Ladd McConkey impressing former NFL players as potential 2024 draft prospect

Georgia fans breathed a collective sigh of relief when wide receiver Ladd McConkey announced he was returning to Georgia for his redshirt junior season in 2023, and he can use this season to not only help the Bulldogs win a third straight national title, but also boost in 2024 NFL Draft standing.

The Chatsworth, Georgia product has already put together a pretty impressive resume in just two seasons on the field. But there are still some perceived holes in his game. That said, some former NFL players really like what they see out of McConkey.

The Senior Bowl, which is probably the premier all-star game for NFL Draft prospects, has a Scout School, where former NFL players who had at least two years experience in the league can learn the art of scouting players as a potential career.

From the Senior Bowl:

"Currently, over one-third (34%) of the players on NFL rosters began their NFL journeys in Mobile, Alabama and we feel a responsibility to assist them when they transition away from the playing field. On June 4-7, 2023, NFL alums with at least two years of accredited service are invited to explore scouting as a potential career path.  The course will be led by Senior Bowl Executive Director and 18-year NFL scouting veteran Jim Nagy and Dan Hatman, Director of Scouting Development at The Scouting Academy."

One of the players this year’s Scout School participants took a look at was Georgia’s Ladd McConkey, and overall, the scrappy Bulldog wideout really impressed the group.

McConkey got high marks in nearly every key evaluation point, with the one glaring issue being something Georgia fans were frustrated with in McConkey’s game as well – the unforced drops.

In the first half of the 2022 season, McConkey struggled with his hands, dropping numerous easy catches as well as muffed punt returns. It got to the point where he was making fair catches unnecessarily and you could almost feel a collective cringe when Stetson Bennett would target his favorite receiver.

McConkey bounced back in the latter part of the season and played a big role in Georgia’s second consecutive national championship, leading to his announcement that he’d be returning in 2023.

The redshirt junior leader of the receiving corps has all the skills and tools. He’s currently rated as the 9th best returning wide receiver in the country by Pro Football Focus.

A solid season of limited mistakes and an extension of his ability to make big plays and create yards after the catch will put McConkey solidly in the top 100 prospects for the 2024 NFL Draft. Could he be a first-round pick? That may be a stretch, but sometimes all it takes is one outstanding season to move that needle.

With a new quarterback starting this year for the Bulldogs, it will be interesting to see how McConkey responds and if he’s still the top wide receiver target on the team.