Ex-Washington players who can still win Super Bowl 56 originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
As evidenced by the fact that everyone just celebrated the 30th anniversary of Washington's most recent Super Bowl, fans of the Burgundy and Gold clearly haven't had the privilege of watching their team perform on the NFL's most famous Sunday in quite some time.
However, in a development that'll surely do absolutely nothing to take that decades-long pain away, there are some ex-Washington players who are still in the playoffs and have a chance to win a title of their own. Isn't that exciting? Wait, it's not?
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Anyways, here's a list of those guys who used to suit up for Washington but are now currently employed by one of the four remaining franchises in the postseason...
San Francisco 49ers
Trent Williams is easily the most-decorated name in this story, as the nine-time Pro Bowler is two contests away from lifting his first Lombardi Trophy. That was really cool of Bruce Allen to run Williams out of town. In no way did that backfire. It was truly genius work by Allen.
Williams isn't alone on San Fran's offensive line, though. Tom Compton, whom Washington selected in the Robert Griffin III draft, has been starting at right tackle down the stretch. Compton and Niners coach/ex-Washington coordinator Kyle Shanahan reunited in the NFC West in 2020 and Compton's proven to be a useful piece up front.
On defense, meanwhile, there's Josh Norman, who started at corner for the majority of the year but has been relegated almost exclusively to special-teams duties since Week 18.
Lastly, quarterback Nate Sudfeld is hanging out on the 49ers' practice squad. He entered the league as a 2016 sixth-round choice of Washington's but is best known for subbing in for Jalen Hurts in the 2020 regular-season finale and (unintentionally) helping send his old outfit to the Wild Card round.
Los Angeles Rams
The Rams are Washington-less throughout the entirety of their roster, but they do feature that one young fella on the sidelines pretty regularly.
Cincinnati Bengals
The Bengals check in as the second-most Washington-heavy operation in this story, with Samaje Perine leading the way. While Perine was a complete disappointment in the NFC East, he has been a decent backup for Joe Mixon in Cincy.
Thaddeus Moss, perhaps the most-celebrated undrafted free agent pickup in Washington history, is on injured reserve and still has yet to log any official snaps as a pro. Then there's Noah Spence, a practice squad player, and if you remember his brief tenure with Washington, you need to pick up a hobby or four.
Kansas City Chiefs
Michael Burton is the lone Chief with Washington ties; he linked up with Washington in the Bill Callahan era, when the interim coach scooped up the fullback in hopes of really establishing the run.
"I'm a big fullback fan," Burton once told NBC Sports Washington.
Guess Andy Reid is, too.
