Johnson Trying to Mentor Fellow NFL IPP Product, Agoha

Las Vegas Raiders fullback Jakob Johnson and defensive end David Agoha both came through the NFL International Player Pathway Program.

Las Vegas Raiders fullback Jakob Johnson is one of only four players on an active NFL roster who came up through the NFL International Player Pathway Program.

For such select players, it's a rarity for them to cross paths with someone in the league who took the same road.

Johnson, however, now has one as a teammate, defensive end David Agoha from Nigeria.

As someone who can empathize with Agoha's journey to the league, Johnson has made a point to try to take the young Nigerian under his wing.

"David's situation is a little different," Johnson told reporters on Monday. "Obviously, he came directly from Nigeria, never played football before. But I had the chance of meeting him in the spring already and speaking to him there a little bit. And then now, watching him grow throughout OTAs and where he's at now, I think he still has a lot to learn, a long journey ahead of him, but he's definitely putting the work in every day and coming to work with the right mindset because when you're new to football like that, you just have to keep chopping away at it. And eventually, the dam will break, so he's on the right track."

Agoha was signed by the Raiders as an undrafted free agent in May. He was one of eight players from the NFL IPP program to be signed by NFL clubs this offseason.

The edge rusher stands at 6-foot-4 and weighs 252 pounds, and is only 21 years of age.

Johnson, meanwhile, played college ball at the University of Tennessee before returning to his home in Germany, where he would play for the Stuttgart Scorpions of the German Football League for one season.

After that, Johnson was signed by the New England Patriots as an undrafted free agent in 2019, and he spent three seasons with them.

NFL IPP began in 2017 and has since had 37 players sign with NFL teams.

The Silver and Black open the preseason by hosting the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, Aug. 13, at 4 p.m. EDT/1 p.m. PDT.

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