The 2021 NFL season came and went, with its Week 18 finale providing a firework show fit for any Olympic closing ceremony.
As exciting as Week 18 was, its conclusion marked the end of a road for the unfortunate majority of the 2021 NFL Draft class. Their rookie year is now officially in the books. Some first-year players, such as Miami Dolphins wide receiver Jaylen Waddle and Atlanta's Kyle Pitts, embarked on record-breaking NFL debuts. Others, such as Jacksonville‘s Trevor Lawrence and New York‘s Zach Wilson, will no doubt be looking forward to starting again.
Let’s look at what the NFL's 32 teams got out of this rookie class in 2021.
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Teams that got the most snaps from rookies
| Ranks | Team | Snaps |
| 1 | Lions | 5,280 |
| 2 | Jets | 4,916 |
| 3 | Steelers | 4,412 |
| 4 | Eagles | 3,736 |
| 5 | Dolphins | 3,681 |
| 6 | Broncos | 3,581 |
| 7 | Raiders | 3,495 |
| 8 | Falcons | 3,380 |
| 9 | Chiefs | 3,365 |
| 10 | Chargers | 3,027 |
Philadelphia Eagles general manager Howie Roseman has to be the front-runner for executive of the year. After navigating so-called “cap hell” in the course of one offseason, he then got the fourth-most snaps from his rookie class of any team in the NFL and still made the playoffs. It was a masterstroke, and the icing on the cake is that he also acquired three first-round picks in the upcoming 2022 NFL Draft.
DeVonta Smith, Landon Dickerson, Kenneth Gainwell and Milton Williams played crucial roles for the Philadelphia Eagles this year.
One of the most worrisome omissions here is the team that had the most draft capital in 2021. The Jacksonville Jaguars finished with only 2,749 snaps from their rookie class despite boasting four top-50 selections. Obviously, Travis Etienne got hurt, but second-rounder Walker Little was always a developmental tackle, and third-rounder Andre Cisco was an Urban Meyer afterthought.
Teams that got the least snaps from rookies
| Ranks | Team | Snaps |
| 23 | 49ers | 1,844 |
| 24 | Saints | 1,615 |
| 25 | Titans | 1,605 |
| 26 | Bills | 1,579 |
| 27 | Cardinals | 1,450 |
| 28 | Colts | 1,155 |
| 29 | Vikings | 1,082 |
| 30 | Rams | 990 |
| 31 | Seahawks | 862 |
| 32 | Buccaneers | 735 |
The Seahawks' disappointing year is made even worse when you consider that they really weren’t developing a 2021 rookie class. Their leading rookie was actually UDFA Jake Curhan, whose 37.2 pass-blocking grade this season doesn’t exactly scream “building block” going forward.
Grades and Snaps Report
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