Mike Vrabel may have revealed Patriots' top 2026 NFL Draft target in 1st round

Max Iheanachor might have one of the more difficult names to pronounce in the 2026 NFL Draft, but the New England Patriots might not have a difficult time putting his name on a card in the 1st round.

This year's draft class is pretty loaded on the offensive line, even if there isn't a blue-chip player at the top of the class. There isn't a Joe Thomas or Trent Williams, but there is depth, and there are quality players littered throughout current 1st-round projections.

Arizona State right tackle Max Iheanachor (ee-HAN-uh-chor) is one of the most interesting players being discussed as a possible target for teams later in the 1st round, and Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel might have recently revealed just how much his team loves this player at the Arizona State pro day.

Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel gives 2026 NFL Draft prospect hands-on teaching

The Patriots represented the AFC in the Super Bowl, and one of the biggest issues they had throughout the playoffs was protecting quarterback Drake Maye. Teams really took advantage of that, rattling Maye's cage and causing him to have one of the worst stretches of playoff football for a quarterback anyone has ever seen.

And given the fact that Maye was in the MVP conversation all season, that issue certainly didn't just come up because the young quarterback had a case of the yips, or something like that. The Patriots' offensive line was getting tossed around quite a bit this past season, and Iheanachor could be a long-term solution for them at the right tackle spot.

It should be mentioned that it's not uncommon for Mike Vrabel to get hands on like this at a pro day with a prospect. But it does thicken the plot a little bit due to the fact that Iheanachor is currently projected in the Patriots' draft range, he would fit an ideal need of theirs, and it just seems like Vrabel really believes in the guy's talent based on that video clip.

But interestingly enough, it's not even the only clip we have of Vrabel getting some one-on-one work with Iheanachor. Another video surfaced later in the pro day:

Sometimes, you just can't hide the love you have for a prospect. And while Iheanachor is obviously a tremendous talent, he's also someone who is relatively new to football compared to other prospects on the offensive line. The fact that he's raw could actually help the Patriots land him if teams want to go with more polished players earlier in the draft.

But if a picture says a thousand words, then how much do these videos say about how highly the Patriots think of Max Iheanachor? We're fixing to find out later in April.