The former Ohio State players who will be involved in the NFL Playoffs

The NFL Playoffs kick off on Saturday, with 14 teams looking to earn a spot in Super Bowl LX next month.

For fans of those teams who have already seen their favorite team eliminated, like the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals, a way to make the playoffs interesting is to root for former Buckeyes to excel when the pressure is turned up.

Last year Parris Campbell was part on the roster of the Philadelphia Eagles, who crushed the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22. Campbell became the first former Buckeye to be on the Super Bowl winning team since Darron Lee won it with the Kansas City Chiefs back in 2020. Technically Jordan Fuller won a Super Bowl when the Los Angeles Rams beat the Bengals in 2022, but Fuller wasn’t on the active roster because of a season-ending injury.

Before the action begins this afternoon, we put together a guide to which Buckeyes are rostered by playoff teams. This year also features a return to the playoffs for a head coach who used to play at Ohio State. Then there are also a few teams who aren’t doing themselves any favors since they don’t have any former Buckeyes playing for them.

AFC

Denver Broncos – Jonathan Cooper

This weekend the Denver Broncos will get to sit back and relax since they earned the top seed in the AFC. The only former Ohio State player currently employed by Denver is Jonathan Cooper. The defensive end has played a big role on the most ferocious pass rush in the league, registering eight sacks, ranking second on the team behind Nik Bonitto.

After starting the season 1-2, Denver found their stride with Bo Nix at quarterback, winning 13 of their final 14 games in the regular season, with their only loss coming to Jacksonville in Week 16. The Broncos will host the lowest remaining seed in the AFC following the Wild Card Round. Denver signed former Ohio State running back J.K. Dobbins in the offseason but Dobbins suffered a season-ending injury in early November.

New England Patriots – Mike Vrabel, TreVeyon Henderson, Thayer Munford Jr.

Mike Vrabel won three Super Bowls with the New England Patriots during his playing career. Now Vrabel has returned to New England as head coach. The former defensive lineman has put together an outstanding turnaround in his first season back with the franchise. Last year New England was last in the AFC East and this season they won the division, earning the second seed in the conference.

In the conversation for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year is running back TreVeyon Henderson. The second round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft finished the season with 911 yards rushing and nine touchdowns in his first season in the league. After a slow start to his rookie season, Henderson has teamed with veteran Rhamondre Stevenson to become one of the best running back duos in the NFL this year.

The third former Ohio State player who will be fighting to bring another Super Bowl to New England this year is offensive lineman Thayer Munford Jr. After starting the season on the practice squad, Munford was actually signed by the Cleveland Browns in late September, and later placed on their practice squad.

Then near the end of November, Munford was added to the active roster of the Patriots, where he has become an important part of the offensive line as an extra blocker. Munford is questionable for Sunday night’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers because of a knee injury.

Jacksonville Jaguars – DaVon Hamilton

The third round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft by the Jaguars has become a fixture in the middle of Jacksonville’s defensive line. Aside from the 2023 season when he only appeared in eight games, Munford has registered at least 30 tackles in each of the other five seasons.

The Jaguars open up their playoff run at home on Sunday afternoon against the Buffalo Bills, as they try and make their first Super Bowl in franchise history.

Pittsburgh Steelers – Cam Heyward, Jack Sawyer, Will Howard

The most notable former Buckeye on Pittsburgh’s roster is defensive lineman Cam Heyward. Now in his 15th NFL season, Heyward is still in search of his first Super Bowl. Heyward is holding Father Time at bay, appearing in 17 games in four of the last five years.

Along with being a leader on the Pittsburgh defense, he will team with younger brother Connor on some short-yardage situations for the Steelers where he lines up behind Connor in the backfield and tries to help shove him past the line to gain.

In contrast to Heyward’s plethora of NFL experience, the other two former Ohio State players on Pittsburgh’s roster are both rookies. Jack Sawyer has been solid after he was selected in the fourth round of April’s draft, recording 34 tackles this year. Howard still hasn’t seen the field for Pittsburgh, as Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph have done all of the work at quarterback for the Steelers this season.

Pittsburgh hosts the Houston Texans on Monday night after miraculously winning the AFC North in a thriller against the Baltimore Ravens in the final game of the NFL regular season.

Houston Texans – C.J. Stroud, Cade Stover, Tommy Togiai

The most notable former Buckeye in the AFC is Houston quarterback C.J. Stroud. After he was named NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2023, Stroud has now thrown 62 touchdowns in his first three seasons in the league, along with making the playoffs in all three years.

The Ohio State quarterback missed most of November because of a concussion, but has been strong since returning, winning all six of his starts to close out the regular season.

One of Stroud’s targets is a fellow former Buckeye. Cade Stover enters the playoffs eighth on the Texans, hauling in 12 passes in nine games. Currently Dalton Schultz sees the bulk of the targets at tight end, but Stover could be a sleeper to make a few plays just because of the familiarity Stroud has with him from their time at Ohio State.

