Locals in the NFL playoffs: Familiar foe awaits Fred Warner, 49ers on Wild Card weekend

AROUND THE SHIELD — The San Francisco 49ers clinched the No. 2 seed in the AFC playoffs with Sunday's 38-13 win over the Arizona Cardinals, but their opponent remained a mystery for several hours.

The familiar foe would be revealed later, after the results of the Sunday Night Football game between Detroit and Green Bay.

But foes have been rather nameless and faceless to the Niners for nearly a dozen weeks; they've been living on the edge of a "one-game season" since starting the season 3-4.

Ten weeks later, San Francisco (13-4) is one of the hottest teams in the league and will face a familiar opponent in NFC West rival Seattle in a Wild Card matchup Saturday (2:35 p.m. MST, FOX).

"I have a great feel about where we are," said former BYU linebacker Fred Warner, who finished second on the team with 122 tackles, two sacks, 10 passes defended and an interception, several hours before knowing his team's opponent.

"The thing that has been true for these past few games is it's a one-game season every week. Obviously, that's what this is now more than ever," he added. "We've played like that these past 10 weeks, and it's carrying us right into the postseason and putting us right where we want to be."

The Seahawks advanced to its 10th postseason in 13 seasons under head coach Pete Carroll, thanks to the Detroit Lions' 20-16 win over the Green Bay Packers late Sunday night that capped a historic season by former BYU running back Jamaal Williams.

But the first entry doesn't get easy against a 49ers squad that set a franchise record for longest winning streak, a 10-win spurt that surpassed the 1984 team that went on to win Super Bowl XIX and finished 15-1.

After trading away franchise quarterback Russell Wilson and star linebacker Bobby Wagner, Seattle (9-8) isn't just happy to be there. But the Seahawks know they needed some help — and a 19-16 win over the Rams in the regular-season finale — to receive a second chance.

Now they have it.

"It's really been a terrific year," Carroll told local TV stations KING 5 after the Lions' win. "We just weren't able to quite feel it, and so we needed to win a couple of games here at the end, needed to get to the playoffs, and now let's go and let things go the way they can, and we're going to have some fun with this."

By the end of the night, 27 athletes who played high school or college football in Utah were on playoff rosters, which is down from 34 each of the past two seasons. But each team has at least one player from the Beehive State, either on the active roster, practice squad or injured reserve.

The University of Utah has the most alums in the postseason with eight, but rival BYU isn't far behind with seven. Utah State has three, Weber State one, and high schools from Bingham, Brighton, American Fork, Granger, Highland, Hunter, Layton, Orem, Salem Hills, Stansbury and Timpview each have an alumni in the playoffs.

Here's a look at each matchup and the locals involved, in chronological order by conference.

AFC Wild Card Weekend

Saturday, Jan. 14

No. 5 Los Angeles Chargers at No. 4 Jacksonville Jaguars

• Kickoff: 6:15 p.m. MST
• TV/Streaming: NBC/Peacock

Chargers (10-7)

• Michael Davis, CB, BYU
• Kyle Van Noy, LB, BYU
• Alohi Gilman, S, Orem

Jaguars (9-8)

• Devin Lloyd, LB, Utah
• Nick Ford, OC, Utah (PS)

Sunday, Jan. 15

No. 7 Miami Dolphins at No. 2 Buffalo Bills

• Kickoff: 11 a.m. MST
• TV/Streaming: CBS/Paramount+

Dolphins (9-8)

• Eric Rowe, S, Utah
• James Empey, OC, BYU/American Fork (PS)
• Porter Gustin, DE, Salem Hills (PS/IR)

Bills (13-3)

• Taron Johnson, CB, Weber State

No. 6 Baltimore Ravens at No. 3 Cincinnati Bengals

• Kickoff: 6:15 p.m. MST
• TV/Streaming: NBC/Peacock

Ravens (10-7)

• Tyler Huntley, QB, Utah
• Marcus Williams, FS, Utah

Bengals (12-4)

• Jalen Davis, CB, Utah State
• Jay Tufele, DT, Bingham

No. 1 seed: Kansas City Chiefs (14-3)

Chiefs (14-3)

• No locals on the active roster, but coached by former BYU offensive lineman and graduate assistant Andy Reid
• Zayne Anderson, S, BYU/Stansbury (PS)
• Matt Bushman, TE, BYU (PS)
• Marcus Kemp, WR, Layton (PS)

NFC Wild Card Weekend

Saturday, Jan. 14

No. 7 Seattle Seahawks at No. 2 San Francisco 49ers

• Kickoff: 2:30 p.m. MST
• TV: FOX

49ers (13-4)

• Fred Warner, LB, BYU
• Mitch Wishnowsky, P, Utah

Seahawks (9-8)

• Cody Barton, LB, Utah/Brighton
• Darwin Thompson, RB, Utah State (PS)
• Bryan Mone, DT, Highland (IR)

Sunday, Jan. 15

No. 6 New York Giants at No. 3 Minnesota Vikings

• Kickoff: 2:30 p.m. MST
• TV: FOX

Giants (9-7-1)

• Terrell Burgess, S, Utah (PS)

Vikings (13-4)

• Khyiris Tonga, DT, BYU/Granger

Monday, Jan. 16

No. 5 Dallas Cowboys at No. 4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers

• Kickoff: 6:15 p.m. MST
• TV/Streaming: ABC/ESPN/WatchESPN

Cowboys (12-5)

• Dalton Schultz, TE, Bingham
• Simi Fehoko, WR, Brighton (IR)

Buccaneers (8-9)

• Deven Thompkins, WR, Utah State

No. 1 seed: Philadelphia Eagles

Eagles (14-3)

• WR/RS Britain Covey, Utah/Timpview
• Noah Togiai, TE, Hunter (PS)

Related topics