Here Are The 15 Former UCF Players On NFL Playoffs Teams
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Fifteen players that graduated from the UCF Knights football team across eight different teams are competing for Super Bowl glory this season in the NFL Playoffs.
Good luck to all our Knights in the NFL Playoffs ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/RhasFTkmzt
— UCF Football (@UCF_Football) January 9, 2026
So, if you are a Knights fan and looking for a team to root for, here are formerUCF players to keep an eye out for this postseason, organized by franchise:
1. Buffalo Bills
The Bills hold the honor of having the most former Knights on their team going to playoffs: wide receiver Gabriel Davis, offensive lineman Tylan Grable and kickers Matt Prater and Matthew Wright.
Grable, who spent the 2022 and 2023 seasons with UCF, is on his second season with the Bills. He spent most of the season on the injured reserve list due to concussion symptoms, but was activated off it on Nov. 29. He ended up making his first appearence of the season in Week 18 when he started against the Jets.
As for the two kickers, both were added to the roster due to injuries.
Prater, who played for the Knights from 2002-2005, signed to the Bill's practice squad on Sep. 4 following an injury the franchise's starting kicker Tyler Bass. However, after making all three of his field goal attempts, including a game-winner as time expired to beat the Ravens, 41-40, he signed with the active roster and has been the franchise's primary kicker this season. He converted 18 of 20 field goal attempts, with a long of 52 yards, and 46 of 49 of his extra point attempts.
As for Wright, who played for the Knights from 2014-2018, he enters the picture following Week 18, after Prater aggravated a quad injury that had just taken out for Weeks 16 and 17. With the elder kicker questionable for the playoffs, Wright was signed to the Bills' practice squad and is now on standby in the event Prater cannot play.
The Bills are Wright's fourth NFL team this season, joining the Tennessee Titans, Washington Commanders and Houston Texans. Between them, he's played in a combined four games, converting all five field goals and all six extra points he attempted.
Finally, Davis, who played for the Knights from 2017-2019 is back with the team that drafted him now that he is recovered from a torn meniscus and torn PCL he sustained in 2024 with the Jacksonville Jaguars. He signed with the Bills' practice squad on Sep. 2, but was not elevated to the active roster until the franchise's Nov. 16 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Since then, he's reeled in 12 receptions on 18 targets for 129 yards and a touchdown.
Davis gets a chance to face the Jaguars in the Wild Card round on Sunday at 1 p.m.
2. Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles have a pair of former Knights on their roster, one a recent graduate while another is an established NFL veteran.
A longtime player for the Cleveland Browns, Charley Hughlett, who played for the Knights from 2008-2011, signed with the Eagles on a one-year deal over the offseason. He has played in eight games this season, missing several months due to an injury. He is currently a part of the Eagles' practice squad.
As for Mac McWilliams, he gets a taste of the playoffs early. He spent his final collegiate season with the Knights in 2024 after four seasons at UAB and was selected in the fifth round by the Philadelphia Eagles. This season, he has seen the field in five games, picking up one solo tackle and one pass defended.
The Eagles play the 49ers in the Wild Card round on Sunday at 4:30 p.m.
3. Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks have a pair of Knights on their roster.
A recent UCF graduate, Amari Kight signed with the Seahawks as an undrafted free agent last spring. He initially signed with the team's practice squad, but did get elevated to make his NFL debut in Week 4 against the Arizona Cardinals. He did not see the field again until December, seeing action against the Los Angeles Rams and the Carolina Panthers, but those games helped his case to get signed to the active roster on Dec. 30.
He played in his fourth game of the season this past weekend against the San Francisco 49ers.
The second UCF alum knows the Seahawaks quite well, as the 2025 season saw Shaquil Griffin returned to the team that drafted him.
The cornerback that played for the Knights from 2013-2016 has been hopping back and forth between the Seahawks' active roster and the practice squad. He's seen action in two games this season, picking up seven solo tackles.
The Seahawks have the No. 1 seed in NFC, so they take field next in the Divisional Round.
4. San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers have two former Knights in its organization: defensive tackle Kalia Daivs and wide recoever Javon Baker.
This season marks the first time Kalia Davis, who played for UCF from 2017-2021, has completed a full NFL regular season after getting drafted by the 49ers in the sixth round in 2022.
He's played in all 17 games, recording 28 tackles, 10 of them solo, 0.5 sacks, three passes defended and 4.5 tackles for loss.
As for Baker, after getting cut from the Patriots on Aug. 27, he signed with the Eagles' practice squad on Aug. 29, but was released on Oct. He signed with the 49ers practice squad on Dec. 9.
The 49ers take on the Eagles in the Wild Card round on Sunday at 4:30 p.m.
5. Jacksonville Jaguars
Former UCF tight end Jordan Akins, who played for the Knights from 2014-2017, signed with the Jaguars' practice squad on Oct. 13.
The Jaguars take on the Bills in the Wild Card round on Sunday at 1 p.m.
6. New England Patriots
Similar to the Jaguars, the Patriots also signed a UCF alum to its practice squad midseason.
Safety Richie Grant, who played for the Knights from 2016-2020, initially signed with the 49ers for the 2025 season, but ended up getting released on Aug. 28. The Patriots picked him up to their practie squad on Oct. 15 and he has remained there mostly ever since. He did make it into one game this season, against the Cleveland Browns, in which he made one solo tackle.
The Patriots take on the Chargers for the Wild Card round at 8 p.m. on Sunday.
7. Pittsburgh Steelers
Both of the UCF alums in the Pittsburgh Steelers organization are wide receivers on their practice squad: Brandon Johnson, who played for the Knights in 2021 and John Rhys Plumlee, who played int the 2022 and 2023 seasons, who played for UCF .
Both players are on their second stint with the Steelers after other teams waived them earlier in the year.
For Johnson, it was the Buccaneers, who signed him to their practice squad on Oct. 22 before getting released on Dec. 15. The Steelers ended up signing him on Christmas Eve.
As for Plumlee, he spent most of the calendar year with the Seahawks after signing with them on Jan. 2, 2025. He ended up getting cut from the roster, with an injury designation, on Aug. 26. The Steelers scooped him up in October, though they did breidly waive him on Nov. 4 before bringing him back on Nov. 18.
The Steelers take on the Texans in their Wild Card matchup at 8:15 p.m. on Monday night.
8. Denver Broncos
RJ Harvey, who played for the Knights from 2020-2024, has carried his momentum from his historic senior season at UCF to his rookie season in the NFL with the Denver Broncos. While he was not handed the keys to the backfield right away, a Lisfranc injury to veteran J.K. Dobbins led to him having a larger role later in the season.
Harvey has now carried the ball 146 times for 540 yards and seven touchdowns, putting him among the league's Top 20 in rushing touchdowns. He's also caught 47 passes on 58 targets for 356 yards and five touchdowns. This makes him one of just six players in NFL history to score five rushing and five receiving touchdowns in their rookie season.
Since the Broncos are the No. 1 seed in the AFC, they take the field next in the Divisional Round next weekend.
Catch up on more UCF news below:
UCF Offensive Lineman Confirms 2026 Return
Bryson Turner is a sports journalist who covers UCF Athletics. Turner has contributed to the Black and Gold Banneret, the home for UCF Athletics on SB Nation. He has called the Orlando area home since the age of 8 and received his bachelor's and master's degrees from UCF.
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