A pair of 15-yard penalties to set up a game-winning field goal. A missed 27-yard game-winning field goal. The first playoff shutout since the 2005-2006 season.
It was truly a wild weekend in the NFL, as four teams moved on to the divisional round of the playoffs. And the sizable cohort of Stanford alumni in the League was able to make its presence known as well.
It was a heartbreaking scene in Minneapolis for the Minnesota Vikings, which fell to the Seattle Seahawks by a 10-9 margin after kicker Blair Walsh missed what would have been the game-winner.
While the missed kick was certainly the biggest story of the game, the pair of ex-Cardinal Seahawks had a huge impact on the game as well. Wide receiver Doug Baldwin ‘10 caught 5 passes for 42 yards and a touchdown. One of Baldwin’s five catches was this one-handed grab, a catch made even more impressive given the fact that the game was played in subzero temperatures.
On the other side of the ball, former teammate Richard Sherman ‘10 led a Seahawks secondary that limited Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater to 146 passing yards. Sherman led the Seahawks with 6 tackles.
The Seahawks will face the top-seeded Carolina Panthers this Sunday.
Sherman and Baldwin weren’t the only Stanford alumni on the gridiron the weekend. Right guard David DeCastro ‘12 of the Pittsburgh Steelers played a part in winning a thrilling game over the Cincinnati Bengals by a score of 18-16. DeCastro was very involved in the trenches, playing 100 percent of the Steelers’ snaps and helping the offense generate 369 total yards.
However, he most notably made headlines for claiming that Bengals linebacker Vontaze Burfict spat on him during a particularly contentious play.
The Steelers will head to Denver to take on the Broncos on Sunday.
On the east coast, the Green Bay Packers cruised to a 35-18 victory over the Washington Redskins and proved themselves as one of the strongest teams still vying for a Super Bowl berth. Even without wide receiver Ty Montgomery ‘14, quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Packers had no difficulty getting past the Redskins to the end zone.
Redskins linebacker Trent Murphy ‘14 was the only active Cardinal alum to play in the game, recording 1 tackle and playing on 33 of the game’s snaps.
The Packers will move on to face the Arizona Cardinals this Saturday,
Contact Sandip Srinivas at sandips ‘at’ stanford.edu.