With the Arizona Cardinals set to battle the Carolina Panthers in the NFC Championship and the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots facing off in the AFC Championship, only two former Blue Devils remain in the pursuit of a Super Bowl ring.
Juwan Thompson, RB—The Broncos running third-string running back was inactive Sunday in his team's 24-17 victory to move within two wins of the Super Bowl. Denver rushed for 109 yards on the afternoon and it remains to be seen whether Thompson will see any playing time next week against the Patriots.
Kenny Anunike, DE—The former Duke football player has not been on the field for his team during the second half of the season after being placed on injured reserve on Nov. 25 with a knee injury. Anunike's 2014 season also ended in disappointing fashion as he was placed on injured reserve with an elbow injury.
Ross Cockrell, CB—The speedy slot corner had a quiet game against the Broncos in the divisional playoff round, with only one solo tackle. Cockrell made a heads up play when he recovered a Markus Wheaton fumble in the end zone and secured a touchback for the Steelers.
Cockrell played 62 percent of Pittsburgh’s defensive snaps and will be back as an exclusive restricted free-agent this offseason.
Cooper Helfet, TE—The tight end backed up Luke Willson in the Seahawks' season-ending 31-21 loss to the Panthers. Helfet played roughly half of the team's offensive snaps at tight end and had an increased role late in the year with the injury to Jimmy Graham. Helfet ends the season with 13 receptions for 120 total yards.
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