A look at how former Hawkeyes fared in the first round of the NFL Playoffs
Riley Reiff did not play for the Detroit Lions in their first round loss to the Seattle Seahawks due to a hip injury. Although, four other former members of Iowa football were in action this past weekend.
On Saturday, Houston Texans’ tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz advanced to the Divisional Round of the NFL Playoffs with a 27-14 win over the Oakland Raiders. Quarterback Brock Osweiler targeted Fiedorowicz four times, in which he reeled in two catches for 35 yards.
After targeting mostly tight end Ryan Griffin in the first quarter, Osweiler and Fiedorowicz found a rhythm for a short time in the second quarter. They connected for two first downs on 19 and 16 yard receptions. Fiedorowicz was mainly used as a run blocker for the rest of the game.
On Sunday, the Green Bay Packers and three former Hawkeyes were in action. The Packers took down the New York Giants 38-13, as Micah Hyde was a standout player.
Hyde finished second on the team with seven tackles, including one for a loss, and also recorded a pass deflection to prevent a Sterling Shepard touchdown in the first quarter. Hyde made a beautiful play on the ball on third down to keep the game scoreless and force a Giants’ field goal.
He also averaged 10 yards per kick return on his five tries. His longest return of the game was 23 yards.
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Mike Daniels also recorded four tackles against the Giants.
Offensively, Bryan Bulaga had a great game on the offensive line. According to Pro Football Focus, only Randall Cobb and Davante Adams earned a better offensive grade than Bulaga in the win.
Green Bay only rushed for 75 yards on three yards per carry, however Green Bay’s offensive line, led by Bulaga, protected Aaron Rodgers on 40 pass attempts. His blocking on Green Bay’s first touchdown shows why Green Bay loves him so much.
Rodgers danced around the pocket for eight seconds before he found Davante Adams in the end zone for a score. The whole time, Bulaga’s man never got by him and had no chance of sacking Rodgers. It’s a big reason why Rodgers threw four touchdowns and averaged 9.1 yards per pass attempt.
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Riley Reiff has been the only Hawkeye eliminated from the NFL Playoffs so far. Iowa will have eight former players in the Divisional Round.