Hines Ward Already Vouches for Steelers’ New Offensive Tackle. Here’s Why Fans Should Listen.

For a few weeks, it looked like the stars might align. Jordyn Tyson, the Arizona State wide receiver who turned heads all season, was projected somewhere in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft. And the Steelers, holding the No. 21 pick, seemed like a natural fit for a guy coached by Hines Ward himself. Fans started dreaming—Ward molding the next great Steelers pass catcher.

Then the Saints took Tyson at No. 8, and that dream evaporated.

So Pittsburgh went a different direction. They grabbed offensive tackle Max Iheanachor out of Arizona State, a guy Ward knows maybe even better than Tyson. Because Ward spent two years coaching him. And what he saw every day is something he thinks Steelers fans are going to appreciate.

Blue Collar, No Frills

“Max is just a blue-collar guy,” Ward told Chris Ward of SteelersNow. “He hasn’t played football for a very long time, but you see the talent. You see the skill set. A lot of Steelers fans may not know how Max is, but I saw it every day. This kid just puts his head down and just grinds. He has that work ethic in him. He has that Steelers mentality in him. He’s not the flashiest. He’s not gonna be a ‘me’ guy. He’s all about the team.”

That’s not just coachspeak. Iheanachor’s story is genuinely different. He moved from Nigeria to the U.S. at 13 and didn’t start playing football until late in high school. Most guys his size—6-foot-6, 330 pounds—have been in pads since middle school. He basically had to learn the game from scratch. Fast.

And he did. In 2024, during Arizona State’s run to a Big 12 championship, Iheanachor played 859 snaps at right tackle. According to Pro Football Focus, he didn’t allow a single sack. Not one.

Why This Pick Matters More Than It Looks

The Steelers offensive line isn’t exactly a finished product. Broderick Jones, the team’s first-round pick a couple years ago, has had an up-and-down start to his career. His future in Pittsburgh isn’t guaranteed. So developing a guy like Iheanachor, who’s already shown he can handle top-tier college pass rushers, becomes a priority.

“He’s not the flashiest,” Ward said. And that’s fine. Pittsburgh has a long history of offensive linemen who were more about blocking than bragging. Alan Faneca didn’t do commercials. Maurkice Pouncey just went to work. If Iheanachor can adjust to NFL speed—specifically the jump in quickness from college defensive ends—he could settle into that same tradition.

Ward, who won Super Bowl MVP in 2005, is basically giving the guy his stamp of approval. That’s not nothing. The question now is whether patience pays off. Because Iheanachor’s learning curve is real. But if the work ethic is as real as Ward says it is, the Steelers might have found a long-term answer on the right side.