Welcome to the Steelers Max Iheanachor

They could've had Freeling if they even moved up 2 spots. Big drop off at OT after him.

 

He looks like he has better footwork than Broderick, so that is promising.

 

Mike McCarthy's first draft pick as Steelers HC.

 

If he was so experienced and fundamentally sound then why was he drafted 63rd overall? The only reason I used him as a comparison was that he was considered a good athlete for a really big guy and that he had “upside” to be a starter in the league. He turned out pretty solid, even if he wasn’t a stud. You were pretty specific with “early round lineman” as we haven’t taken a ton and none that could be considered projects. We’ve had some success with guys that were considered “projects” in the past. Guys like TJ Watt and Bud Dupree were high ceiling guys that were more projects. Jones was the same way but he didnt really improve his inconsistencies.

 

From the tour of the internet I took tonight, there’s two reactions among draft “knowers”. The negative ones are all guys who are all wrapped up in their respective rankings being correct. “I had him as #45 on my big board and my board is both the biggest and the best so I hate this pick!”.

The positive ones are all guys who just love the work and don’t care if you think they’re right or not. These guys are all saying “I had him like in the 30’s but dang he’s got a chance to be a heckuva player. Like the pick”.

Steelers have 11 more picks. It’s gonna be okay.

 

Its hard to really point true value because the value of players changes based off who is on the board still. There was a run on quality OL (all the other viable tackles). Could the Steelers have traded down a small handful of spots and still gotten him? Maybe. But they didn’t want to risk leaving the only viable tackle prospect left available for someone else to take. So he became more valuable in a vacuum being the last quality OT prospect for a while.

I don’t get the doom and gloom over the pick. It seems reasonable to assume that we really liked Lemon and were going to draft him if he got to 21. Once he got picked up, then we likely moved onto Ihenachor. We had an offer, but obviously the return wasn’t high enough to risk losing a guy we wanted (or Ihenachor was the only guy left that we really liked).

I’m hoping use some of our capital to move around in the second round. Still good players on the board. If we can stack a few good players tomorrow, then we should be good

 

I think it partially has to do with team need…what the heck is going with the WR room? Khan hasn’t really filled the void, because we need to be 4-deep at WR, and we only have 2 starters as of now. There are more positions of higher need as well.

LG absolutely needs to be addressed, but with this pick it looks like the tackles will be shaken up too…it just creates more questions than answers. It will take a while for it to all come together now. I’m sure Rodgers is thinking, “oh, great a rookie tackle to protect me.”

I was perfectly fine letting Cook and Jones battle it out in camp.

3 first round tackles is a heavy investment for a team with a lot of holes on the roster. Two of them considered “projects” no less.

 

Obviously they think Jones is done, or they wouldn't have drafted Iheanachor.

 

Solid pick.

 

As it has been discussed, im thinking they move Fautanu to LT, Iheanachor starts at RT, and maybe they think they could move Broderick Jones in to play LG considering his struggles. LG there is less space and maybe he does well there. He would be a great pulling guard with how nimble he is.

As far as the Iheanachor pick is concerned, I like the upside and his RAS score is 9.86 out of 10...which ranks him 24 out of 1645 OT from 1987 to 2026 so he is pretty athletic. However, I feel like with 12 picks, Khan should have been looking to move up to go after a player he wanted...ie Vega Ioane/Lemon/etc. All these other teams are being proactive and Khan just sitting on his hands. Yes it takes two to tangle but im sure he could have made something happen. Im hoping to see him package some picks to move up into the 2nd round for better talent if possible on day 2.

 

I just read that the 49ers were going to take him at 27, which is why they traded down afterwards. Maybe a smart pick after all.

 

Now the other shoe drops. Teams that checked his medical history believe the Max is a lot older that he is claiming. We may have just drafted one of the oldest rookies of all time. Thanks KHAN, for not brining MAX in and having your medical staff get a look at him in person.


AI
As of April 2026, there is discussion regarding the age of Max Iheanachor, an offensive tackle prospect out of Arizona State for the 2026 NFL Draft. Reports suggest his age may be considered "questionable" or a risk factor by some NFL teams, often comparing his situation to that of former Lions player Ziggy Ansah due to his Nigerian background and later start to football.


NFL Draft Medical Preview: Max Iheanachor, OT Arizona State
Iheanachor moved from Nigeria at age 13. He has a shoulder surgery history, missed about half a season in 2023 with multiple injuries, and is suspected to be of older age. All these issues will need further investigation by medical.

The potential age uncertainty is reminiscent of former Lions 1st-rounder Ziggy Ansah, who sharply declined after his 5th-year in the NFL. The age risk becomes more palatable after the 1st round.

 

Good name for a LT or RT

 

Nah, Max is a lunar prospect picked up on the dark side of the moon by the Artemis II crew, so the birth certificate’s classified. Still a bit raw, but an insane upside.

 

I start out with the good. He is big, and fast.

Now for the bad, he was a reach at pick #21. He did not play football until college ( He was a soccer guy ) and is a non- american born player meaning football is not in his culture. He has a tiny hand for a tackle ( 9 " ) ( might have weak grip strength ) average strength , and below average arm length for his position.

Dude is not strong in the ground game, played a weak schedule ( Big 12 ) and isn't very battle tested. Max had 16 penalties and occasional protection breakdowns. 16 flags? A sign he was beaten often and had to hold. RED FLAG.

