NFL Draft: Ranking New York Giants’ Round 1 offensive linemen targets

No. 3: OL Ikem Ekwonu, North Carolina State University

This is where the fun begins.

Ikem Ekwonu has been one of my favorite prospects to study ever since I began scouting this years draft class, and if you’ve read some of my previous work, you’d know why.

Coming in at 6’4, 320 pounds, Ikem Ekwonu had himself a dominant season at NC State, gaining a pass blocking grade of 78.3, alongside a run blocking grade of 93.8 per, PFF.

Using his elite strength, athleticism, and power, Ikem Ewkonu was one of the best run blockers in the nation this season, which has caused some NFL scouts to believe that Ekwonu’s best position may be at guard.

This makes sense, as not only does Ekwonu play like a guard, his size also suits the position well. However, if the NY Giants were to draft him, it may make more sense to keep him at tackle to fill a team need.

Ekwonu’s ability to not only dominate in both pass blocking, but run blocking snaps as well is truly special.

Whether its his elite footwork or deadly hands, Ikem Ekwonu knows how to get the job done, however, like with all prospects, Ekwonu does have some slight issues.

Ikem Ekwonu has the tendency to sometimes miss his hand placement which can lead to him getting figured out by defenders, Ekwonu also plays over-aggressively sometimes, which can cause him to miss blocks in the open field. However, these problems are not concerning enough to warrant a drop off in Ekwonu’s stock.