Tag: Nelson Agholor

Patriots WR Nelson Agholor discusses Mac Jones’ ‘greatest strength’

Nelson Agholor had nothing but positive things to say about the Patriots’ second-year QB.

Mac Jones is entering his second NFL season with little continuity.

The New England Patriots lost Josh McDaniels, a few key offensive coaches and two of their best interior linemen. Typically, quarterbacks in the developmental stages of their career need that cohesion to grow and become the best version of themselves.

Many Patriots players believe Jones puts in the work and has the demeanor necessary to overcome these issues and still be great. Nelson Agholor spoke with the media on Tuesday and he explained why Jones has the work ethic to be great.

“He’s definitely trained his butt off, I can tell you that,” Agholor said, transcribed by NESN. “I see it every day when he comes in here. He works his butt off. He’s here every day putting the time in. And, obviously, when he throws the football, he throws the football well — really well. I’m impressed with what he does every day and how he works.”

Agholor then pointed to Jones’ greatest strength — his communication.

“I think Mac’s greatest strength is his ability to communicate,” Agholor said. “Obviously, he’s a great quarterback. I think he throws the ball amazing. But I love the way he communicates, and that’s something that allows you to grow together and work together, because communication is the key to every great relationship.

“He does a great job telling me what he sees. He does a great job of telling me what he likes about what I’m doing. He does a great job of (telling me about) some things that are hard for him to read when I move around and things like that. And once you know, there’s less gray area. … His communication is everything.”

The Patriots needed a great leader who can communicate and build relationships with the team. Tom Brady was an incredible leader and he left enormous shoes to fill. Jones understood the task while entering Gillette Stadium and he’s doing all the right things to be in the best position as possible.

Agholor continued to harp on the work ethic that makes Jones a great leader.

“He works hard, I can tell you that much,” Agholor said. “He leads by example with his effort each day. It’s consistent. He has consistent, hard-working effort, trains really hard, and he leads the bunch. So I think that is definitely something you must respect about him — how he trains.”

Jones has a receiver crew that includes Agholor, Kendrick Bourne, Jakobi Meyers, DeVante Parker and Tyquan Thornton. He has plenty of talent around him and it wouldn’t be a surprise if Jones outdid his rookie year.

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Nelson Agholor thinks he’s poised for bounce-back 2022 season

Nelson Agholor is ready for a bigger 2022 season.

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New England Patriots wide receiver Nelson Agholor is looking to bounce back after a season that saw him underperform in the team’s offense.

He caught 37 catches for 473 yards and three touchdowns in the 2021 season. He never recorded more than 55 yards and caught two or fewer passes in six games. Those numbers were down from a 2020 season that saw him tally 48 catches for 896 yards and eight touchdowns with the Las Vegas Raiders.

Heading into his second season with the organization, the Patriots acquired depth at the position in wide receiver DeVante Parker. They also drafted rookie Tyquan Thornton out of Baylor this past April. They will both compete for snaps with Agholor.

Still, Agholor feels more comfortable with the system and his role in the New England organization, as transcribed by Zack Cox of NESN.com.

“The best part about it is Year 2 in the Patriots system is when guys really get going,” Agholor said. “I feel comfortable, and I’m excited to have my best season with the Patriots and show why I’m here.”

“And I know the routes. Because the route tree is unique. I mean, everybody runs certain routes, but the route tree is a little different than what I’ve ran before, and now I know it, so now I get to put my own spin on how we do things and play fast. So I’m just growing, practicing, putting stuff on tape and being comfortable with it — putting my own flavor on what I put on tape. Whereas a year ago, I was learning, so you do things at a certain learning tempo. You never get to just go full speed because you want to make sure you’re doing it right, so you kind of move with caution. Now I know what it looks like and I get to just put my flavor on it.

Agholor will return to a Patriots wide receiver room that includes Jakobi Meyers, the team’s leading receiver last year. He will also get another chance to reunite with quarterback Mac Jones, who is entering his second season.

The stars are aligning for Agholor to have a smoother season, as he looks to become a valuable depth piece for a Patriots wide receiver room that is yearning for a big-time playmaker. With training camp on the horizon, his role on the team remains in question.

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Nelson Agholor on sizable salary: I’m excited to ‘show why I’m here’

Nelson Agholor on 2022: “It’s behind us.”

The numbers don’t make sense when weighing Nelson Agholor’s production against his salary. The New England Patriots receiver finished with 37 catches for 473 yards and three touchdowns in 2021 after signing a two-year deal worth up to $24 million. He’s set to have a cap hit of $14.8 million with almost $10 million in new money in 2022.

