Ranking Ohio State’s Top 15 Performers from the 2021 NFL Season

By Dan Hope on February 15, 2022 at 11:35 am
Cameron Heyward
Philip G. Pavely – USA TODAY Sports
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Ohio State was well-represented from start to finish during the 2021 NFL season.

More than 60 Buckeyes played in at least one regular-season game this year, while more than a dozen former Ohio State players were on active rosters for NFL playoff teams. Seven Buckeyes made it to the Pro Bowl, while four Buckeyes – five if you include Joe Burrow – started for the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl.

Some of the Buckeyes who were expected to be NFL stars this season got bit by the injury bug; J.K. Dobbins and Michael Thomas missed the entire season with injuries, while Chase Young suffered a season-ending torn ACL and Taylor Decker missed half of the season with a finger fracture. Still, there were plenty of former Ohio State players who excelled for teams throughout the league this season, including some of the league’s biggest stars at their respective positions.

Now that the 2021 NFL season has officially concluded, we take a look at the 15 Ohio State players who performed the best around the league from the start of the regular season to the Super Bowl. (Note: Players were only considered for inclusion on this list if they finished their college football careers at Ohio State, so Burrow and other former Buckeyes who transferred to other schools before going to the NFL are not included.)

15. Pete Werner, LB, New Orleans Saints

Regular Season Stats: 62 tackles, 4 TFL, 1 QB hit

While Justin Fields’ first NFL season was filled with ups and downs, Werner was Ohio State’s best NFL rookie in 2021. He spent most of the season backing up veteran linebackers Demario Davis and Kwon Alexander but thrived when he had opportunities for extended playing time, finishing the season with the second-best grade against the run and sixth-best overall grade among all NFL linebackers, according to Pro Football Focus.

One year into his NFL career, Werner appears to be well on his way to being a fixture in the Saints’ defense for years to come – and to continuing to prove that he was often underappreciated during his Ohio State career.

14. Malcolm Jenkins, S, New Orleans Saints

Regular Season Stats: 79 tackles, 1 sack, 3 TFL, 2 QB hits, 1 INT, 5 PD, 1 FF, 1 TD

Now 34 years old, Jenkins continued to be a productive leader on the back end of the Saints’ defense in 2021, starting all but one game at safety for a defense that ranked fourth in the NFL with only 19.7 points allowed per game.

His numbers dropped slightly in most categories from 2020 to 2021, but he continued to be a mainstay on the field in New Orleans – he played the most defensive snaps of any Saint (1,042), per PFF, even though he missed a game for the first time since 2013 – and scored the eighth touchdown of his NFL career (and first since 2016) with a Week 3 pick-six against the New England Patriots.

Despite being in the same Ohio State draft class as Ohio State wide receivers coach Brian Hartline and new Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman, Jenkins still proved to have plenty of good football left in him in 2021.

13. Jonah Jackson, LG, Detroit Lions

Regular Season Stats: 16 starts at left guard

Jackson performed well enough in his second NFL season that he earned the opportunity to play in the Pro Bowl as an alternate for the NFC squad. Jackson started every game but one at left guard for the Lions in 2021 and was graded by PFF as the 24th-best guard in the league.

The Lions didn’t have much success this past season, winning only three games, but Jackson was one of their bright spots, proving to be a terrific run blocker – he had the 12th-best PFF grade among all NFL guards in that category for the 2021 season – and a solid pass blocker on Detroit’s interior offensive line.

12. Ezekiel Elliott, RB, Dallas Cowboys

Regular Season Stats: 237 carries, 1,002 yards, 10 TD; 47 catches, 287 yards, 2 TD
Playoff Stats (1 game): 12 carries, 31 yards; 1 catch, 0 yards

Elliott was plagued by a partially torn PCL in his right knee for most of the 2021 season, yet still played in all 18 of the Cowboys’ games and rushed for more than 1,000 yards for the fourth time in his NFL career. His 1,289 yards from scrimmage and 12 touchdowns scored were both the most among all Buckeyes in the NFL in 2021.

While Elliott wasn’t at his best form in 2021 – his 58.9 rushing yards per game and 16.9 receiving yards per game were both career-lows – he still finished seventh in the NFL in rushing yards and 16th in total yards from scrimmage for the regular season and helped lead the Dallas Cowboys to the NFC East title.

11. Jerome Baker, LB, Miami Dolphins

Regular Season Stats: 93 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 9 TFL, 15 QB hits, 1 INT, 4 PD, 1 FF

Baker had another productive season in the middle of the Miami defense, leading the Dolphins in tackles for the third year in a row. He didn’t quite hit the 100-tackle mark as he did in 2019 and 2020, but made an impact for the Dolphins in all phases of defense as he recorded 31 total quarterback pressures and also played 450 coverage snaps, per PFF.

