Ladd McConkey On Los Angeles Chargers Going Undefeated Against AFC West Rivals: ‘It’s Huge’

Ladd McConkey knows the Los Angeles Chargers are off to a tremendous start this season.

One of the fastest rising teams in the NFL is now 3-0, fresh off of a 23-20 victory over the Denver Broncos on a game-winning field goal attempt with time expiring. It gave the Chargers a two-game lead over the rest of the division, with wins over all three of their AFC West opponents early on in the season.

“It’s huge,” says McConkey in a one-on-one interview. “Any time you can start 3-0, it’s great. Then when you add 3-0 in the division on top of that, it makes it even greater. So super excited. But it doesn’t mean anything if we don’t continue it. We got a tough one against the Giants this week. Super excited for that and getting ready for it.”

The Chargers are obviously the team to beat in the AFC West, which is saying something considering the Kansas City Chiefs have been the dominant team in the division over the past decade, winning the AFC West every year since 2016.

Los Angeles’ resurgence has been in large part due to young players like McConkey and the arrival of head coach Jim Harbaugh. Harbaugh won a national championship at Michigan before taking his talents back to the NFL. He’s also well remembered for leading the San Francisco 49ers to the Super Bowl over a decade prior.

McConkey was one of the Chargers’ leading receivers with 15 catches for 163 receiving yards. The Georgia Bulldogs alum posted 82 receptions for 1,149 receiving yards and seven touchdowns last season, leading the team as a rookie receiving.

“For me personally, any time we play a division game like last year, it was like, ‘Okay, I know we’re getting their best shot no matter what,'” says McConkey when asked if he’s noticed opponents are approaching the Chargers differently this year. “Even we played the Raiders late in the year last season, things might not have gone their way. They still want to play hard, because it’s the Raiders and Chargers. We’ll be able to see that in the coming weeks, but we’ll bring our best game, for sure.”

Ladd McConkey On What Separates Jim Harbaugh From Other Coaches

The second-year McConkey gives major props to Harbaugh, saying his best trait as a coach is getting everyone to “buy in.”

“I would say his best trait as a head coach is he can really get everybody to buy in,” says McConkey. “He really brands it like a true family, he’s always saying, be at your best when your best is needed. It’s so simple, but everyone truly buys into that. You saw this week when the defense needed a stop and the offense needed to go score, we did.”

One of Harbaugh’s strengths other than caring for his players is taking accountability, says McConkey.

“He always says, ‘I feel like I’m not doing enough. When I feel like I’m doing all I can, I want to do more,'” says Harbaugh. “He’s always asking if there’s something you need, let me know. He’s always there, whether it’s football, on the field or off the field. Whatever it is, Coach Harbaugh is going to be there for you.”

When asked what separates this Chargers team from the one that lost last year in the playoffs, McConkey says it’s the experience.

“I feel like it’s just that everyone has a year under their belt,” says McConkey. Last year we had a new head coach, new offensive coordinator, new BC, new defensive coordinator. Everything was kind of a new clean slate. Now we’re all kind of getting on the same page, building with one another. We all have another year under our belt. We know what to expect, we know when we’re letting up. We know what they’re going to do, they know what we’re going to do. We just have another level of trust.”

The Chargers will look to continue their tremendous start to the season when they visit the winless New York Giants in Week 4.

Ladd McConkey Details How VKTRY Helps With His Performance

As McConkey continues to help keep the Chargers undefeated, he’s teaming with VKTRY, who are well-known for their insoles. The 23-year-old give major credit to the insoles for helping him with stability and comfort. He says he’s been wearing VKTRY since before the partnership began.

“It really changed the game for me with my cleats and everything, just stability, comfort,” says McConkey. “That’s the biggest part was, you’re not comfortable out there, then it’s hard to go do what you want to do. Once I found some insoles, and they specifically designed them for me and customized them, I pitted my feet, and it’s been a game changer.”

McConkey details that the insoles have actually helped him in dealing with “big toe problems.”

“Once I got the custom insoles from VKTRY, I actually had a little indention in my big toe, just taking some pressure off of it,” says McConkey. “And then it has the carbon fiber stiffness to give me a little extra push back. Ever since I started wearing those, it’s been tremendous.”