Meet the New York Giants’ ‘slam dunk’ pick for the 2022 NFL Draft

There might not be a better fit to anchor the New York Giants’ offensive line rebuild than incoming rookie tackle Ickey Ekwonu

If new general manager Joe Schoen is going to succeed in turning the New York Giants’ fortunes around, he is going to first need to succeed in rebuilding one of the NFL’s most porous offensive lines.

Whether Schoen and the Giants invest a first-round pick in an offensive lineman remains to be seen.

But, there is one top-10 prospect that if he’s available, NFL Draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah says Schoen and the New York Giants should run their card to the commissioner as soon as they go on the clock.

"“I think Ekwonu would be a slam dunk if he got to them,” Jeremiah said on a conference call with reporters Friday. “I don’t know that he’s going to get there, but if he did, I think that would be one they’d probably just turn in the card.”"

What Ickey Ekwonu would bring the New York Giants in the NFL Draft

Ickey Ekwonu is widely viewed as one of the premier offensive line prospects and consensus top-10 pick in the draft.

The 6-foot-4 and 320 pound North Carolina State standout has the versatility to be a mauler in the running game, and the skill-set to quickly engage as a blocker in zone schemes.

For an offensive line that could be aiming to add four starters this offseason, and with Schoen potentially prioritizing a bookend tackle opposite Andrew Thomas with one of the New York Giants’ two top-10 selections — No. 5 and No. 7 overall, it’s easy to envision Ekwonu being then pick.

“This kid has tremendous athletic ability,” an NFC personnel executive tells FanSided.

Beyond athleticism, beyond the ability to walk into a starting tackle role in the NFL, Ekwonu very nearly wound up playing college ball and going to school at Harvard.

“Funny story is after I got the offer from Yale, my mom basically told me ‘you’re going to go there,’” Ekwonu recently told FanSided. “I was like ‘hold on, mom, let’s wait a little bit, see my options a little bit more.’ One of the main things was the financial aid aspect of it. Obviously, if I have an opportunity to go to a great school and my parents not have to pay, I’m going to take that opportunity.

“I felt like N.C. State had a great business program and that was one of the biggest things I could check off. Just a great school overall and Power 5 football. I wanted that title as well. So all those things factored into my decision.”

At N.C. State, Ekwonu was a second-team All-ACC selection in 2020 and a unanimous first-team selection in 2021.

There are many ways to build an offensive line, but few prospects in this year’s class offer the kind of consistency, upside, and mentality that Ekwonu would bring the New York Giants.