The fourth-year NFL linebacker, who signed a three-year, $39 million contract extension with the Dolphins last offseason, also made a difference off the field as he was one of five former Ohio State players named as his respective team’s nominee for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award.

Jerome Baker
Jerome Baker made plenty of plays worth celebrating during the 2021 season. (Photo: Steve Roberts – USA TODAY Sports)

10. Jordan Fuller, S, Los Angeles Rams

Regular Season Stats: 113 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 INT, 4 PD

Although he wasn’t able to play in any of the Rams’ playoff games after suffering an ankle injury in their regular-season finale, Fuller still played a significant role in helping them win this year’s NFL title.

A team captain in just his second NFL season, Fuller started every game but one during the regular season and led the Rams with 113 total tackles, the seventh-most of any defensive back in the league.

His role was so crucial to the Rams’ defense that they had to coax Eric Weddle out of retirement to take his place for their Super Bowl run. With Weddle now returning to retirement, Fuller should jump back right into the Rams’ starting lineup for their title defense in 2022.

9. Sam Hubbard, DE, Cincinnati Bengals

Regular Season Stats: 62 tackles, 7.5 sacks, 12 TFL, 17 QB hits, 3 PD, 1 FF, 2 FR
Playoff Stats (4 games): 22 tackles, 3 sacks, 5 TFL, 4 QB hits, 1 PD, 1 FF

As a team captain and starting defensive end, Hubbard played a major role in the Bengals’ surprise run to the Super Bowl. After leading all Bengals defensive linemen with 62 total tackles and tying for the team lead with 12 tackles for loss during the regular season, Hubbard was at his best in the playoffs, where he recorded 22 total tackles with five tackles for loss, three sacks, four quarterback hits, a pass deflection and a forced fumble in the Bengals’ four postseason games.

Also an NFL Man of the Year nominee, Hubbard proved to be well worth the four-year, $40 million contract extension he signed with the Bengals before the season as he helped lead his hometown team to its first AFC title in 33 years.

8. Vonn Bell, S, Cincinnati Bengals

Regular Season Stats: 97 tackles, 0.5 sacks, 5 TFL, 1 QB hit, 1 INT, 8 PD, 3 FF, 1 FR
Playoff Stats (4 games): 23 tackles, 1 sack, 2 TFL, 1 QB hit, 1 INT, 1 PD

Another Buckeye who was both a defensive starter and a captain for the Bengals this year, Bell had a highly productive second season in Cincinnati. He ranked second on the team with 97 total tackles, led the team with three forced fumbles and played more defensive snaps than any other Bengal for the season as a whole.

Like Hubbard, Bell made numerous key plays in the Bengals’ run to the Super Bowl. In four playoff games, Bell recorded 23 total tackles with two tackles for loss and a sack. Most notably, Bell made the play of the game in the AFC Championship Game when he intercepted a Patrick Mahomes pass in overtime to set up the Bengals’ game-winning drive against the Kansas City Chiefs.

7. Terry McLaurin, WR, Washington Football Team

Regular Season Stats: 77 catches, 1,053 yards, 5 TD

McLaurin had his second consecutive 1,000-yard receiving season in 2021, catching 77 passes for 1,053 yards to lead the team now known as the Washington Commanders for the third year in a row since they selected him in the third round of the 2019 NFL draft. His five receiving touchdowns were also the most on the team in 2021.

The first Washington receiver with back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in more than 25 years, McLaurin also made what might have been the NFL’s catch of the year in Washington’s season opener, when he hauled in a 37-yard pass through the arms of a Los Angeles Chargers defender and got his body down in bounds for a spectacular sideline grab.

Already a team captain in Washington for the past two years, McLaurin will likely receive a big contract extension offer this offseason as he enters the fourth and final year of his rookie contract.

6. Denzel Ward, CB, Cleveland Browns

Regular Season Stats: 43 tackles, 0.5 sacks, 1 TFL, 2 QB hits, 3 INT, 10 PD, 1 TD

Ward ranks sixth in our countdown of Ohio State’s top NFL performers for the second year in a row after making the Pro Bowl for the second time in his four-year career.

While the Browns fell well short of expectations this season, missing the playoffs after making them a year earlier, Ward continued to be one of the NFL’s best cornerbacks. Per PFF, Ward – another one of Ohio State’s NFL Man of the Year nominees – graded out as the 11th-best cornerback in the league in 2021. The highlight of Ward’s season came against the eventual AFC champions, as he intercepted Burrow and went all the way for a 99-yard pick-six in the Browns’ first of two wins over the Bengals.

Going into his fifth season in the NFL, Ward will likely command a contract extension this offseason that makes him one of the league’s highest-paid cornerbacks if he is to stay with the Browns.

