PITTSBURGH — Few players in the Steelers' 2026 draft class have a story quite like first-round pick Max Iheanachor.
The offensive tackle's path to the NFL is anything but ordinary. After moving to the United States at 13 years old, Iheanachor didn't begin playing football until his freshman year of junior college. Just five years later, he heard his name called in the first round of the NFL Draft.
The rapid rise makes it easy to understand why the Steelers were willing to invest so heavily in his potential.That potential, however, still comes with plenty of room to grow. Although many expect him not to begin the season at left tackle, first-round picks aren't drafted to sit forever. Whether it's Week 1 or later in the season, the expectation is that Iheanachor will eventually earn a starting role and become a cornerstone of Pittsburgh's offensive line.
For now, he's focused on the little things. One of the biggest adjustments during OTAs has been refining his technique, something he knows will ultimately determine how quickly he's ready for NFL football.
"I'd definitely say just trying to keep my push foot, keeping my toes in the ground more. Our coach at Arizona State talked about the same thing, but they're just emphasizing it more here," Iheanachor said at OTAs.
Those details may seem small, but they're exactly the type of coaching points that can help bridge the gap between college football and the NFL.
Considering Iheanachor has only been playing organized football for five years, there's still plenty of technical development ahead. That's also part of what makes him such an intriguing prospect. While he may be one of the rawer first-round picks in the class, he also possesses one of the highest ceilings.
His combination of rare size, athleticism and steady improvement throughout his football journey is what convinced the Steelers to make him a first-round selection . Now, the focus shifts toward turning that potential into production.
Pittsburgh Steelers first-round pick Max Iheanachor speaks to the media during an introductory press conference at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on Friday. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
71 • Max Iheanachor, Offensive Tackle, Arizona State 6-foot-5, 364 pounds, 22 years old, 1st pro season
Acquired: The Steelers selected Iheanachor with the 21st overall pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft, making him the first offensive lineman selected by Pittsburgh since Troy Fautanu in 2024.
Oct 18, 2025; Tempe, Arizona, USA; Arizona State Sun Devils offensive lineman Max Iheanachor (58) against the Texas Tech Red Raiders at Mountain America Stadium. Mark J. Rebilas / Imagn Images
Iheanachor's rise to becoming a first-round pick is about as unconventional as it gets. After moving to the United States from Nigeria at 13 years old, he never played a snap of high school football. Instead, he enrolled at East Los Angeles Community College, where he first learned the game after originally standing out as a basketball player. He spent two seasons (2021-22) at ELAC, quickly developing into one of the top junior college offensive tackle prospects in the country and earning a four-star JUCO rating.
That development earned him a transfer to Arizona State, where he spent the next three seasons (2023-25). Iheanachor saw action in six games with five starts during his first year in Tempe before taking over as the Sun Devils' full-time starting right tackle in 2024. Over three seasons at Arizona State, he appeared in 32 games with 31 starts, started the final 29 games of his career and allowed just three sacks in 1,159 career pass-blocking snaps.
His best football came during his final season. In 2025, Iheanachor earned Second-Team All-Big 12 honors after not allowing a single sack while surrendering only three quarterback hits and 11 hurries all season. He also accepted an invitation to the Senior Bowl, where he continued to boost his draft stock against some of the top edge rushers in the country.
| Season |
School |
GP |
GS |
Sacks Allowed |
Honors |
| 2021 |
East Los Angeles Community College |
— |
— |
— |
Began football career |
| 2022 |
East Los Angeles Community College |
— |
— |
— |
Four-star JUCO recruit |
| 2023 |
Arizona State |
6 |
5 |
0 |
Earned first collegiate starts |
| 2024 |
Arizona State |
14 |
14 |
3 |
Full-time starting right tackle |
| 2025 |
Arizona State |
12 |
12 |
0 |
Second-Team All-Big 12, Senior Bowl Invite |
| Arizona State Career |
32 |
31 |
3 |
Started final 29 consecutive games |
Measuring in at 6-foot-5⅞ and 321 pounds, he put together one of the better athletic performances among offensive tackles at the NFL Combine. Iheanachor ran a 4.91-second 40-yard dash with a 1.73-second 10-yard split, added 25 bench press reps, a 30.5-inch vertical jump and a 9-foot-7 broad jump. Those numbers earned him a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of 9.91 out of 10, ranking him among the most athletic offensive tackle prospects in this year's draft.
Iheanachor signed his rookie contract shortly after being selected in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
The deal is a fully guaranteed four-year contract worth $20.692 million and includes an $11.598 million signing bonus. As a first-round pick, his contract also includes the Steelers' fifth-year team option, giving Pittsburgh the ability to keep him under contract through the 2030 season if they choose to exercise it.
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Alan Saunders provided reporting from Pittsburgh.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now : Max Iheanachor Embracing Steelers Coaching Early in NFL Journey
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