300 or more yards five times and having four games of four touchdown passes.

The Packers will have something to say about that and it’s a franchise that has been one of the most successful in NFL history. Veteran linebacker Preston Smith has helped the Packers go from 3-6 to winning six of the last eight games and getting into the playoffs after Smith finished with 8.0 tackles for the sixth time in his nine years.

Meanwhile, versatile offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins has paved the way for a growing offense under Jordan Love’s leadership at QB. Jenkins started in all 15 games he played this year.

Joining Prescott on the Cowboys roster is former linebacker Tyrus Wheat who has spent most of the season on the active roster starring on special teams. He played in 12 of the team’s 16 games.  

Philadelphia Eagles at Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Monday, 7 p.m. CT on ESPN

Closing out the first round of the playoffs will be the Eagles and Bucs on primetime Monday night. The last time these two teams met was way back in week three when Philly won 25-11.

Tampa won five of the last six games to take home the crown in a bad division and the Bucs earned a home playoff game. Meanwhile, the Eagles went from 9-1 to losing four of the last five contests and are going to have an uphill climb to get back to the Super Bowl again this year.

Veteran defensive tackle Fletcher Cox will lead the way on defense after making 33 tackles this year with 3.0 TFL, 5.0 sacks, two pass deflections, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery. It’s year 12 for the Eagles’ legend and he’s hoping to add his second ring to the trophy case this year.

Darius Slay has been a huge part of the defense since his arrival in Philly in 2020 and the 11-year vet has risen up the all time list of pass deflections with 147 over the years. After knocking down 14 passes this year and adding 57 tackles with two more interceptions, Slay still has it and he’ll be ready for another big game this week.