5. Marshon Lattimore, CB, New Orleans Saints

Regular Season Stats: 68 tackles, 3 INT, 19 PD, 1 FR

Lattimore, who cashed in during the opening week of the NFL season with a five-year, $97.6 million contract extension, showed why the Saints paid him so well with his play all season long, as he recorded the third-most passes defended (19) of any NFL player in 2021.

Graded by PFF as the league’s 10th-best cornerback in 2021, Lattimore recorded a career-high 68 total tackles with only three missed tackles and had what might have been the best game of any NFL cornerback all season when he broke up six passes – the most of any NFL player in a single game this year – in a 33-22 win over Washington.

Lattimore was selected to the Pro Bowl for the third consecutive season and the fourth time in five NFL seasons overall.

Marshon Lattimore
Marshon Lattimore got the best of former Ohio State teammate Terry McLaurin when they went head-to-head in Week 5 of the NFL season. (Photo: Brad Mills – USA TODAY Sports)

4. Corey Linsley, C, Los Angeles Chargers

Regular Season Stats: 16 starts at center

After making an offseason move to the Chargers from the Green Bay Packers, Linsley remained one of the best centers in the NFL. After earning first-team All-Pro honors in 2020, Linsley was a second-team All-Pro in 2021.

Linsley was also voted into the Pro Bowl for the first time in his NFL career and was the Chargers’ nominee for NFL Man of the Year. In his first season as a Charger, Linsley started 16 of their 17 games, leading the way up front for an offense that ranked in the top five in the league in both points (27.9) and yards (390.2) per game.

3. Joey Bosa, OLB, Los Angeles Chargers

Regular Season Stats: 51 tackles, 10.5 sacks, 5 TFL, 20 QB hits, 7 FF

The Chargers’ other star from Ohio State also continued his reign as one of the NFL’s best players at his position in 2021, earning his third straight and fourth overall Pro Bowl selection as he recorded double-digit sacks for the fourth time in his professional career.

Bosa’s seven strip sacks were the most in the NFL. Bosa finished the regular season eighth among all NFL defenders with 68 total pressures, per PFF, which also graded Bosa as the ninth-best overall edge defender in the league.

In his second year of a five-year, $135 million contract extension, Joey Bosa continued to demonstrate why he is one of the NFL’s best edge players – though he was only the second-best Bosa in the league in 2021.

2. Nick Bosa, DE, San Francisco 49ers

Regular Season Stats: 52 tackles, 15.5 sacks, 21 TFL, 32 QB hits, 1 PD, 4 FF
Playoff Stats (3 games): 12 tackles, 4 sacks, 2 TFL, 5 QB hits, 1 FF

After tearing his ACL in the 49ers’ second game of the 2020 season, Nick Bosa came back stronger than ever in 2021.

Bosa was a dominant force off the edge for the 49ers all year long, finishing the regular season with 15.5 sacks – fourth-most in the NFL – and a league-high 21 tackles for loss as well as four forced fumbles. He added four more sacks, two tackles for loss and a forced fumble on 12 total tackles in three postseason games for the 49ers, who he helped lead to an NFC Championship Game appearance.

While he somehow didn’t get a single vote for NFL Comeback Player of the Year, the Pro Football Writers of America named Bosa to their All-NFL team. He was also selected to his second Pro Bowl in as many healthy NFL seasons, setting him up for a potential enormous payday this offseason going into his fourth year in the NFL.

Nick Bosa
Nick Bosa reasserted himself as one of the NFL’s elite pass-rushers in 2021. (Photo: Darren Yamashita – USA TODAY Sports)

1. Cameron Heyward, DT, Pittsburgh Steelers

Regular Season Stats: 89 tackles, 10 sacks, 15 TFL, 17 QB hits, 1 INT, 9 PD, 1 FF, 1 FR
Playoff Stats (1 game): 4 tackles, 1 FF

2021 was Heyward’s 11th season in the NFL, and it may have been his best yet.

The veteran defensive tackle was a dominant force on the Steelers’ defensive line all year long, recording a career-high 89 total tackles, tied for the most tackles of any NFL defensive lineman in 2021.

Graded by PFF as the NFL’s second-best interior defensive lineman behind only Rams superstar Aaron Donald, Heyward notched double-digit sacks for the second time in his NFL career and recorded a career-high nine passes defensed, including an interception against Justin Fields – his second interception in as many years.

The Steelers’ NFL Man of the Year nominee for the fourth time, Heyward earned first-team All-Pro honors for the third time in his NFL career, PFWA All-NFL honors for the second time in his career and was selected to the Pro Bowl for the fifth year in a row. And he added another spectacular season to a résumé that might ultimately make him a Pro Football Hall of Famer when his NFL career is all said and done.

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