It is not really a matter of “if” and the “when’’ does not make much difference. It is the “who’’ that takes precedence regarding how the Giants will procure their new right tackle.

Of all the mysteries around the three-day NFL draft that begins Thursday night, the closest thing to a certainty is that the Giants will take an offensive lineman — specifically a tackle — with one of their two first-round picks, either at No. 5 (most likely) or No. 7 (if they go defense at No. 5, confident they will be in position to get one of their top two offensive linemen). This means it is safe to anticipate that either Evan Neal, Ickey Ekwonu or Charles Cross will soon be fitted for a Giants uniform as a key find in the decade-long quest to fix a broken offensive line.

If every NFL scout, general manager and offensive line coach were polled, it is likely the preference rankings would be Neal, Ekwonu and Cross, in that order. It is close, though, and it is wise to consider that the Giants are on the lookout, specifically, for a right tackle, with 23-year old Andrew Thomas, the No. 4 overall pick in 2020, anchored at left tackle. The Giants could move Thomas from the left side to the right side to accommodate a rookie, but that is not advisable, considering Thomas has put in two NFL seasons on the left side, is a natural fit there and moving him would create two unknowns.

“I’m not going to talk about any specifics,’’ first-year Giants general manager Joe Schoen said of the offensive-line pecking order. “Charles is a really good player, really good feet. We like him. Whether he should be up in that group or not, that’s for everybody to decide. We’ll see how it falls on draft night. Over time, we’ll see how it plays out. All three of those players are talented and good players, great kids. I think they all have bright futures.’’

So, which player projects as having the greatest potential as a franchise right tackle?

Neal is the only one of the three with extensive experience at right tackle, having started the entire 2020 season there for Alabama. Ekwonu has exclusively been on the left side, starting at guard and tackle for North Carolina State. Cross was a two-year starter at left tackle for Mississippi State, with only 22 snaps at right tackle.

“The guy you feel most confident about 2022, right tackle, is Evan Neal,’’ David Syvertsen, national scout for Ourlads Scouting Services, told The Post. “He’s played there and he just projects to that side a little better than the left side.’’

Neal, at 6-foot-7, actually looks svelte at 337 pounds, an indication of what a massive young man he is. Ekwonu is 6-4 and 310 pounds and has the classic body of a guard, but his footwork, long arms and supreme athletic ability allow him to play outside at tackle. Cross is 6-4 and 307 pounds, lean and natural as a pass protector, but more of an unknown as a bulldozing run blocker, which he was not asked to do often in Mike Leach’s Air Raid spread offense. In 2021, Cross started 10 games in which he had to get into his pass set more than 50 times. He allowed just 16 pressures in 719 pass-block snaps.

Ekwonu has the most position flexibility, and many scouts believe his future stardom will come at guard.

Neal is businesslike, leaning on his body of work at Alabama. Ekwonu, who had offers to play for Ivy League schools, has a bubbly personality that morphs into nastiness on the field. Cross, at the scouting combine, was reserved and soft-spoken with a thick Mississippi accent.

All three are top prospects, but not without flaws.

Syvertsen has concerns about Neal’s balance and footwork issues.

“When you see an offensive tackle constantly falling to the ground, that’s a huge red flag that gets exposed in the NFL,’’ he said, calling this failing “very correctable.’’

Ekwonu has “body control issues as an outside pass rusher that do get exposed, there’s a lot he needs to fix there with his hands and hands are harder to fix than feet,’’ Syvertsen said. This is why Syvertsen’s preference is to initially line Ekwonu up at guard.

“If you can put Ekwonu next to Andrew Thomas on that left side, that’s going to be something fun to watch,’’ he said.

Cross, in Syvertsen’s view, has the best body control of the three.

“There’s just a little bit more gray area with him, coming from that Mike Leach offense,’’ he said. “If [new Giants head coach Brian] Daboll is going to come in here and say, ‘We’ve got to shore up this pass protection because it’s been a disaster for years here,’ Cross might be the safest initial bet for the pass protection part of the system.’’

Interestingly, Syvertsen does not grade Neal, Ekwonu or Cross as elite-level prospects and believes in other years all three would be selected outside of the top 10.

“All three of them have an issue that scares the living life out of you,’’ Syvertsen said.

One of the three, with their upsides and their warts, should be headed to the Giants.