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When the New York Giants drafted Bobby Hart in the seventh round of the 2015 NFL Draft, they figured he would have to move inside to guard after playing right tackle at Florida State.
Hart, though, is entering his second season as the Giants’ starting right tackle. That means you could make the argument that he has probably already exceeded expectations.
What will Hart do in 2017? Let’s take a look as we continue our player-by-player profiles of the Giants’ 90-man roster.
2016 Season In Review
Hart started 13 games at right tackle, taking over early in the season when Marshall Newhouse was injured. He missed the season finale with an injury of his own, and was benched for the playoff game against the Green Bay Packers.
Hart finished as one of the lowest-rated tackle in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus. His 41.0 grade was 67th out of 78 qualifying tackles. Hart allowed three sacks in his 13 starts.
A 2015 seventh-round pick, those 13 games were Hart’s first extended stretch of NFL playing time. He wasn’t happy with the results:
“It wasn’t to my standards the way I would want it to be. I know there’s definitely a lot of things I have to improve on going into next season,” Hart said. “It’s a building block, it’s experience and I feel like that’s the best teacher. You go out there and you experience things and you just try not to make the same mistake twice.
“I see the film just like you guys see the game. You’re just not proud of the things that you made mistakes on. You know that to get where you want to go and to be the person you want to be in this league you can’t make those mistakes.”
2017 Season Outlook
Unless something dramatic happens, it looks like the Giants are banking on the 22-year-old Hart once again being their right tackle. A year of NFL experience, an offseason spent working hard to get stronger and improve his conditioning, and a second season with offensive line coach Mike Solari could all combine to make Hart a better player in 2016.
The Giants are counting on that being the case.