Justin Herbert finally gets help after Chargers trade up for Ladd McConkey

The Los Angeles Chargers entered this offseason in desperate need of some foundational change and immediately enacted some with the hiring of newly minted head coach Jim Harbaugh, who left his old position with the Michigan Wolverines to join forces with Justin Herbert and company in the City of Angels. Of course, Harbaugh was inheriting a roster that was suspect at best throughout the 2023 season, as the Chargers didn’t exactly provide the talented Herbert with a whole lot of support in terms of receivers or offensive line depth.

With that being said, it figured that the Chargers would want to use the opportunity that was the NFL Draft to help bolster those areas and give Herbert more downfield targets, particularly following the departure of Keenan Allen to the Chicago Bears earlier this offseason.

First, the Chargers invested to help give Herbert some more time in the pocket by drafting star offensive line prospect Joe Alt in the first round of the draft on Thursday, and on Friday, the team added to its wide receiver depth by trading up to select wide receiver Ladd McConkey out of Georgia with the 34th overall pick in the draft.

McConkey won two national championships during his time with the Bulldogs in 2022 and 2023, and made several huge plays en route to both championship runs. While he may not profile as the most explosive athlete or the biggest body, McConkey is inarguably one of the most talented route runners in the entire draft class, skills which will be on full display once he puts on his Chargers uniform.

A new-look Chargers squad

As previously mentioned, the Chargers had several identifiable holes leading into this offseason after missing out on the playoffs a season ago, and they’ve already made strides to address some of them, including the two biggest shortcomings on the offensive side of the football.

Recently, Harbaugh took the time to justify why he felt the decision to draft Joe Alt so highly was the right one for the franchise.

“I know the question is gonna come up about weapons,” Harbaugh told reporters, per Cody Benjamin of CBS Sports. “We look at offensive linemen as weapons.”

Indeed, Harbaugh implemented this same philosophy in constructing his roster with the Michigan Wolverines, which culminated in a national championship for the program this past season, shortly before Harbaugh’s decision to part for the sunny skies of southern California.

Now with McConkey in the mix, Herbert will have more weapons at his disposal, as well as a revamped offensive system. While there is understandably some hesitancy when bringing college coaches up to the NFL, it should be noted that Jim Harbaugh has already had some sustainable success at the professional level, including leading several deep playoff runs with the San Francisco 49ers in the early 2010s.

In any case, the Chargers will still have several more opportunities in this draft to continue to bolster their depth and add talent. The Draft is set to continue through into the weekend from Detroit.