Raiders Might Have Made a Steal Even Before the NFL Draft

Las Vegas signed wide receiver Nelson Agholor, who helped the Philadelphia Eagles win Super Bowl LII, but was up-and-down in five years.

With the Las Vegas Raiders drafting wide receivers Henry Ruggs III and Bryan Edwards in addition to versatile Lynn Bowden Jr., their signing of veteran free agent Nelson Agholor has been all but overlooked.

The 6-foot, 198-pound Agholor was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the first round (20th overall) of the 2015 NFL Draft out of USC and in five seasons with the Eagles he caught 224 passes for 2,515 yards and 18 touchdowns.

"We really like adding Nelson Agholor, but we still need to get better at wideout,” Raiders General Manager Mike Mayock said on the eve of the draft before selecting Ruggs, Edwards and Bowden.

The 27-year-old Agholor, who was born in Nigeria and moved to the United States with his family when he was 5, made 104 catches for 1,313 yards and 12 touchdowns as a junior at USC before deciding to pass up his final season.

Agholor didn’t do much for the Eagles in his first two seasons, but in 2017 he had 62 receptions for 768 yards and eight touchdowns, including a 72-yarder, and helped Philadelphia win Super Bowl LII, 41-33, over the New England Patriots by making nine catches for 84 yards.

In 2018, he made 64 receptions for 736 yards and four touchdowns, including an 83-yarder, but last season he missed five games because of a knee injury and had only 39 catches for 363 yards and three touchdowns.

The handwriting was on the wall, as despite flashes of brilliance, Agholor was considering something of an underachiever who according to one statistical rating service 24 dropped passes in five seasons.

Agholor seemed ready for a fresh start.

“It’s been an amazing time,” he said in January. "Amazing growth. Definitely growth. An opportunity to go through hard times and reach the highest point of happiness too. At the end of the day, I got to experience the ultimate high.

“The lows allowed me to grow as a man and put me at peace with understanding things you can’t control. And also look yourself in the mirror and find ways to get better. It’s been a beautiful thing and it’s helped me form who I am as a man. And I’m happy for that.”

After making $9.387 million last season on the one-year option written into his rookie contract in 2015, Agholor signed a one-year contract with the Raiders in March for worth only $1.0475 million, which includes $910,000 in base salary.

That’s the minimum wage under the new CBA for players with five years of experience, and he also received a $137,500 signing bonus.

Fan Duel’s headline on Agholor’s signing with the Silver and Black read: “The Raiders Got a Steal in Nelson Agholor,” and Heavy.com’s headline was: “Raiders Steal Nelson Agholor From Eagles.”

What it came down to is that Mayock and Raiders Coach Jon Gruden don’t forget.

Mayock was a draft analyst for the NFL Network and Gruden was a color commentator for ESPN on Monday Night Football in 2015, and both had Agholor rated highly coming out of USC.

“I think at the beginning of the process he was perceived as a mid-to-late second-round solid wideout,” Mayock said a couple weeks ahead of the draft. “The more the coaches have gotten involved with the evaluation, they see a kid that can play inside, he can play outside, he’s a devastating punt returner. And apparently, they love him in the meeting room–great on the board and a hard worker.

“ … Agholor can play anywhere, outside and in the slot. Agholor is a precise route runner (and) he has added value as a great returner.”

Said Gruden: “If you can return punts, I know you can run with the ball after you catch it, and I know you’re tough. And Agholor is a great kid (and) a hard worker.”

Agholor will give the Raiders an extra veteran in the wide receiver room to go along with Tyrell Williams and second-year man Hunter Renfrow.

And if somehow he doesn’t work out, he didn’t cost the Raiders much at all.

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