Best Ohio State football players in 2022 NFL season
Ohio State football players have seen their fair share of success in the NFL.
Since 2011, 85 former Buckeyes have been selected in the NFL draft, including 21 in the first round. In 2022, 51 former Ohio State football players made active NFL rosters.
Here are eight of the most important former Buckeyes to their respective NFL teams during the 2022 season.
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Chicago Bears QB Justin Fields
After a slow start to his NFL career, quarterback Justin Fields has come out of his shell for the Chicago Bears.
The No. 11 overall pick in the 2021 draft recorded two straight games with 150 passing yards and 130 rushing yards in losses to the Miami Dolphins and the Detroit Lions in 2022, and is the only quarterback since 1925 to have at least three career touchdown rushes of more than 50 yards.
In 12 games, Fields has completed 61.7% of his 253 pass attempts for 1,896 yards along with 905 rushing yards for 21 total touchdowns.
In two seasons with the Buckeyes, Fields completed 68.4% of his 579 pass attempts for 5,373 passing yards, 63 touchdowns and nine interceptions, adding 15 touchdowns and 867 yards rushing.
San Francisco 49ers DE Nick Bosa
When healthy, Nick Bosa has been a consistent presence at the end of the San Francisco 49ers defensive line.
Selected with the second pick by the 49ers in the 2019 NFL draft, Bosa recorded 37 tackles-for-loss and 24.5 sacks through his first three seasons, including a 2020 season in which he played two games, earning two Pro Bowl appearances and the 2019 AP Defensive Rookie of the Year award.
In 2022, that dominance has continued, as he leads the 49ers in sacks and is a mainstay in opposing backfields, including a three-sack performance against Miami on Dec. 4, which earned him NFC Defensive Player of the Week.
Through 12 games, Bosa is leading the NFL with 14.5 sacks, bringing in 39 tackles and 15 tackles-for-loss, along with 35 quarterback hits.
It’s what Bosa did at the college level, recording 77 tackles, 29 tackles-for-loss and 17.5 sacks in 29 career games for Ohio State from 2016-18.
New Orleans LB Pete Werner
In the middle of his second NFL season, Pete Werner has developed into one of the more consistent linebackers in the league.
After recording 62 tackles and four tackles-for-loss as a rookie in 2021, Werner had become a mainstay in the middle of the Saints’ defense along with linebacker Demario Davis when he hasn’t been sidelined with an ankle injury, bringing in 74 tackles and three tackles-for-loss in nine games.
Werner was at the center of Ohio State’s defense for three of his four seasons with the Buckeyes, recording 185 tackles, 16 tackles-for-loss and four sacks from 2017-20. But with the Saints, Werner seems to be hitting his stride.
Cincinnati Bengals SAF Vonn Bell
Ever since he was drafted in the second round in 2016 by the New Orleans Saints, Vonn Bell has developed into one of the more consistent safeties in the sport.
Through six full seasons between the Saints and the Cincinnati Bengals, Bell recorded at least 83 tackles, including a career-high 114 tackles in 2020. Bell is a bit under that pace in 2022, bringing in 64 tackles through 13 games, but has added four interceptions, seven pass deflections, four tackles-for-loss, a sack and a forced fumble.
In two years as a starter for Ohio State, Bell showed that ability in the Buckeyes’ backfield, bringing in 156 of his 175 tackles in 2014-15, along with eight interceptions and 15 pass deflections.
Washington Commanders WR Terry McLaurin
Ever since he was drafted in the third round in 2019, Terry McLaurin has been one of the more consistent receivers in the league.
The former Ohio State receiver is on track to finish with his third-straight 100 target season with the Washington Commanders, recording 62 receptions for 945 yards and three touchdowns through 13 games.
McLaurin’s production increased over the course of his four-year college career, bringing in 1,251 receiving yards and 19 catches over the course of his final three seasons with the Buckeyes.
The Commanders offense may be struggling, but McLaurin remains at the center of its production when it is clicking.
New Orleans Saints WR Chris Olave
It did not take long for Chris Olave to become one of the most consistent wide receivers the New Orleans Saints have in the pass game.
After recording 2,702 yards and 35 touchdowns on 175 catches across four seasons with Ohio State, Olave is the top rookie receiver in terms of yards in 2022 and is one of two receivers on pace for 1,000 yards including Garrett Wilson.
In his first 12 games of NFL play, Olave had 887 receiving yards and three touchdowns on 60 catches, averaging 73.9 receiving yards per game.
With former Ohio State wide receiver Michael Thomas out with a toe injury, Olave has emerged as the Saints’ top option in the passing game.
Pittsburgh Steelers DT Cameron Heyward
Cameron Heyward showed what he…
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