Former Arkansas receiver Matt Landers signs as UDFA after 2023 NFL Draft
The Seattle Seahawks are banking on former Arkansas star Matt Landers coming in and contributing to their roster the next few years. The organization signed Landers as an undrafted free agent on Saturday after the 2023 NFL Draft, according to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero.
He shined during his college football career at three different schools, and the NFL Team will be expecting him to do the same for them at the next level. His best season was this year for Arkansas, when he hauled in 47 catches for 901 receiving yards and eight touchdowns.
His 901 receiving yards put him eighth all-time in Arkansas history for the most receiving yards in a single season. Landers finished off his 2022 campaign with a bang, hauling in a touchdown catch for the fourth straight game in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl win against the Kansas Jayhawks. The Hogs prevailed 55-53 in a triple overtime thriller in what ended up being one of the best games of the college football bowl season. It took Landers a few games this year, but he emerged as a big-time threat, even in the Hogs’ run heavy scheme.
In 2021 with the Toledo Rockets, he hauled in 20 catches for 514 receiving yards and five touchdowns. His 25.7 yards per catch with the Rockets would have ranked him second in all of college football, but he didn’t bring in enough catches to qualify. Landers played his first two seasons of college football with the Georgia Bulldogs, hauling in 12 catches for over 100 yards and one touchdown during his time there.
He recently impressed scouts at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine, when he ran a blazing 4.37 40-yard dash time. His 40-time was the third fastest time out of all of the receivers at this year’s combine.
He played his high school football for St. Petersburg (St. Petersburg, Florida). In the 2017 recruiting class, Landers was ranked as the No. 742 overall prospect in the country and a three-start recruit, according to the On3 Industry Rankings.
What NFL Draft analysts are saying about Matt Landers
NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein shared his thoughts on Landers in his recent scouting profile of him on NFL.com. He noted that while his college production was not overwhelming, he’s got plenty of potential and should be a developmental prospect at the next level.
“Landers spent his first four seasons at Georgia, managing just 12 total catches before having a solid 2021 season at Toledo and then a stronger 2022 campaign at Arkansas. He’s still unrefined as a receiver, but his size, athleticism and potential as a ball-winner are noteworthy. He has legitimate build-up speed deep and his long strides help him separate. He’s a developmental prospect with upside and should hear his name called on Day 3 of the draft,” Zierlein said.