Ladd McConkey, Javon Bullard among 59 prospects at Falcons local pro day today

Atlanta will bring in a ton of Georgia-based talent today for a longer look, and there may be a small handful of future Falcons among them.

The nice thing about having a local pro day as the Atlanta Falcons is that you can bring in an absolutely absurd collection of talent, because players in high school and college football with ties to Georgia are as numerous as anywhere else in the nation. This year’s edition is a great example of that.

These Falcons have 59 total players invited to their local pro day, including some expected to go in the first couple rounds of this upcoming draft. You can find the full list over at AtlantaFalcons.com, but I wanted to highlight a few players here:

• Javon Bullard. The Georgia safety could join a team lacking a clear starter next to Jessie Bates and excel in coverage right out of the game, which is an area where Richie Grant has had frustrating lapses and DeMarcco Hellams is not yet (and may never be) a high-end option. He’s a really intriguing, talented player, and given the team’s obvious need for more young help in the secondary, a player worth taking a look at today.
• Ladd McConkey. Fellow Georgia Bulldog McConkey has gotten a ton of buzz as a potential high-end slot receiver in the NFL, which is justified by his impressive route-running. If the Falcons are planning to use Drake London and Darnell Mooney outside—Kyle Pitts will be in the mix, too—McConkey could be a lethal weapon in the slot for a passing attack that would be a nightmare to defend against.
• Malik Washington. The Virginia product might be a later round alternative to McConkey as a really productive, sure-handed slot receiver who could be expected to compete with Rondale Moore this season and potentially lock down the role later on.
• Kimani Vidal. The Falcons figure to be on the hunt for a third running back—Rondale Moore and Avery Williams will bite off a handful of snaps, but that’s likely to be their respective ceilings as runners—and the Troy alum is a player worth keeping an eye on as a late round-to-priority free agent possibility. He’s a compact, tough runner with pretty good hands, and a player who has the upside to be a really solid backup in the NFL.
• Yahsyn McKee. Pre-Miami of Ohio during his time at Mercer, McKee played both receiver and cornerback, but he was a full-time corner last year. That experience shows in his aggression and ability to get at the ball, which a couple of interceptions and six pass deflections last year in a truncated season shortened by a leg injury. McKee could be a fun reserve with some real upside.

This is hardly a complete list of all the worthwhile prospects hanging out with the Falcons today; chances are you can spot a few you’ve been intrigued by yourself. If you do have a prospect or two you’re really interested in, be sure to note that in the comments.

But back to today. In the past, the team’s local pro days have undoubtedly been a good opportunity for the Falcons to get an in-person look at prospects, but it hasn’t translated to many of those prospects becoming Falcons. Combing back through the available list of prospects over the past five years, the only player who spent time in Atlanta in the pros was Chris Hinton (who was picked up later and spent some time on the practice squad). There may have been others I’ve missed—the team hasn’t always been so thorough about sharing the list of prospects attending—but it’s safe to say that it hasn’t been a pipeline for future Falcons to this point.

We’ll see if that changes this year.