EL SEGUNDO — Ladd McConkey isn’t thinking about the expectations he created for himself after a standout rookie season. The Chargers’ second-year wide receiver, who caught 82 passes for 1,149 yards and seven touchdowns, has more pressing issues to worry about.
Like getting healthy and building a solid foundation as the 2025 season approaches.
“I was banged up a little bit last year, so it was just getting my body healthy, getting back right, getting everything situated, and feeling good,” he said after Tuesday’s OTA practice, pointing to minor shoulder and ankle injuries.
Like it or not, McConkey is going to need a lot more strength to carry the extra weight of leading this season’s receiving corps that includes two promising rookies, third-year player Quentin Johnston and veteran Mike Williams, who returned to the Chargers after one season away.
But McConkey isn’t feeling the pressure. Not yet.
“(I need to have) just tunnel vision. Just put the blinders on and just keep looking ahead,” McConkey said. “I’m going to have good days, I’m going to have bad days, so don’t get too high, don’t get too low. I’m just playing my game. I feel like that’s how I’ve always approached it since I’ve been younger and it’s worked out for me, so keep doing that.
He added, “I try not to put expectations on myself, so obviously I wanted a thousand (yards), I wanted to go out and score, have the touchdown or whatever, but at the end of the day it was like just do my job and all that, take care of myself. So, I feel like I had a good first year to build on and just keep stacking on from there.”
Still, there will be those who will be looking for similar play from the 23-year-old receiver, who posted a 197-yard, one-touchdown performance in last season’s playoff. In just the second week of OTAs, McConkey has impressed the coaching staff, not only with his connection with quarterback Justin Herbert, but his leadership.
“It’s been exponential in my opinion. Ladd exceeded every expectation I have this year,” receivers coach Sanjay Lal said. “He’s more of a vocal leader; he’s taking charge of individual drills.
“If it’s not up to our standard, sometimes before I even say anything, he says, ‘Let’s start it over, let’s do it.’ So, he’s like a model citizen and then his skillset is really off the charts.”
McConkey hopes to serve as someone the rookies, such as second-round wide receiver Tre Harris and fifth-round tight end Oronde Gadsden II, can seek out. A sort of pay it forward on the football field.
“I had guys last year do that for me even though they were just one year above me, they had been through it,” McConkey said. “So, I feel like I know what to expect a little bit more this year. Just trying to pass that knowledge to everybody else.”
While McConkey is a lock for the wide receiver spot, the options behind him aren’t quite as solid. Harris is unproven, Johnston has been inconsistent in his first two seasons and Williams is an eight-year vet whose best days are behind him.
Johnston, who caught 93 passes for 1,142 yards in his first two seasons, is looking forward to improving more on the field by “taking all the stuff that I did do so good on and taking off the stuff I didn’t do good on.”
“The main thing for me was just the experience,” Johnston said about going into his second year. “Last year, I felt like a lot of stuff just slowed down for me. I was able to just think more clearly. Obviously having a better understanding of what I’m doing at a specific time.”
Lal said the Chargers are looking for Johnston to play a significant role among the receivers this season.
“We only have one expectation and that he keeps ascending,” Lal said. “I can’t put a ceiling on it. It’s what it’s going to be. He works hard, he’s diligent, so he’s very much on the right track.”