Where does Marcus McKethan fit with New York Giants?

The New York Giants’ 2022 rookie class truly dropped like flies beginning in training camp. Five of their 11 picks suffered season-ending injuries. Five more missed time with injury; Micah McFadden was the lone pick to avoid the bug altogether. One of the picks who went down early was guard Marcus McKethan, who suffered a torn ACL during training camp and missed his entire rookie season. McKethan now seeks to crack the offensive line depth chart in Year 2.

By the numbers

Height: 6-foot-7
Weight: 335
Age: 23
Position: Offensive line
Experience: 1
Contract: Second year of four-year, $3,936,508 million deal | Guaranteed at signing: $276,508 | 2023 cap hit: $819,127

Career to date

McKethan redshirted the 2017 season at North Carolina. In 2018, he appeared in five games but had only 46 total offensive snaps. In his sophomore season, he started 12 games at right guard, posting a 60.8 Pro Football Focus grade, including 75.8 as a pass-blocker and 56.8 as a run-blocker. As a junior, he once again started 12 games at right guard and was an All-ACC honorable mention, grading out at 64.1 (75.7 pass, 59.8 run). In his redshirt senior season, McKethan started 13 games and was once again an All-ACC honorable mention. He earned his best PFF grade yet at 75.9, including 87.1 pass and 71.3 run.

McKethan was selected by the Giants in the fifth round with the 173rd pick in the 2022 draft. He was trying to beat out several veterans to make the team’s roster when he went down with an ACL tear in early August, causing him to miss the entire season.

2023 outlook

McKethan returns to a crowded offensive line room that includes several tackles and guards. However, none of them have been particularly effective in the NFL, which gives him a shot. By the same token, the Giants already have three starting-caliber guards in Mark Glowinski, Ben Bredeson, and Joshua Ezeudu, which narrows the spots that McKethan can battle for.

Shane Lemieux has been on the team for three seasons now but has missed most of the last two with injuries. When he has played, he has not been all that effective, posting a PFF grade of 32.2 in 2021, his lone season with meaningful offensive snaps (504 total).

Wyatt Davis and Jack Anderson are the other two main guards on the Giants’ depth chart. Davis is a former failed third-round pick of the Vikings, while Anderson did not stand out in his action last season.

McKethan isn’t a lock to make the roster, but the Giants say they liked what McKethan was doing prior to his knee injury a season ago. Ed Valentine has McKethan projected to make the 53-man roster.