The NFL Draft has come and gone, and the only man the Giants added to their depth chart at right tackle was seventh-rounder George Asafo-Adjei. Many saw GM Dave Gettleman going after a tackle higher in the draft, but that wasn't the case as more defensive reinforcements found their way to the Giants.

Chad Wheeler, then, is the Giants' starting right tackle as training camp inches closer by the day. He struggled last season manning the right side, earning a 47.4 Pro Football Focus grade, which is considered below average.

So are the Giants settled with their right tackle despite it potentially being their weak spot again? Offensive line coach Hal Hunter doesn't seem worried. He'll work with whoever comes into training camp on Day 1.

"I don't really know what's going to transpire from here on out," he said in regards to the Giants adding someone new. "I know the people we have signed right now are under contract. So right now, my plan is for George to line up at second right tackle when he comes back and go from there. "

Before the Giants called Asafo-Adjei late in the Draft, Hunter was well-aware of the Kentucky product given his son's work with the Wildcats football program. His son had high praise for the guard-turned-tackle, and though Hunter knows he needs some work, he believes he has all the characteristics to make a clean transition to the NFL.

Plus, it helps when you're going up against Josh Allen -- Kentucky's leading pass rusher and one of the top pass rushers in this year's draft class -- at practice every day.

"We found out from the inside out - he talked about what a quality guy he was," Hunter said. "He was probably the most respected guy on the offensive side of the ball. He talked about how he competed with Josh Allen on a day-to-day basis. He talked about his character, work ethic and his toughness. All of those things peaked interest.

"When you compare our offense to their offense, we have a lot more volume to it with a lot of the things that we were doing. We need to continue to work with him technically to get him up to speed but you have to like everything about him."

Asafo-Adjei is a project for the Giants, though, which means he won't make an immediate impact this season (granted he makes the team). But just as Hunter said, he'll continue to work with who he's got, and he appears confident in the group he has at the moment.

The rest of the line seems solid with Nate Solder and Will Hernandez showing much improvement on the left side as the season progressed last year. Jon Halapio should also be back to provide great competition with Spencer Pulley at center, and Kevin Zeitler comes over from Cleveland as the team's new right guard.

If the Giants do stick with their current situation at right tackle, the Zeitler trade might be that much more important to the team's offensive success this season. He was Pro Football Focus' best pass-blocking guard last season, and he can also work well in the run game.

In his limited work with Zeitler thus far, Hunter sees a lot of Solder in him. What does that mean? Well, he tries to get the most out of the players around him, and that could be the best thing for whoever is on his right setting the edge this season.

"His attention to detail. It is a lot like Nate. Nate Soldier's attention to detail, he put so much pressure on Will Hernandez to play because his play was tied into Will. It is the same thing with Zeitler. He is very demanding of guys around him in a positive way. You demand in yourself what you demand in others. I love that about him. I love everything about him, his personality and what he brings. He is so fun to coach.

Popular in the Community