So if he’s going to make that contract worthwhile for the Patriots, he’s going to have to provide a significant uptick in production — unless, of course, New England renegotiates his contract (or trades him). Agholor faced a question about that contract and whether something might get done to make the money better match his production.

“I don’t focus on that,” Agholor said with a smile. “You know, I’m here for a reason. And I love the opportunity that’s given to me to be a Patriot, to work hard. And the best part about it is in year two in the Patriots’ system is when guys really get going. And I feel comfortable, and I’m excited to have my best season with the Patriots and show why I’m here.”

That was Agholor’s resounding message throughout his meeting with the media through videoconference on Tuesday: he and the Patriots are more optimistic than last season about what they can accomplish. Quarterback Mac Jones is entering his second season in the NFL. Receivers Kendrick Bourne and Agholor and tight ends Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry are entering their second seasons in the Patriots system. They have a better understanding of the playbook and of each other.

The offseason is a time for optimism, but the Patriots’ optimism is founded in some reality. New England threw for the 14th most passing yards (4,098), the 15th most passing touchdowns (24) and the fifth-most yards per attempt (7.7). That’s a decent foundation around which the team can build, and they added receivers DeVante Parker and Tyquan Thornton and running back Pierre Strong. Agholor, however, has a lot of ground to make up if he’s going to take on a bigger role after his lackluster 2021.

“Well, it’s behind us, but I would say that it went the way it was supposed to for me to grow,” Agholor said. “I can’t really look at it any other way. I needed to grow, I needed to adapt, I needed to be able to do what I wanted to do, and I think everything happens for a reason. I’m not gonna get upset about this or that because it’s in the past. What I do have in front of me is a really wonderful opportunity this year to be what I’m supposed to be and play the way I want to play, so I’m all right with that.”

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Nelson Agholor mum on who’s running the Patriots offense

“You got to ask coach Belichick.”

New England Patriots receiver Nelson Agholor kept things mysterious when asked to clarify the team’s coaching situation.

After former Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels joined the Las Vegas Raiders, he brought along the team’s offensive line coach (Cole Popvich), receivers coach (Mick Lombardi) and assistant quarterbacks coach (Bo Hardegree). So that left Nick Caley, the tight ends coach, along with recently-rehired assistant Joe Judge. The Patriots are moving Matt Patricia to the offensive side after a year in the front office. It also seems Vinnie Sunseri (running backs), Troy Brown (receivers) and Bobby Yates (offensive line) are all ascending in their roles with the team after being either assistant position coaches or co-position coaches.

But Agholor wasn’t sharing any of the official changes. He was asked who is coaching receivers.

“You got to ask coach Belichick,” he said.

And who’s running the offense?

“Ask coach Belichick,” he repeated.

OK then.

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N’Keal Harry is on the outs with the Patriots, but what about Nelson Agholor?

DeVante Parker is likely to bump at least one receiver off the roster. Maybe two.

The arrival of DeVante Parker is likely to spell the departure of N’Keal Harry. It’s that simple. Parker is the type of player that Harry, a 2019 first-round pick, was supposed to develop into. New England tried — perhaps too long — to develop Harry within their system with plenty of opportunities to earn a spot as the team’s outside receiver. He couldn’t handle it.

So they had to bring in Parker, who joined the Patriots in a trade that sent a third-round pick to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for the receiver and a fifth-round pick. Parker is familiar with the expectations of being a first-round pick, but he was much closer to fitting the billing of a WR1. In fact, in 2019 (his only season where he played every game), he was just that. But in every other season, Parker has struggled with injuries, which has hampered his production. He has eclipsed 1,000 yards just once.

Because of his inconsistent production, it’s unclear how Parker will fit into the Patriots offense — and how big his role will be.

So that begs the question: Will Parker’s arrival impact receiver Nelson Agholor? Might the Patriots explore trading Agholor?

New England will not cut Agholor. The dead cap charge of $10 million is far too substantial. But if the Patriots traded him, they would free up roughly $9 million in cap space. That’s a big number — enough to potentially add one more big piece to this team in 2022 or to save up more cap space for a potentially busy 2023 offseason. (Salary cap space rolls over.) At the trade deadline, teams may make some very good receivers available. There’s a chance DK Metcalf, A.J. Brown, and Deebo Samuel could be available, among others. There are plenty of reasons to value that $9 million of flexibility.

