Was WR Nelson Agholor Misused in the Patriots Offense (how to fix), or just a Terrible Contract/Signing from the Start?

[Ring 6]

I stand corrected, Godchaux is 10.4M not 11M. Still a massive bust.

Wrong YET AGAIN. Godchaux is 2/15.

 

[Kontradiction]

He’s a WR2. Ideal flanker if you have a burner split-end, or vice versa. It was just a bad signing. It could end up differently depending on what the team does to help Mac out on the other side of the field since Agholor is a sunk cost anyway.

 

[Ring 6]

He’s a WR2. Ideal flanker if you have a burner split-end, or vice versa. It was just a bad signing. It could end up differently depending on what the team does to help Mac out on the other side of the field since Agholor is a sunk cost anyway.

They needed a WR. Who was available that was better?
When they signed him they didn’t know who the qb would be. Might have been a different season for him
if he didn’t have a rookie QB either unwilling to throw deep, coached not to or a little of both.
Bourne at 3/15 stepped into the production you’d expect from him and he pretty much put up what you would expect from Bourne.

 

[Username]

No point having a deep threat if you just scheme up short passes

 

[DropKickFlutie]

I pretty much agree with all of what you are saying but the last sentence.....and obviosly the Patriots had Moss for more than one year. If you are talking Miller from Tampa Bay, he seems to really best be suited to Nelson Agholor insurance or cheap replacement if he was on a rookie contract. Despite watching him the last two years when he was healthy at least, I haven't seen enough out of him to think he could be a good slot receiver. At the end of the season, he really had gone down Tampa's wide receiver depth chart from 4th last year to 6th or 7th this year. He was even behind Tyler Johnson and 2 other players picked up off the scrap heap. A lot of this was Tampa trying to replace the slot ability of Godwin/Brown and the blocking of Godwin. Miller wasn't deemed good in those areas.

And as for slot receiver, I really think the Patriots need an elite one to move the ball in that area. They have a bunch of okay ones but no one that is elite.

I tend to agree that Belichick is never overly fixated on acquiring number 1 receivers but Cooks was a number 1 receiver based upon his salary and what teams have traded for him and his production...just a lower tier one so that is why Belichick rented at a reasonable cost instead of bought. 2300 yard and 17 TDs were his combined stats the two years before Belichick traded for him. Belichick does care about number 1 receivers since he is a football historian and realizes they can help win Super Bowls but he just isn't going to overpay for a traditional one if he feels the market is out of whack and he would be better off investing elsewhere.

Outside a true number 1 receiver or elite slot receiver....the Patriots easiest path to getting better on offense is just improving the offensive line which would give all the receivers/tight ends a little more time to get open and hoping for some internal growth from Mac Jones.

Well said. All pro RT talent Michael Onwenu says hi from the bench.

 

[DropKickFlutie]

Godchaux is 2/15.

What's his 2022 cap number?
Terrible.
I'll wait as you figure how to spin this one.

 

[203Pat]

Honestly if we paid Agholor half of what we did I still would have thought he was overpaid but after watching the practice squadders we had in 2020 I was just happy to see us bring in a few NFL wide receivers. That good will wore off pretty quickly when it became obvious that Agholor doesn't fit the type of offense we run. We don't chuck the ball deep and he is a one trick pony. If his cap number wasn't so high I would assume he is gone but with his number as it is I would guess he is here next season.

 

[DropKickFlutie]

Honestly if we paid Agholor half of what we did I still would have thought he was overpaid but after watching the practice squadders we had in 2020 I was just happy to see us bring in a few NFL wide receivers. That good will wore off pretty quickly when it became obvious that Agholor doesn't fit the type of offense we run. We don't chuck the ball deep and he is a one trick pony. If his cap number wasn't so high I would assume he is gone but with his number as it is I would guess he is here next season.

Agree. With the current play caller they just have the deep guy run a simple route occasionally. Knowing this about your own staff, Agholor was a bad signing from the start. Could have replicated the same production from signing a much cheaper WR who is just fast.

