What to expect of Sam Cosmi as he transitions to guard
Breaking down what Commanders fans can expect from Sam Cosmi as he switches from right tackle to right guard.
With the Washington Commanders signing Andrew Wylie and still intent on scouting the offensive tackle class in the draft, it appears as though Sam Cosmi is set to move inside to guard. Cosmi was Washington’s second-round pick back in 2021 and the team started him at right tackle due to his size and athletic ability. However, his technique caused him some issues outside and his arm length on the edge was always a concern.
Cosmi has battled with injuries during his two years in the NFL and after getting hurt early in the year, the Commanders went with Cornelius Lucas at right tackle with Cosmi occasionally rotating in at both right tackle and right guard down the stretch. It was an odd situation that didn’t help Cosmi’s development, but hopefully now with Eric Bieniemy coming in and looking to hire a new offensive line coach, Cosmi can settle in at guard going forward.
But what can we expect from Cosmi at guard? Athleticism will definitely be a plus. Cosmi has always been an exceptional athlete and when you compare his relative athletic score with Andrew Wylie’s, they’re remarkably similar, giving Washington a potentially very athletic right side of the line.
Both Cosmi and Wylie have scores over nine out of a possible 10, making them both exceptional athletes for the position. But that’s a comparison of them at tackle, if you compare them to other guards, it looks even better for the pair.
At guard, Cosmi ranks at a perfect 10 while Wylie jumps up to a 9.6. So if the Commanders draft a right tackle and move Wylie inside to guard, that would give them two of the most athletic guards in the league.
Athleticism is great, but how does that translate to playing guard for Cosmi? Having good athletes at guard is extremely beneficial in the run game, particularly on zone scheme runs. Guards often have to climb up to the second level and block linebackers, but less athletic players can have issues doing so. Cosmi has the mobility to climb and reach blocks effortlessly.
On this play, Cosmi lines up at right guard in the red zone against the Giants. The Commanders are running a zone scheme run to the left with Cosmi having to climb and reach a linebacker on the second level. Cosmi actually climbs so well he gets to the front side linebacker that should probably be blocked by the left guard instead. That allows the left guard to adjust and climb to the safety. However, the running back is forced to cut back and because Cosmi reached the front side linebacker, the back side linebacker was free to make the play. Cosmi appeared to realize his mistake and tried to peel back to pick up the other linebacker, but was unable to do so in time.
With the athleticism of Cosmi and Wylie, the Commanders should be able to have some success generating movement and making second level blocks on zone scheme runs. Another benefit of that athletic ability should be seen in the screen game. Last season, Washington failed to create many explosive plays in the screen game despite having some incredibly explosive playmakers like Terry McLaurin, Curtis Samuel and Antonio Gibson. This was because the offensive line struggled to get out in front of the screen and set up blocks. Cosmi’s athleticism at guard should help them in that regard.
On most screen passes, it’s typically the guards and the center that get out in front of the screen while the tackles stay in to help ensure the quarterback has time to deliver his pass. With Cosmi at right guard here, you can see his athleticism on display as he effortlessly gets out in front of McLaurin, ready to block the first defender but then adjusting to get outside once Samuel blocks the slot defender.
The screen game was a huge part of the Chiefs’ offense under Eric Bieniemy. They always did a fantastic job designing ways to misdirect the defense and set up screens, but they also had some athletic lineman that could get out in front to block for the receiver or running back. Moving Cosmi inside to guard and adding Wylie should help Bieniemy reinvigorate Washington’s screen game.
The athletic ability at guard can also help with gap scheme runs that require lineman to pull from one side to the other. Cosmi obviously won’t have any issues pulling and moving to the other side on gap scheme runs. However, he will need to improve when it comes to maintaining blocks after pulling.
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