Agholor is a totally different receiver than Parker. But they do line up in the same place in the offense: on the outside. Parker took just 13% of his 2021 snaps in the slot. Agholor took just 9%. The more they put both players on the field, the more they’re likely to remove Jakobi Meyers and Kendrick Bourne — the most product pass-catchers in 2021. So it’s likely the Patriots deploy a rotation of outside receivers with Parker, Agholor and Bourne (who took 36.4% of his snaps in the slot and 62.5% outside).

That’s not even factoring in tight ends Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith, who are among the highest-paid players at the position. The Patriots are going to want them on the field often in 2022.

On one hand, the Patriots could still use Agholor. As mentioned, Parker’s injury issues are significant, and history suggests he could miss time in 2022. In the event that happens, Agholor’s role will increase. And there’s also a sound argument that, by putting Parker into a rotation, he might be less likely to suffer an injury, with fewer snaps and less stress on his body. Agholor could prove very useful.

On the other hand, the Patriots are set to pay Agholor $11 million in 2022 with a cap number of $14.9 million. Last season, he had 37 catches, 473 yards and three touchdowns. He may see an uptick in his production, even with a lower snap count. But how much upside is there? What if the Patriots find Parker to be consistently effective in the role and Agholor falls to WR4?

There are a lot of hypotheticals with Agholor. Maybe he’ll play better next year. But if you look at his career, you see just one impressive season: 2020 with the Raiders. That looks more like the outlier than the rule. And if the Patriots want to continue to build their team around Mac Jones, they need to bank on better players than Agholor — and Parker for that matter. The Patriots need more help. So they should at least consider moving on from Agholor, if they see other ways to make this team substantially better.

Maybe an opportunity doesn’t present itself. Maybe the Patriots agree to terms on the perfect deal in free agency or the trade market. But if something better comes along, they should consider it.

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Robert Kraft lays out expectations for Patriots’ 2021 free agents

The Patriots spent an unprecedented amount of money in free agency last year and some players didn’t meet the expectations.

The New England Patriots spent over $163 million in free agency last offseason.

New England brought in the best tight ends available in Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry, while securing a slew of other players on large contracts. Matthew Judon, Nelson Agholor, Kendrick Bourne, Jalen Mills and Davon Godchaux are some of the other names.

Bourne had a career-high 55 catches for 800 yards and five touchdowns, while Judon tallied a career-high 12.5 sacks. Henry had a career-high nine touchdowns and was Mac Jones’ most reliable target.

On the flip side — Agholor was the team’s highest-paid receiver by far and he only had 37 catches for 473 yards and three touchdowns. Godchaux didn’t nearly have the impact that was expected and Mills proved he wasn’t the lockdown player the Patriots needed.

In an interview with The Athletic’s Jeff Howe, Robert Kraft discussed the free agent class and laid out his expectations for the 2022 season.

“I hope that some of the free agents who we brought in who didn’t perform as high as we would have liked last year will (produce) this year because they’ve adjusted to the system,” Kraft said. “And we’re making changes to take advantage of what they do best. We have a lot of talent that hasn’t been tapped into yet in my opinion.”

Kraft continued and discussed the future of Jones, who led the Patriots to an 10-7 record in his rookie season.

“This year will be very telling,” Kraft said. “To come into something as new as this, as established, I think he got beat up pretty bad, and he kept coming back and getting up and really doing some great stuff. Just the way he handles himself, he took some real beatings and hopped up. He has developed a good relationship with the whole cadre of receivers. I’m very happy with what I’ve seen. But this is a big year, the second year.”

The Patriots, unlike last year, have moved extremely slow in free agency due to the lack of funds.

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WR Nelson Agholor among Patriots returning to practice on Wednesday

Nelson Agholor returned to practice on Wednesday afternoon.

New England Patriots wide receiver Nelson Agholor returned to practice on Wednesday. The 28-year-old wide receiver has been out since suffering a concussion against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 15.

Agholor has caught 36 passes for 450 yards and three touchdowns. His best game statistically came against the Miami Dolphins in the season opener. He caught seven passes for 72 yards and a touchdown. His last touchdown came against the Atlanta Falcons on November 18. In that game, he caught five passes for 40 yards in addition to the score.

In other practice news, defensive end Ronnie Perkins returned to practice on Wednesday as well. He has been on injured reserve since mid-December. He has not played in a game yet for New England the season.

Safety Kyle Dugger was not present at practice on Wednesday. The reason for his absence remains unclear.

