Washington didn’t receive a lot of help from its 2021 draft class. First-round pick Jamin Davis struggled and was barely playing at the end of the season. Washington’s third-round picks, wide receiver Dyami Brown and cornerback Benjamin St-Juste had disappointing seasons. St-Juste ended his rookie season on injured reserve, while Brown failed to separate himself on an offense in dire need of playmakers.
Then, there was second-round pick, offensive tackle Sam Cosmi. The No. 51 overall pick from Texas, Cosmi had a rough start to his career. He had issues with Chase Young and Montez Sweat in training camp, yet slowly improved, ending camp as the starter at right tackle.
Unfortunately for Cosmi, injuries marred his rookie season, forcing him to miss eight games with injury. But when he played, Cosmi was outstanding — especially as a run blocker. He has a bright future.
Pro Football Focus recently named one breakout candidate for all 32 NFL teams in 2022, and Cosmi was the pick for Washington.
2021 PFF Grade: 74.9
Injury limited Cosmi to only nine games in his rookie season, but the 51st overall pick still showed enough for onlookers to believe he will become a strong starter for the Football Team. The 6-foot-7, 309-pound tackle entered the NFL with concerns in pass protection, and his 63.4 pass-blocking grade in those nine games didn’t alleviate them. Cosmi’s run blocking, on the other hand, was well beyond his years. He earned an 81.3 run-blocking grade and stood at the 94th percentile in negatively graded run-block rate among all tackles. With a little more polish to his pass sets, Cosmi can take that next step in 2022.
Cosmi has everything you want in an offensive tackle. He’s big, strong and agile. Washington wants to run the football, and Cosmi is a tone-setter as a run blocker. Washington was correct in its decision to let Morgan Moses go and draft Cosmi and sign Charles Leno. Now, Cosmi must prove he can stay healthy for an entire season.