Evan Neal

Evan Neal (born September 19, 2000) is an American professional football guard for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Alabama Crimson Tide and was selected seventh overall by the Giants in the 2022 NFL draft.

Evan Neal

Neal in 2017
No. 73 – New York Giants
Position:	Guard
Personal information
Born:	(2000-09-19) September 19, 2000 (age 24) Okeechobee, Florida, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Weight:	340 lb (154 kg)
Career information
High school:	IMG Academy (Bradenton, Florida)
College:	Alabama (2019–2021)
NFL draft:	2022: 1st round, 7th pick
Career history
New York Giants (2022–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career highlights and awards
CFP national champion (2020) Consensus All-American (2021) First-team All-SEC (2021)
Career NFL statistics as of 2024
Games played: 29 Games started: 27 Stats at Pro Football Reference

Early life

Neal was born on September 19, 2000, in Okeechobee, Florida. He originally attended Okeechobee High School before transferring to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.^[1] He played in the 2019 Under Armour All-America Game.^[2] A five-star recruit, Neal committed to play college football at the University of Alabama.^[3][4]

College career

Neal started all 13 games at left guard during his freshman year in 2019 before moving to right tackle in 2020.^[5][6][7] He was a starting member of the team that won the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship.^[8] Following the 2021 season, Neal announced that he would forgo his senior year and enter the 2022 NFL draft.^[9]

Professional career

Pre-draft measurables

Height	Weight	Arm length	Hand span
6 ft 7+1⁄2 in (2.02 m)	337 lb (153 kg)	34 in (0.86 m)	10+1⁄8 in (0.26 m)
All values from NFL Combine[10][11]

Neal was selected seventh overall by the New York Giants in the 2022 NFL Draft.^[12] In week 8 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Neal suffered a grade 2 MCL sprain.^[13] He returned in week 13.^[14] He played in and started 13 regular season games and both of the Giants' playoff games as a rookie.^[15]

When asked about the booing Giants fans following a week 4 2023 season loss to the Seattle Seahawks where Daniel Jones was sacked eleven times, Neal responded with "Why would a lion concern himself with the opinion of a sheep? ... I genuinely don’t care. Why should I? I’m in the National Football League. The person that’s commenting on my performance, what does he do? Flip hot dogs and hamburgers somewhere?”.^[16] After receiving a large amount of backlash, he posted an apology on social media the next day.^[17] On December 24, 2023, the Giants placed him on injured reserve.^[18]

Following the 2024 season, Neal switched from tackle to guard.^[19]

Personal life

Neal's father, Eddie, played linebacker at Tulane while three uncles — Frankie Neal, Cleveland Gary, and Jimmie Jones — played in the NFL.^[20]