Giants left tackle Andrew Thomas on verge of big things

It’s a next-man-up league, so when Cowboys Pro Bowl left tackle Tyron Smith suffered an avulsion fracture of his knee a little more than a week ago — the injury and accompanying surgery are expected to keep him out for all of the upcoming season — the Cowboys had a sudden key opening to fill. They might do it with a rookie, they might bring in a veteran, but someone has to take his place.

That next-man-up thinking doesn’t apply only to teams, though. It applies to things such as rankings and ratings and honorifics and all of the other fun things sports fans and analysts love to talk about. Things that don’t really matter . . . but kind of do.

Smith’s injury created a vacancy at the top of the list of the best left tackles in the NFC East and some space among the best at the position in the entire conference and the whole league. Someone will have to replace him in those debates and vie for those accolades.

Andrew Thomas is one of the likeliest players to do so.

Yes, that’s right. The third-year left tackle who struggled through a sometimes groan-inducing rookie season and showed promise despite the Giants’ overall offensive struggles last season seems poised to take a huge step in his development in 2022.

He is, many believe, about to ascend toward rarefied air that few Giants tackles have breathed and lift the overall status of a beleaguered offensive line.

“I’m going to say this, and I don’t like to make projections and with Pro Bowl stuff because, look, there are a lot of different ways to vote, but Andrew Thomas will be in the Pro Bowl this year,” former Giants center and Pro Bowler Shaun O’Hara said on NFL Network this past week. “That is how good he looks, that is how confident he looks with his sets and his punch. I’ve been watching his one-on-ones, I’ve been watching the preseason games. He’s ready to rock.”

How long has it been since the Giants have had a tackle at that level?

David Diehl was the last Pro Bowler for the team at the position in 2009, but he was considered more of a steady player than a dominant one. He was added to that Pro Bowl roster as an alternate.

To find the last Giants offensive tackle voted directly to the Pro Bowl, you have to go back to Jumbo Elliott in 1993.

To find the last Giants offensive tackle named first-team All-Pro, you have to go back to Roosevelt Brown in 1962.

There was only one Pro Bowl left tackle in the three decades between Brown and Elliott: Brad Benson in 1986.

The Giants think Thomas could be that type of player . . . even if they sometimes are reluctant to talk about it.

“Andrew is one of the better tackles I’ve gone against since I’ve been in the league, to be honest,” teammate and eight-year veteran defensive lineman Leonard Williams told Newsday. “I don’t want to gas him too much. I know how it is, you say one thing about him and people are like ‘Oh, now he’s a Hall of Famer?’ I’m not trying to say any of that. But I’ve seen him progress from when he was a rookie until now . . . I think Andrew is a guy people should definitely pay attention to [in Pro Bowl voting]. He’s a great left tackle.”

Being part of rankings and conversations is nothing new for Thomas. It’s how he came into the league, the fourth overall pick made by the Giants and part of a 2020 draft class that included several other promising offensive linemen.

Back then, he was constantly compared to Jedrick Willis, Tristan Wirfs and Mekhi Becton, who was selected by the Jets. There were times when he was fourth on that list.

But Thomas ignored the disparaging chatter then, and he intends to do the same for the preseason hype surrounding him.

“I don’t look at it that way,” he told Newsday, referring to Smith’s injury opening a door for him. “I look at it as Tyron is a vet, will be a Hall of Famer one day, and it’s unfortunate to see any guy get hurt. But I’m not really focused on other guys. I’m focused on myself and the guys in our room trying to get better . . . If you pay attention to what is going on around you, you kind of lose focus on what you need to do to get better whether you are playing well or not playing well.”

That’s not to say Thomas minds when his name is bandied about as one of the top young tackles — and one of the top tackles, period — in the NFL this season.

“Respect from other people, obviously you want that,” he said. “But I think you get there by focusing on yourself and not worrying about those things.”

Thomas has been focused on self-improvement since last season ended.

“For me, I would say it’s more mental, and then it’s just consistency,” he said of the areas he has worked on coming into 2022. “That’s the biggest thing for me. There are a few plays last year that I wish I had back. They’re not really physical things, it’s more in my mind. I have a bad play, let it go, move on to the next play, and being more consistent with my technique.”

He also made a conscious effort to become more of a leader for the Giants and his position group. It is an offensive line bubbling with personality, from brash, fun-loving rookie right tackle Evan Neal to center Jon Feliciano, who goes by the colorful and well-earned nickname of “Dirtbag.” But only one lineman was voted captain by the Giants.

“At the end of last season, in some of my exit meetings, the biggest thing for me was to take the leadership role,” Thomas said. “A lot of times I was focused on myself getting better, going through the struggles. The next thing for me is to be more vocal, lead by example and help the team in any way I can.”

That has taken a conscious effort. “I’m definitely more of a quiet guy,” he said. “Rookie year, it was even worse. But I speak when I can. I’m not a big rah-rah guy, but when I speak, most of the time people listen. That’s the way I approach it.”

Being a captain is something to be proud of, for sure, but Thomas said there is more he wants to accomplish. “I don’t think it stops there,” he said. “I’m working every day to be a better leader and to be a better player, not just for the offensive line but for the whole team.”

Maybe it will even be recognized by the whole team, the whole division, the whole conference and the whole league.

By Tom Rock

tom.rock@newsday.com@TomRock_Newsday

Tom Rock began covering sports for Newsday in 1996 and became its NFL columnist in 2022. He previously was Newsday's Giants beat writer beginning in 2008.