Joe Alt 2024 NFL Draft Profile: Everything you need to know about Giants' potential target
With the Giants currently owning the sixth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, let's take a look at one prospect who may be a target: Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt.
By The Numbers
- Height: 6-foot-9
- Weight: 321 pounds
- 40-Yard Dash: 5.05
- Vertical: 28 inches
- Bench: 27 reps
- Broad Jump: 9-foot-4
- 2023 Stats (12 games started): 713 offensive snaps, one sack allowed, two penalties.
Prospect Overview
Bleacher Report: Overall, Alt is a special prospect due to his size, athletic ability and polish for a player who will be only 21 years old throughout the duration of his rookie season. While he isn't the most powerful blocker and will concede some initial ground in his anchor, Alt has virtually every other tool and skill to become an immediate impact starter at left tackle with the runway to continue ascending and cement his status as a foundational piece of a roster.
NFL.com: Long-limbed team captain with NFL-quality tackle play coursing through his veins. Alt plays a disciplined brand of football, avoiding penalties and working with fluid transitions from entry to sustain to finish as a run blocker. Alt is a capable drive blocker with the foot quickness to play onto the second level. He struggles to bend enough to compensate for his height and ends up playing with waist-bending and forward lean that can hamper his anchor against bull-rushers. Alt has quick hands and outstanding arm extension, promoting his ability to sustain blocks and redirect pass-rushers. He’s a good technician who carries himself with confidence from snap to snap. Alt clearly has the talent to become a Day 1 starter on the left side, but he’ll need to clean up his habit of leaning forward, or he could be in for some bumpy action early on.
Why Joe Alt makes sense for the Giants
Offensive line is an obvious area where the Giants will be keen to upgrade this offseason, so they could jump at the chance to bring in a player who is considered an excellent long-term prospect if Alt isn’t selected within the first five picks.
One thing that may have some people questioning whether Alt is the ideal pick for New York is the fact that he played his entire college career at the left tackle position and the Giants already have a Pro Bowl-level left tackle on their roster in Andrew Thomas. However, scouts believe Alt has the coordination to begin his career on the right if necessary and if he can establish the ability to play on either side that will add flexibility to a unit that had to deal with several injuries last year, including a Thomas hamstring injury that sidelined him for several weeks.
Another factor is that the Giants selected Evan Neal with the seventh overall pick in 2022 and drafting Alt would signify that they’re essentially giving up on the 23-year-old already. Reports have circulated suggesting the Giants believe Neal’s career can still be salvaged but many analysts suspect this could be a smokescreen. If the Giants drafted Alt, perhaps this could push Neal to turn things around and establish himself as a swing tackle, someone who could move inside or a tradeable asset.
Alt’s length, athleticism and technique would give the Giants a talented addition to an offensive line that would have a bright future with him added to the group. If he does drop to six, that would be hard for New York to pass up.
NFL Comparison
NFL.com: Mike McGlinchey
