Do the New York Giants need a right tackle? Prior to free agency, the answer is a resounding “maybe”, at least in the near term.
Regardless of whether they need one now or eventually, the Giants might be
well-served to take a long, hard look at Arizona State right tackle Max Iheanachor. Iheanachor has one of the more noteworthy stories in this year’s draft. He and his family are Nigerian immigrants and Iheanachor arriving in the US at the age of 13. He grew up playing basketball and soccer, but was ultimately convinced to give football a try in college. Iheanachor played the sport for the first time in 2021 as a walk on at East Los Angeles College and then transferred to Arizona State in 2023.
Iheanachor is remarkably athletic for his size, with uncommon grace and movement skills for someone 325 pounds and nearly 6-foot-6.
Could the Giants select Iheanachor as a long-term bookend for Andrew Thomas?
Prospect: Max Iheanachor (58)
Games Watched: vs. TCU (2025), vs. Texas Tech (2025), vs. Iowa State (2025)
Red Flags: none
Measurables
Height: 6-foot 5 ⅝
Weight: 325
Arm length: 34 ½ inches
Hand size: 9 ⅜ inches
Strengths
Best traits
- Size
- Length
- Athleticism
- Foot quickness
- Pass protection
- Zone blocking
Iheanachor is a big, long, powerful, and extremely athletic offensive tackle prospect.
Iheanachor has a prototypical frame for an NFL offensive tackle at 6-foot-5, 325 pounds, with 34 ½ inch arms. He carries his bulk extremely well, with great thickness in his upper and lower halves but little “sloppy” weight on his frame. He’s done a good job of adding size over the last four years, going from 290 pounds to his current weight.
Iheanachor is remarkably athletic, and not just “for his size”. He is a former basketball and soccer player, and his movement skills match up with the background. He’s an utterly effortless mover on the edge with fantastic quickness and agility despite his size. Iheanachor is easily able to match athletic speed rushers off the edge, as well as redirect to pick up stunts, twists, and blitzes through the B-gap. Likewise, he’s able to expand the pocket without resorting to oversetting, and is also a very efficient pulling lineman.
He typically plays with a wide base but takes short, quick steps while covering significant ground. He’s always ready to anchor or redirect, with plenty of play strength to deal with power rushers or to recover and stalemate speed rushers if he’s initially beaten. He has consistently improved as a pass protector and didn’t surrender any sacks last year, while also cutting down hurries (15 to 11).
Finally, Iheanachor is a capable run blocker, particularly in zone schemes. He’s easily able to stress defenses laterally thanks to his athleticism and does a great job of staying in phase with his linemates. Likewise, his athleticism allows him to climb to the second level or quickly hit his landmarks as a pulling blocker.
Weaknesses
Worst traits
- Experience
- Man-gap blocking
- Leverage consistency
There are few true weaknesses in Iheanachor’s profile, at least at this point in his development.
The biggest weakness in his game overall is simply his lack of experience as an offensive tackle and football player in general. Iheanachor has only been playing the sport since 2021 and that does show up in his game at times. He still needs to continue to work on tying his hands and feet together, as well as maintaining his leverage throughout the rep. He also has a tendency to dip his head and lunge into contact when blocking downhill.
He also doesn’t play with a mauler’s mentality yet, and doesn’t take full advantage of his size and strength. Iheanachor isn’t soft, weak, or easily overpowered by any means, but he also isn’t a road grader who distorts the line of scrimmage or dominates defenders. Likewise, while his hands are solid, he doesn’t deliver his punch with the violence of which his frame would suggest he’s capable.
Right now, he’s a much better zone blocker than man-gap blocker, largely due to how he loses leverage when blocking downhill.
Right now, we can chalk those shortcomings up to a lack of experience at the position, and expect him to continue to improve with NFL coaching. They become more serious concerns if they don’t improve over the coming years.
Game Tape
(Iheanachor is the Arizona State right tackle wearing number 58)
Projection
Iheanachor projects as a starting offensive lineman at the NFL level.
The big question is just how much development he will need to take a starting job. He’s only been playing football for five years and just three of those years are in a major college program. It’s possible that Iheanachor can win a starting job right away, but he may also need a year or two before he’s ready to start. While more old school evaluators will want to convert him to left tackle due to his athleticism, teams should view him as a right tackle prospect. Iheanachor has only played right tackle in college, and it isn’t worth it to try and reconstruct his technique for the left side. Instead, teams should keep him where he’s familiar and shorten his learning curve as much as possible.
Regardless, he has “first round” traits that border on “elite.” He might be viewed as a second round pick purely due to his inexperience, but his upside could well get him drafted in the first round. There’s a real chance that Iheanachor becomes the best tackle to come out of this draft class if he lands in a good situation with the right development.
Does he fit the Giants? Yes.
Final Word: A late first or early second round value, though he may be drafted much higher.
