What should we make of Giants’ Matt Peart practicing at guard?

Could New York Giants offensive tackle Matt Peart bew switching positions? Or, are the Giants, razor-thin at guard after training camp retirements and injuries to Shane Lemieux and Nick Gates, just covering themselves by having Peart begin taking practice reps at guard.

“We’ll kind of take a look at him maybe playing some stuff inside as we get going right here,” head coach Joe Judge said on Monday. “We’ll kind of work around through practice these next few days and kind of see where things shake out.”

The Giants drafted Peart in Round 3 (99th overall) a year ago, with the hopes that he would develop into a starting right tackle and the bookend on their offensive line to first-round pick Andrew Thomas.

Peart opened training camp expected to be the starting right tackle. He lost that job to veteran Nate Solder and did not play any snaps vs. the Washington Football Team on Thursday night.

At 6-foot-7, 318 pounds, with 99th percentile arm length (36⅝) and possessing elite movement skills for his size, Peart is a natural tackle prospect. Players with his physical profile, particularly the height and arm length, aren’t normally considered guards.

We will have to see if this ends up being a true position switch for Peart, or if with only seven healthy offensive linemen on the current roster are simply prepping Peart for emergency duty inside.

Nick’s take

From BBV’s Nick Falato:

“Matt Peart has prototypical tackle trait potential and measurement. His 36⅝-inch arms are in the 99th percentile for tackles and he’s a gigantic 6-7. He also possesses quick smooth feet that can glide up the pass rushing arc to mirror speed defenders. However, his ability to earn the right tackle position was thwarted by a 33-year-old who hadn’t played football in two years. The Giants will now attempt to use Peart at guard. Transitioning to guard generally assists players who struggle in space, and, although Peart has the foot speed, he hasn’t shown the consistency to stay square and protect each shoulder at tackle. His biggest struggle with guard will be pad level and anchoring down against small powerful interior defensive lineman. His athletic ability should allow him to kick into space well on power/gap plays. I will be dubious about the success of this transition until I see it happen on the field, which is well within the range of outcomes for Peart.”