Georgia football: Jonathan Ledbetter looks to shine at Senior Bowl

With the Senior Bowl practices starting this week, Georgia Football will be well represented by Jonathan Ledbetter who will look to shine in Mobile.

Jonathan Ledbetter was one of the clear leaders of the 2018 Georgia football team. He became an inspiration to many after overcoming his demons and will head to the NFL as a player that should thrive at the next level. Before that happens, however, Ledbetter has a chance to shine this weekend at the Senior Bowl.

His former teammate Terry Godwin did just that at the East-West Shrine game last week. Godwin was named offensive MVP after catching two touchdown passes and impressing throughout the week. He showed impressive burst and really good blocking skills that will help him at the next level. There’s a very good chance that with that performance, Godwin moved himself up from a late round flyer into a solid mid-round pick. People can keep saying that UGA doesn’t develop receivers, but I think there’s a really good chance that they have 3 drafted in the first 5 rounds in April.

Ledbetter will hope to improve his stock as well. Right now, he’s probably sitting in that 3-4 round range but I really do think that he has the chance to go higher if he does well in the predraft offseason. The Senior Bowl is step one for him and I wouldn’t be shocked to see him really open some eyes this weekend. It wouldn’t be surprising really, it was this time last year that Isaiah Wynn really started to turn heads. He wound up being a 1st round draft pick just a few months later.

While he never dominated the stat sheet, Ledbetter’s impact at UGA was obvious to anyone who watched him play. He has a high motor and good technique to alongside really solid physical tools. He’s not an all-world athlete, but he’s certainly good enough and he’s a natural leader who is going to add a huge amount to any locker room. I fully expect this to be the week where he opens some eyes and starts to get some national attention which has been rather lacking outside of Athens.

While I still think that a 1st round draft grade is unlikely (this year’s D-line class is STACKED), I think that he could well find himself going in the second round to the right team. He’s not a natural pass rusher, but in the right system, he can be a fixture for a defensive line that stuffs the run and makes things uncomfortable for QB’s. I wouldn’t be shocked to see him get 5-7 sacks a season and that’s valuable when you consider everything else he bring to a team.

What’s really going to benefit him the most however is being around these NFL coaching staffs. The Oakland Raiders and San Francisco 49ers both have a serious need when it comes to defensive leaders. It’s hard for me to imagine a guy who is going to impress both of those teams more than Ledbetter will. Even in 2017, when UGA had multiple senior leaders, it was Ledbetter who often had the loudest voice in that locker room. He’s a guy who players follow and want to be around. It’s one of the main reasons I think he’ll be someone we hear a lot about this week from so-called draft gurus.