Across The Shield: Jaxon Smith-Njigba Scores in Playoff Debut, Tommy Togiai Forces Fumble and Seven Buckeyes Advance to Conference Championship Games

In Across The Shield, Eleven Warriors’ weekly recap of how Ohio State players performed across the NFL, we recap the weekend’s top highlights for former Ohio State players and look ahead to which Buckeyes we’ll see play in the AFC and NFC Championship Games next Sunday.

JSN scores in playoff debut

After leading the NFL in receiving yards during the regular season, Jaxon Smith-Njigba followed it up by scoring a touchdown in his first-ever NFL playoff game.

Playing in his first postseason game since his record-setting 15-catch, 347-yard, three-touchdown performance vs. Utah in the 2022 Rose Bowl, Smith-Njigba made a diving catch in the back left corner of the end zone to give the Seattle Seahawks a 17-0 lead in the first quarter.

Made it look too easy @jaxon_smith1

: @NFLonFOX pic.twitter.com/hfw5IACmjH

— xz* - Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) January 18, 2026

JSN is that guy, pal.

SFvsSEA on FOX/FOX One
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/aNRWl1icWe

— NFL (@NFL) January 18, 2026

Smith-Njigba finished the game with a season-low 19 yards on three catches, but that was largely because the Seahawks didn’t need to throw the ball much. Seattle rolled to a 41-6 victory over the San Francisco 49ers that included a kickoff return touchdown by Rashid Shaheed on the opening play of the game, three takeaways and two fourth-down stops by the Seahawks defense, plus 175 rushing yards and three touchdown runs for the Seahawks offense.

Togiai forces first NFL fumble

Tommy Togiai’s breakout season continued in his final game of the season as the former Ohio State defensive tackle forced the first fumble of his NFL career.

Two weeks after scoring his first NFL touchdown on a fumble recovery, Togiai came up with his first forced turnover as he knocked the ball out of New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye’s hands on a rushing attempt. Togiai’s Houston Texans teammate Azeez Al-Shaair came up with the loose ball.

Tommy Togiai: Playmaker. pic.twitter.com/B99Sp5QUDS

— Eleven Warriors (@11W) January 18, 2026

Houston’s other two Buckeyes made key plays on the Texans’ subsequent drive. Cade Stover converted a 3rd-and-1 with a 2-yard run up the middle on a tush push; three plays later, C.J. Stroud completed a 10-yard touchdown pass to Christian Kirk, giving Houston a 10-7 lead.

C.J. Christian connection

: @nflonespn pic.twitter.com/P0B62Smzhy

— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) January 18, 2026

Unfortunately for the Texans, everything went downhill from there. Stroud threw four interceptions in the first half, including a pick-six, and finished the game with just 20 completions for 212 yards on 47 attempts. Stover’s day ended early with what appeared to be a significant knee injury when his foot got caught in the turf as he attempted to catch a pass from Stroud.

Texans' Cade Stover was in visible pain after twisting his leg on this play. pic.twitter.com/UyvcRkmW8X

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) January 18, 2026

Dating back to high school, Stroud’s four interceptions were the most he’s thrown in a single game in his football career.

Togiai’s day wasn’t perfect, either. The Texans was called for an illegal shift penalty that nullified what would have been a 1-yard touchdown run because Togiai, who was in the game at fullback, wasn’t set before the play. Houston ended up settling for a field goal as a result.

On defense, however, Togiai did his best to keep the Texans in the game, recording eight tackles within four yards of the line of scrimmage, including a tackle for loss on a screen pass to Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson.

Despite Houston’s 28-16 loss, Togiai was the most productive former Ohio State player of divisional round weekend, earning him our Pro Buck of the Week award as Ohio State’s top NFL performer of the week. Togiai’s third PBOW of the season – tying him with TreVeyon Henderson for the most of any Buckeye this season – capped off a career year for Togiai in which he recorded 72 total tackles and eight tackles for loss in 17 total games between the regular season and postseason.

7-8 Buckeyes will play in conference title games

At least seven former Ohio State players will play in the NFL’s conference championship games next week.

The AFC Championship Game will feature at least three former Ohio State players as New England Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson and offensive lineman Thayer Munford – and head coach Mike Vrabel – go head-to-head with former Ohio State defensive end Jonathon Cooper and the Denver Broncos. That game could potentially also feature a matchup of former Ohio State running backs going head-to-head, as there’s hope that J.K. Dobbins – who’s been sidelined by a foot injury since November – could return from injured reserve for the Broncos next weekend, though he hasn’t been added back to their 53-man roster yet.

In the NFC Championship Game, Smith-Njigba and the Seattle Seahawks will face off against the Los Angeles Rams, who have three former Ohio State players: Defensive tackle Ty Hamilton, long snapper Jake McQuaide and tight end Nick Vannett.

The schedule for next Sunday’s conference championship games, complete with the list of players who finished their college careers at Ohio State who are currently on the 53-man rosters of each team:

• 3 p.m., CBS: No. 2 New England Patriots (TreVeyon Henderson, Thayer Munford) at No. 1 Denver Broncos (Jonathon Cooper)
• 6:30 p.m., FOX: No. 5 Los Angeles Rams (Ty Hamilton, Jake McQuaide and Nick Vannett) at No. 1 Seattle Seahawks (Jaxon Smith-Njigba)

Divisional Round Stats

Full playoff stats for every Buckeye who played in the NFL's divisional round weekend can be found in the table below, compiled by Eleven Warriors researcher Matt Gutridge. The table only includes players who have been on an active roster for at least one game this season and who finished their college careers at Ohio State.