As New England gets ready to face the Miami Dolphins, the Patriots may get a big boost back to their wide receiver room with the playoffs nearing.

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Nelson Agholor absent, N’Keal Harry present for Patriots practice in Week 16

N’Keal Harry’s presence at practice is a positive sign for the Patriots WRs.

The New England Patriots receiver situation may be slightly better than initially expected. Receivers Nelson Agholor (head) and Kendrick Bourne (COVID-19/reserve) were absent from practice on Wednesday, but N’Keal Harry was present. Perhaps Harry has a chance at playing against the Buffalo Bills in Week 16.

The absences of Agholor and Bourne were to be expected. Running back Rhamondre Stevenson’s absence, however, was a surprise. The notable attendees included running back J.J. Taylor after a trip to COVID-19/reserve and running back Damien Harris, who practice last week but missed the game with a hamstring injury.

The Patriots injury report will provide more detail about the reasons for absences and the levels of participation.

The Patriots and the Bills kick off on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Gillette Stadium on Sunday.

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Patriots face uncertainty at WR position heading into Week 16 against the Bills

Receiver Jakobi Meyers may have a lot of responsibilities on Sunday.

The New England Patriots aren’t in trouble at their receiver position — not yet. But the situation is troubling.

The team placed Kendrick Bourne on the COVID-19/reserve list on Monday, which puts his status in doubt for Sunday. If he’s vaccinated and COVID-positive, there’s a chance he could play by testing out with back-to-back negative test results. If he’s unvaccinated and was merely a close contact, he could also return to the facility before the game. But there are plenty of scenarios where he could not make a return. And even if he is vaccinated, it has been uncommon this year for COVID-positive players to test out within the same week that they tested positive.

So that should get us looking at the other starters: Nelson Agholor and Jakobi Meyers. While Meyers is healthy (so far as we know), Agholor suffered a head injury in Saturday’s loss to the Indianapolis Colts. He exited the game and did not return.

Past them, the Patriots have N’Keal Harry and Gunner Olszewski. But Harry, like Agholor, is dealing with a head injury. Olszewski has never shown any in-game potential or competence at the position.

So the Patriots’ situation looks like this….

53-man roster:

Agholor (head)
Meyers
Bourne (COVID-19/reserve)
Harry (head)
Olszewski

Practice squad

Kristian Wilkerson
Tre Nixon

The Patriots have elevated Wilkerson, but he looked far more comfortable running jet sweeps than downfield receiving routes. Nixon, a seventh-round draft choice, has yet to see NFL game action.

If Bourne, Agholor and Harry cannot play, the Patriots will basically have to rely upon Meyers and their two tight ends, Jonnu Smith and Hunter Henry. Running backs Brandon Bolden and Rhamondre Stevenson may help lift the load in the passing game — and they may have to, with Damien Harris missing last week with a hamstring injury.

It’s not a great week for New England in terms of injuries and it’s rough timing, with the Patriots and Buffalo Bills battling for the top spot in the AFC East on Sunday.

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This statistic about Nelson Agholor should surprise no one

Taking a close look at Nelson Agholor’s role in the offense.

The New England Patriots have a very specific job for receiver Nelson Agholor. He creates space for the rest of the offense. Maybe he doesn’t get as many receptions (32), fourth on the team, despite his 595 snaps, second among Patriots receivers, and targets (54), second on the team.

But Agholor is getting his job done, so long as he is assisting his teammates in creating separation. It’s not as simple as saying that the production of tight end Hunter Henry and receivers Kendrick Bourne and Jakobi Meyers is a credit to Agholor. But there’s definitely a connection.

ESPN’s Seth Walder drew up a chart that showed he’s running deep fades and go routes — both routes where the receiver runs straight downfield — more than most receivers in the NFL. Meanwhile, he’s barely running shallow routes, like a flat, a hitch or a short out.

Here’s a look.

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This shouldn’t come a surprise to folks watching the games — and to those who are familiar with Agholor’s strengths that he showed with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2020. Agholor proved a reliable deep threat when paired with quarterback Derek Carr. They made for an impressive duo that could stretch the field.

Patriots quarterback Mac Jones and Agholor have not developed that same connection. But they haven’t needed to. Jones and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels have a way of chewing up defenses by dialing up short throws. That’s working so well, in part, because defenses have to respect Agholor when he’s streaking downfield. It also shows why he’s less efficient than most receivers on the Patriots, catching just 59.3% of his targets, sixth-best on the Patriots.

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