Ikem Ekwonu runs under 5 seconds in 40, impresses at NFL Combine
NC State football offensive tackle Ikem Ekwonu was the main attraction on the second day of testing at the NFL Combine, with the other offensive tackle expected to be in the running for the No. 1 overall pick, Alabama’s Evan Neal, electing to sit out Friday.
Ekwonu didn’t disappoint either. In his first 40-yard dash attempt, he clocked an unofficial 4.97 seconds according to NFL Network. It was later dropped to a 4.93 when the league release its official numbers.
Earlier in the day Ekwonu, who this past season became just the the third unanimous consensus first-team All-American ever at NC State, measured in at 6-4, 310 pounds with an 84.25-inch wing span according to Sporting News.
“That’s less than an inch shorter than Daniel Faalele’s wing span even though Faalele is four inches taller and 74 pounds heavier than Ekwonu,” the website went on to note.
“He’s fun to watch, he’s nasty,” Daniel Jeremiah said of Ekwonu on NFL Network’s broadcast.
“Hands of a heavyweight, feet of a lightweight,” Jeremiah later noted, before comparing Ekwonu to nine-time Pro Bowler Jason Peters.
According to NFL Network, Peters checked in at 6-4, 336 pounds with 33 1/8-inch arm length, which is shorter than Ekwonu’s 34-inch-long arms. They also ran similar 10-yard splits in their 40s, with Peters notching a 1.73 to Ekwonu’s 1.76.
“Jason is so explosive, Ekwonu is the same type of guy,” Jeremiah added. “Once they get their hands on you, the play is over.”
It’s high praise. Jeremiah noted he was around Peters while working for the Philadelphia Eagles, and “in his prime, I’d put him up against anybody” before calling him a “Hall of Fame talent.”
Peters was a long-time standout at left tackle in the league, but like Ekwonu lacked the typical length found in a player at the offensive line’s premier position. Ekwonu made clear when talking yesterday and NFL Network’s broadcast reiterated, however, he hopes to play left tackle in the NFL.
“You see him play guard, and it’s about as fun a tape as you’ll ever see … [he’d] just destroy people at guard, so I think he can be an All-Pro guard if he wanted to be,” Jeremiah said. “But obviously he wants to play tackle. He got better as the year went along at tackle — there are still some pass pro things for him to clean up. But as you can see all the ability is in his body.
“And I’m with [Ekwonu], I wouldn’t be surprised if he is the first pick, which is an interesting discussion with the Jaguars, when you have the options of a premiere pass rusher to put opposite of Josh Allen or do you have to go out there and get a pass protector, somebody to help your young quarterback in Trevor Lawrence? That’s why I lean towards the offense.”
Ekwonu was one of three finalists for the Outland Trophy, an honor given to the nation’s top lineman, and was the recipient of the ACC’s Jacobs Blocking Trophy, the first winner from NC State football since Ritcher in 1979.
He continued to impress in the position drills portion of testing. At one point Jeremiah said: “That’s what you want your offensive linemen to look like, holy cow.”
