Chargers have another Mekhi Becton to target (and it's painfully obvious)

After failing to live up to expectations as a right tackle, the New York Giants are converting former first-round pick Evan Neal to guard ahead of the 2025 season. A high draft pick disappointing in New York before potentially finding new life at guard. Sound familiar, LA Chargers fans?

This is the exact same timeline that Chargers right guard Mekhi Becton embarked upon in his NFL career. Becton was drafted by the New York Jets with the No. 11 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft and he never lived up to expectations at tackle. The Philadelphia Eagles then signed him to be a right guard and he turned in an excellent 2024 season. Now, he's on the Chargers.

Perhaps the Giants are grooming their high first-round pick to follow in the exact same path as Becton. While it remains to be seen how Neal will handle the switch to guard, there are striking similarities between the No. 7 pick in 2022 and the No. 11 pick in 2020.

Evan Neal is on a path to become the Chargers' next starting guard

Of course, there is a lot that needs to happen between now and the time Neal is actually on the market next offseason. Neal has to first prove he can make the switch, because if not, this is not even worth talking about.

That being said, even if Neal doesn't excel this season the writing is on the wall for the Chargers to at least consider him as a depth option next offseason. After all, general manager Joe Hortiz admitted the Chargers talked about signing Becton before the Eagles did in 2024.

Becton was coming off his bad stint with the Jets a year ago and the Chargers still had those conversations. If Neal shows even the slightest amount of promise, the Chargers will at least consider bringing him in as a cheap flier.

Neal would have to switch sides and play left guard, assuming Becton continues to excel in 2025 and is the starter in 2026. Zion Johnson, who was drafted in the same class, is also a free agent after the season, creating a natural opening if the Chargers want to go that direction.

Our friends over at Guilty As Charged even mentioned the possibility of the Chargers trading for Neal as a depth offensive lineman before the 2025 season. If Neal loses New York's starting right guard competition and is available for a future seventh-round pick, it absolutely could be a swing the Chargers take.

That would allow the team to get Neal in the building a year early to do some intel. If that where to happen, and the Chargers like what they see in a practice capacity without him playing in games, the team would have a direct line to re-sign him for cheap.

Regardless, it's impossible to ignore the similarities between Becton and Neal at this stage of their NFL careers. For that reason, Neal is a name to watch for Chargers fans.