I haven't read the OP so am not commenting on the quality of this article. But there have certainly been good-for-HN submissions from esquire.com in the past. Some of these, for example:

Who Pays for the Arts? - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41726452 - Oct 2024 (320 comments)

Why are debut novels failing to launch? - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=40612321 - June 2024 (246 comments)

Miles Davis and the recording of Kind of Blue - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=39597525 - March 2024 (168 comments)

Vaporwave was created then destroyed by the internet (2016) - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=28015428 - July 2021 (86 comments)

Why Men Love War (1984) - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16999449 - May 2018 (174 comments)

The Drugging of the American Boy (2014) - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=16517588 - March 2018 (151 comments)

The Falling Man - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12471679 - Sept 2016 (79 comments)

Teller on theft in magic - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4540742 - Sept 2012 (77 comments)

The Perfect Compliment - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4199015 - July 2012 (61 comments)

Was the Wheel of Fortune one letter solve really a miracle? - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1891268 - Nov 2010 (69 comments)

Roger Ebert: The Essential Man - https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1129880 - Feb 2010 (10 comments)