Packers Host Potential First Round Offensive Tackle

The Green Bay Packers finished their 2026 season by watching their offensive line resemble a turnstile rather than the great wall they envisioned based on the investments they’ve made at the position.

Despite a poor finish, the only meaningful change the Packers have made up front to this point is sliding Jordan Morgan to left tackle to replace Rasheed Walker.

With Morgan plugging in at left tackle and Sean Rhyan getting re-signed to play center, and Darian Kinnard to be their super sub, the Packers are presumably set with their first six guys on the offensive line under contract for 2026.

Unless they’re not.

The Packers are still looking for potential replacements and insurance at the tackle position, as evidenced by hosting Arizona State’s Max Iheanachor for a ’30’ visit ahead of the draft, according to Aaron Wilson.

Iheanachor, was a three-year starter for the Sun Devils, and has the size the Packers have moved toward in recent years.

He  measures 6-foot-6 and 321 pounds. The question here is whether or not Iheanachor will even be available for Green Bay to take him.

Iheanachor is ranked as the 30th overall player on the consensus big board. Dane Brugler of The Athletic ranks him as his 33rd overall player.

That could make Iheanachor a potential first round pick, and typically offensive linemen, especially tackles, are able to get over drafted.

Iheanachor started 28 games at right tackle at Arizona State. He did not allow a sack in 2025, which spanned more than 500 pass blocking snaps, and is seen as an ascending player coming out of college after three years of improvement.

The Rise

Iheanachor’s path to the NFL was not conventional. Most players in the United States have a pretty direct path. They’re born into the country that is obsessed with football, they start playing during their youth, and work through college before hoping to hear their name called in the NFL draft.

Iheanachor did not do that. He was born in Nigeria, and starred in basketball for the first 13 years of his life before he moved with his family to the United States.

According to The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, Iheanachor did not even start playing football until 2021. He’s very talented, but also very raw. That could mean the Packers view him as a player who has his best football in front of him, and they could develop him into a potential star at tackle.

Despite never playing a down of high school football, Iheanachor fell in love quickly with the sport. In fact, he’s so smitten with the game that he has a unique tattoo, the NFL shield.

"It's definitely something that means a lot to me," Iheanachor told reporters at Arizona State’s pro day. "I love football, love the game, so why not?"

So How Did He Start?

Iheanachor was likely not thinking much about football when he was in high school, but dabbled in both basketball and soccer.

Sometimes, all it takes is one coaching seeing a player, and their life can change in an instant.

That’s what happened to Iheanachor, as an AAU basketball coach recommended him to Bobby Godinez, the football coach at East Los Angeles College (ELAC).

You saw everything you needed to see his ability to move, his height and weight, his frame," Godinez told Fox Sports.

"I knew he would be something special, so it just took a little convincing, and the rest is history. Once he stepped foot on that field, there wasn't a hesitation to work on what he needed to work on. He was all business."

Iheanachor would jump into football at ELAC before he caught the eyes of Saga Tuitele, who was the offensive line coach at Fresno State in 2022.

Tuitele was originally at ELAC to recruit another offensive tackle, but could not help but notice a future NFL Draft prospect.

"I said, 'Who's that other kid?'" Tuitele said.

"His coach didn't pull punches, said he was not ready. But you saw he had a lot of potential, a big athlete who's hardly played any football. They said he doesn't know what he's doing yet, but he's not scared. He's not scared of contact or competition. I told him: 'You are nowhere close to a finished product.' He likes to be challenged.”

The path was not easy. Iheanachor struggled as he was behind other players who had played football their entire life, while he was just learning the ropes.

"There were times he was doubting the process, doubting himself," Godinez said.

"Naturally, you look to your right and left and see people who have played football their whole life, and you're thinking 'God, I'm so far away.' I told him and his mom: Just stick with it. He's going to get it. You guys are going to be very happy with the results."

The results turned out to be incredibly positive for Iheanachor as he started to pick up FBS offers after the 2022 season.

When Tuitele took a job at Arizona State to coach with Kenny Dillingham, that was one of the draws for Iheanachor to play his college football in the desert.

He was part of an offensive line that led the Sun Devils to the College Football Playoff in 2024, and helped Cam Skattebo rumble for more than 1,700 yards along the way.

Where’s the Fit?

If Iheanachor were to fall to the Packers’ pick in the second round and they took him, the first question would be, where does he fit considering the current landscape of Green Bay’s offensive line.

The first point to consider is that while the Packers have publicly stated they believe in Jordan Morgan at left tackle, there is no tangible evidence in games that matter that Morgan can play left tackle in the NFL.

There have been signs. He played well in the preseason last year. He played well against Brian Flores’ defense in an otherwise meaningless regular season finale in Minnesota.

He’s never started back-to-back weeks at left tackle in the regular season during his NFL career.

The Packers could be looking for some insurance in the event that Morgan flames out at left tackle.

That could mean teaching Iheanachor to play left tackle even though he spent the duration of his college career on the right side of the line.

It could also mean the Packers throwing things back to the 2013 season, when Bryan Bulaga was set to move from right tackle to left tackle to start that season before tearing his ACL during the team’s annual family night scrimmage.

Could the Packers ask Zach Tom to move from right tackle to left tackle if Morgan is not up to the task at protecting Jordan Love’s blindside? That could be a move for the future.

In the immediate future, Iheanachor could be the team’s swing tackle. As of today, if Morgan were to miss time with an injury, Darian Kinnard is likely to be the team’s starter at left tackle.

Kinnard had some nice moments at right tackle, but also struggled at other times. Would the Packers feel good about a situation where Kinnard has to play an entire game on Love’s blindside?

One thing is certain, the Packers are more than happy to invest in the offensive line. Last year they used a second round pick on Anthony Belton after giving a $77 million contract to Aaron Banks.

The Packers only had their preferred starting offensive line play 18 percent of offensive snaps together according to Warren Sharp.

Injuries are a guarantee up front. Depth is never a bad thing to add. If Iheanachor takes a tumble down the draft board on day two, the Packers are doing their due diligence in the interest of potentially pulling the trigger.