He might prove to be a long team bet, but short term he is headed toward the bench. A bad first round pick as there were better players on the board.

This very good website has him rated #9 at OL. Sure Steeler fan that equates to pick #21 over all! I did not scout him for his games, and felt he was a round two type of gamble. Obviously Khan feels different and we can coach him up. He is not a guard option, and really isn't a right tackle type of player either.

He did have a good senior bowl week of practice.

https://www.nfldraftbuzz.com/Player/Max-Iheanachor-OL-ArizonaState

I will do my annual draft review of who I would have taken at the draft. Some posters might remember that from the other board that went defunct.

 

If this doesn't read like Jones' draft profile I don't know what does:

Every single thing is what Jones' struggled with. I guess the Steelers think they are now experts at developing OTs?

BUT; Hines Ward wouldn't lie would he?? Hines Ward, an ASU coach, praised Iheanachor’s enthusiasm and character, stating, “He’s a Steeler.”

 

This is a horrible pick if Pat Meyer was still the o line coach. Lets see what the new staff can do.

 

Well you are 100% right. I say again better players were on the board.

 

For those suggesting moving Fautanu to LT and Max goes to RT there is a slight problem. Iheanachor will not be a Day 1 starter, either on the right or left. That means Cook stays at LT and Troy at RT for the foreseeable future. Then it becomes even harder for Troy to make the switch after 2+ seasons at RT. Steelers coaching staff has to think this through, but I say Iheanachor eventually goes to LT and develops there. He has the feet for it, unlike Jones.

My other comment on this is a positive one; Iheanachor has already demonstrated something Jones really had troubles with. Only playing organized football for five years Iheanachor seems a very quick learner. This bodes well for his development, unlike Jones who seemed to struggle with consistency on the basics.

 

I keep hearing about how they wanted Lemon but lost him to a trade up, sending them into panic mode.

Saying that they went into 'Panic mode' not so subtly suggests that Max was an insufficient pick due to them being unprepared. They've run these scenario's a million times and have their labored-over big board that informs each decision. Yes, Omar looks stupid for calling Lemon prematurely. But, a lot fans are living in this world of 'What could've been'. There's guys every year that they would rather have if there were no such thing as draft order. I'm sure that they probably had at least a few guys they would've taken above TJ Watt if they had a top 10 pick instead of #30. Or above Lemon in this draft. If Lemon was THAT important to them they probably would've traded up like they did for Jones, especially with the extra picks. Its a shame that this pick feels tainted because Omar called early.

 

You hit on something that permeates the entire conversation after a player is drafted. The evaluators always grade the pick based on where they had the player evaluated or expected to go. If anyone takes a player more than a few picks from the "expected" draft position of that player, everyone screams "REACH!!" That's when the draft grades come out and they give the team a D for taking a player too early based on their own evaluations. It also doesn't mean that they know what they're talking about.

You've read my posts long enough to know that I simply tell you what I think about a player. I like this player but understand that he needs some development. No, I didn't expect him to go this high, but when there was a run on offensive tackles the team decided to go with the player they most likely had rated as one of the 32 best players and first-round caliber OT's on their board....so they drafted him. He was likely the last OT that they graded as a first round talent, and they felt like they couldn't get a player close to his talent if they passed on him.

Here's the other thing. I loved Ioane from Penn State at guard, but they may not have as big a drop off from Ioane to Pregnon, Bisontis, Rutledge, or maybe even a guy a little later like Jalen Farmer from Kentucky. There are still really good guards that can be taken that can become very good players. The Steelers probably didn't feel that way about the offensive tackles after Iheanachor.

It doesn't mean I'm dancing around the room celebrating the pick when it is announced, but I understand the talent level of the player and the needs of the team. I also choose to try to be positive about the picks and not bury them on it because I had a guy rated as going around pick 34, but they took him at 21. This isn't like they drafted a player that wouldn't have been taken until the third round. He is an uber-talented, athletic player at a premier position with insane size and movement skills. He is a worthy consideration at #21. I suspect other teams were scrambling trying to see if they could move up to get him once the OT's started flying off the board.

The sky has not fallen, even though some people are saying it has. Now let's see how they handle the rest of the draft.

 

They wanted Lemon.

Khan was on the phone with Lemon saying they were going to pick him at 21 while Howie Roseman was making a deal for a trade up and they took Lemon at 20.Whoops.

Not saying that Max was a bad pick and Offensive Lineman are always needed so hopefully he will contribute this upcoming season.

Jones had spinal fusion surgery on his neck in the off season. They won't exercise the 5th year option. Personally I wouldn't have given him the 5th year injury or not. Omar Khan and Mike McCarthy acknowledged that uncertainty remains over Jones’ future.

 

Stillers’ front office knows way more about BroJo’s neck problems than we do. That is probably why taking Max I-chart became a reasonable idea rather than taking a wide receiver.
I bet they get their WR in the second round.

 

Honestly, made me think of Jones.

 

It's a boom / bust type pick. And if it works, you're set at the 2nd most important position on offense for a decade or so.

Didn't work with Jones. Hopefully works with the new guy.

At this point in the draft, if you want a T none of them are going to be ideal. Because the ideal ones all go before 20.

I don't love the pick. But I'm never mad about an OL in the 1st.