Tommy Togiai was selected in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft by Cleveland, spending two years with the Browns before moving on to Houston. Now in his fourth season in the NFL, Togiai has put together his best season as a professional.

Not only has Togiai registered 59 tackles this year, he closed out the regular season with a fumble return for a touchdown against the Indianapolis Colts on the final play of the game in the 38-30 victory.

Buffalo Bills – Joey Bosa, Jordan Hancock, Curtis Samuel

In his first season with the Buffalo Bills, Joey Bosa was second on the team during the regular season with five sacks, trailing only Greg Rousseau. Following a few seasons hampered by injury, Bosa has been relatively healthy this year, playing in 15 games, which is the most since he played in 16 games for the Los Angeles Chargers in 2021.

Jordan Hancock was selected in the fifth round of this year’s NFL Draft by the Bills. Hancock enters the playoffs coming off one of his best performances as a pro, tying a career-high with five tackles in the 35-8 win in Week 18 over the New York Jets.

Hancock could be in line for more time on the field in Sunday’s game against the Jacksonville Jaguars since the Bills are dealing with injury issues in the secondary with both Maxwell Hairston and Damar Hamlin already being ruled out for the game.

One former Buckeye who we know won’t be playing this week is wide receiver Curtis Samuel, who hasn’t played since the middle of November because of an elbow injury. Samuel is currently on injured reserve and his 21-day practice window hasn’t been opened.

Los Angeles Chargers – No former Buckeyes

As if the Chargers didn’t already have their backs against the wall since they’ll be starting the playoffs by making the trip to New England to take on the Patriots, Los Angeles doesn’t have any former Ohio State players on their roster.

It shouldn’t be a surprise since their head coach is Jim Harbaugh, a Michigan alum, former head coach, and noted cheater.

NFC

Seattle Seahawks – Jaxon Smith-Njigba

It’s hard to argue that there was a better wide receiver in the NFL this season than Jaxon Smith-Njigba. The former Buckeye led the NFL with 1,793 yards receiving, catching 119 passes, and finding the end zone 10 times. The numbers are even more impressive considering how little work Smith-Njigba had do in the second half of numerous games this season because the Seahawks had already built big leads.

Seattle has to be considered one of the favorites to make the Super Bowl. Not only did the Seahawks win the toughest division in football, outlasting the Rams and 49ers in the NFC West, they will have a huge advantage by getting a week of rest, followed by playing any games prior to the final game of the NFL season at home.

Chicago Bears – Jonah Jackson

In his first season in Chicago, Jonah Jackson has found an immediate home on the offensive line, starting at right guard. After he was selected in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Detroit Lions, Jackson spent four years in Detroit, followed by last season with the Los Angeles Rams.

Now Jackson is tasked with protecting quarterback Caleb Williams and opening up holes for running backs D’Andre Swift and Kyle Monangai.

Philadelphia Eagles – No former Buckeyes

After rostering Parris Campbell last season, this year the Eagles are without an Ohio State alum. It will be interesting to see if Philadelphia’s hopes of going back-to-back go up in smoke just like the Buckeyes.

Carolina Panthers – Lathan Ransom

It wasn’t pretty, but the Carolina Panthers snuck into the playoffs thanks to the Atlanta Falcons beating the New Orleans Saints last week.

History might be on the side of the Panthers though, since each of the last two times Ohio State was the defending national champions, Carolina made the playoffs after having a losing record the previous season opened the year against Jacksonville, and there also happened to be a Jennifer Lopez divorce that happened, the Panthers went to the Super Bowl.

Along with having a conglomeration of weird coincidences on their side, Carolina did draft Ohio State safety Lathan Ransom in the fourth round of the 2025 NFL Draft. While Ransom has been a backup most of the season, he did have his best game as a pro against the Rams in late November, registering 11 tackles in the upset victory.

The Panthers and Rams open up this year’s playoffs on Saturday afternoon.

Los Angeles Rams – Nick Vannett, Ty Hamilton

So far this season Nick Vannett has failed to catch a pass for the Rams. The fact isn’t a surprise considering not only does Matthew Stafford have targets like Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, he also has a number of tight ends who will see the field ahead of Vannett.

The other former Buckeye on the Rams roster is defensive tackle Ty Hamilton. Like Vannett, Hamilton doesn’t see much time on the field, registering just 11 tackles so far this season. This is Hamilton’s first season in the NFL after he was selected in the fifth round of April’s draft.

San Francisco 49ers – Luke Farrell

Luke Farrell is now in his fifth season in the NFL, and his first with the San Francisco 49ers. Even though San Francisco has George Kittle at tight end, Farrell has seen a bit of work, catching two touchdowns this season, which are two more than he caught in four seasons with the Jaguars.

When Farrell does see the field, it is more as a blocker. Maybe Farrell’s presence on the roster alone will give the 49ers the edge on Sunday against the Eagles, who don’t have any former Ohio State players on their roster.

Green Bay Packers – No former Buckeyes

Sorry Green Bay, employing former Ohio State defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley doesn’t count.