Devy Digest: Ladd McConkey

The Devy Digest, highlighting Georgia Bulldogs wide receiver Ladd McConkey.

• Ladd McConkey
• Position: Wide Receiver
• Georgia Bulldogs
• 5’11” 187 lbs
• Age: 22
• Draft Eligible: 2024
• Devy Digest WR 2024 Draft Rank: 8

Who is Ladd McConkey?

Ladd McConkey was a 3⭐️ in the composites. He attended North Murray High in Georgia and was part of the 2020 recruiting class. McConkey wasn’t a heavily recruited prospect, and has been quoted as saying he would have committed to UT Chattanooga had Georgia not offered him late in the process.

As a true Freshman in the COVID19 2020 season, Ladd McConkey did not see any game action. In 2021, McConkey appeared in all 15 games. He was a depth piece and rotational receiver for the Georgia Bulldogs. His coming out party was against Auburn, where he caught 5 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown. McConkey would build upon that season to be in integral part of the team in 2022 and a dependable option opposite of Brock Bowers.

Ladd McConkey | Burns Defense For HUGE 70-Yard Touchdown | UGA@MSST | 2022-23 NCAAF SEASON@laddmcconkey02 @UGAAthletics @GeorgiaFootball pic.twitter.com/H6EZfbb6AE

— ATG MVP (@atg_mvp) November 14, 2022

This past season, McConkey missed time due to injury and the Georgia offense seemed out of sync. When McConkey returned from injury, he seemed to be the missing piece the offense needed as they started clicking once he was back in uniform. That’s something that won’t show up in box scores, but it allowed everybody to play at their normal position and it unlocked quarterback Carson Beck. McConkey was the galvanizing piece to that Georgia Bulldogs team.

Strengths

Ladd McConkey is a very polished route runner who is nuanced for his age. He will use head fakes, shoulder manipulation, and great footwork to set up his defender. McConkey is silky smooth and has an arsenal of weapons to win his route. He understands tempo and with his footwork, is able to get his defender on skates. He also has very good hip fluidity which allows him to sink into his routes, with good lateral agility and quickness to be a shifty route runner.

McConkey works best out of the slot where he isn’t pressed by his defender. With a free release, McConkey is able to manipulate his defender and get to his final destination. McConkey has very good acceleration and is able to manipulate tempo due to this. He wastes very little time to get to top speed, using that to whip his defender back to create separation on a comeback route. With the combination of hip fluidity along with this acceleration, it makes him great at in and out breaking routes.

Ladd McConkey has an innate sense on where to sit in zone coverages. It makes for a friendly target for any quarterback. McConkey should be a chain mover at the NFL level and a safety blanket to help bail out a quarterback. He’s a sure-handed receiver; and with his footwork and quick acceleration, has the ability to excel in short areas and on manufactured touches, including designed runs.

Areas of Improvement & Concern

Ladd McConkey has a slight frame and is someone that can be contained by physical corners. With his slight frame also comes a lack of functional play strength. McConkey will need a free release at this stage in his game. When lining up outside versus physical, pressing corners, he struggles to stay on his route. Because of this, he projects as a pure slot receiver.

McConkey doesn’t have an array of release packages to escape good press corners. He would benefit from being in a room with a route running veteran that can show him the ropes – similar to what Puka Nacua had with Cooper Kupp.

McConkey doesn’t project to be a WR1 for a team, but more of a complementary piece. He would be best being insulated by a more physical receiver and a field stretching wide receiver, allowing him to work the short to intermediate routes.

Beyond the Numbers

Ladd McConkey lined up in the slot just under 30% of the time with the Georgia Bulldogs. He worked outside about 70% of the time. In his final season, McConkey averaged 6.3 yards after the catch and was used on more short to intermediate routes (with an aDOT of 12.2 yards). His yards per route run was 3.26 this past season. McConkey has a career 2.54 yards per route ran and has been credited with 10 drops (7.8%) for his collegiate career. McConkey finished with a 52.6% win rate on contested catches.

Devy & C2C Value

In normal Devy drafts, there is a possibility that he wasn’t selected. And if he wasn’t, he’s locked in as a first round pick in depleted drafts. If you do have him in a Devy league, you can wait until we get draft capital to sell him if you don’t need a WR or want to tier up to an established NFL asset.

In C2C leagues, it’s probably best to wait until he gets draft capital and offseason camp buzz to offload him. We’ve seen slot pieces work at the next level for fantasy purposes. If you decide to hang onto him, he should return nicely on your investment. McConkey wasn’t a high pick in start ups and getting Day 2 capital in the 2024 NFL Draft should be considered a win in this format.

NFL Outlook

Ladd McConkey has tested well, and with verified measurements from the Senior Bowl and NFL Combine, there’s a lot to like. There’s already buzz that McConkey that a top 50 pick is well within his range of outcomes. In a class full of boundary receivers, McConkey is arguably a top 3 slot receiver in the draft.

While he lined out as a boundary receiver at Georgia, his home at the next level should be the slot – at least in the early stages. By lining up in the slot, McConkey can avoid being pressed. He can also move around pre-snap to create the inability to get knocked off his line. If McConkey can go to a situation where he isn’t asked to be the key component, he can return dividends. McConkey could develop into a Chris Godwin type of receiver from a versatility standpoint. As in, he can be used in the slot and outside in two wide sets. Like Godwin, they both possess shiftiness to win at all levels.