His interception set up a 49ers touchdown on their ensuing drive and helped San Francisco build up a 20–0 lead at halftime, eventually winning the game 26–21.

Playing in only his second full season, Hicks was considered the leader of a secondary that also featured rookies Ronnie Lott, Eric Wright and Carlton Williamson.

Following a last-minute defeat to the Washington Redskins in the 1983 NFC Championship Game, Hicks delivered an impassioned speech to his crestfallen teammates, asking them to "Remember the feeling."

Buoyed by Hicks' speech, the 1984 49ers rampaged through the season, finishing with a 15–1 record and breezing through the playoffs en route to a 38–16 victory over the Miami Dolphins in the Super Bowl.

Hicks, along with his defensive backfield mates Lott, Wright and Williamson, were all selected to the Pro Bowl that season, only the second time in NFL History that a single team's entire secondary was afforded the honor in a single season (the first being the 1976 Pittsburgh Steelers' secondary of Mel Blount, JT Thomas, Glen Edwards and Mike Wagner, all who were named to and played in the 1977 Pro Bowl.)

He also made appearances on various television shows, including How I Met Your Mother, Castle, Body of Proof, Cold Case, The Practice, The X-Files, ER and The O.C.