 

[Sicilian]

Something to note is that the other big name free agent WR's: Curtis Samuel, Kenny Golladay, and Corey Davis also had really rough seasons (either due to injury, performance, or both). So while that doesn't make the Agholor deal any better, it does show that no one really got the WR market right this year. Bourne's season takes some of the sting out of it for me though. We double dipped on FA WR, and hit on one of them. Could have been worse.

 

[203Pat]

Agree. With the current play caller they just have the deep guy run a simple route occasionally. Knowing this about your own staff, Agholor was a bad signing from the start. Could have replicated the same production from signing a much cheaper WR who is just fast.

We could have re-signed Damiere Byrd and got similar production for about $1 mill.

 

[DropKickFlutie]

We could have re-signed Damiere Byrd and got similar production for about $1 mill.

Exactly. And I'm staunchly against adding any more toys on offense. Why the talk of adding a slot WR when the middle of the field is already clogged up with 4 players on the roster who use the middle of the field. Why talk of adding a speedster when Agholor is already an underused speedster. And first fix other under-used players like Onwenu on the bench and Jonnu. The offense has an OC problem not a player talent problem.

 

[DropKickFlutie]

Nelson Agholor 2020 Raiders highlights.
900 yards, 8TDs. Led league in yards per reception (speedster).

 

[chasa]

I go with the cliche that a big part has to do with mac's development. There's a reason he started the season with 80% completion rate games. Agholor, like you said, is a high yds/catch, low catch% receiver. I think the long attempt/ int to him in the endzone in the bills playoff game is a harbinger of the next part of mac's evolution.

He should have a better year next year. Will he be worth the money? That's debatable.

Honestly that interception was just a truely incredible play by hyde. the throw was on the money, maybe he could have throwing it 1 foot further.

 

[BaconGrundleCandy]

Wrong.

11m for a left tackle (and an option that had to be exercised before the season started) is CHEAP.


Wrong again.

If you can't make your point honestly, you're not really making a point.

Agholor is paid like #2 WR in the NFL. That's what he is.
Godchaux is paid like a Tier 3 DL in the NFL. That's what he is.

To answer your question: imo, both Agholor and Smith were badly misused this year - maybe that had to do with McDaniels trying to find a comfort zone for Mac Jones.

I've studied and looked at Smith for a minute now.

1)His blocking was atrocious. Some might not like hearing it but it lost him snaps. Definitely lost a few to JJ at the end of the year. Believe it was his lowest total of snaps ever or since his rookie year. Anyway Tennessee didn't really have blocking guys like we did. He was doing a lot of chipping. Not taking on DE's full throttle.

2)Arthur Smith catered to Smith and schemed up a lot of simple touches. We did as well but that was a lot of his production in Tenn. That's just not going to happen a lot if you can't work within the offense. Like we'll do it for everyone actually but not to the amount that Smith was.

Imagine thinking 10-11M is expensive for a starting LT? Not sure if people are that clueless or just trolling but holy sh¡t is that dumb.

 

[The Boston Patriot]

Terrible Signing from the Start!​

 

[PatsFan2]

Nelson Agholor was signed by the Patriots for 2 years, $26M. Not the worst contract on the team, unfortunately, given other albatrosses like Jonnu ($50M/4), Wynn ($11m), Godchaux (11M). Agholor put up 37 receptions for 473 yards and 3 TD's in this Patriots offense in 2021, a huge drop from the prior year of 900 yards and 8TD's, as well as below his historical production. One of the worst contracts on the team.

Was Agholor misused this year in the Patriots offense, or was it just a bad signing from the start?

For comparison, in 2020 on the Raiders, Agholor put up 48 receptions for 896 yards and 8TD's (leading the entire league in yards per reception), and also when on the Eagles he put up 2 good years, in 2017 had 62 receptions for 768 yards (8TDs) and in 2018 he put up 64 receptions for 736 yards.

What did minds like Frank Reich, Mike Groh, Gruden, and Greg Olsen figure out about Nelson Agholor on the Raiders and Eagles, that the Patriots offensive staff hasn't figured out yet??

Report: Agholor Joining Patriots on $26 Million Deal

Agholor had career highs in receptions and touchdowns catches in 2020 with the Raiders.

www.si.com

Those contracts can handcuff a Team for years to come...the only way you can be competitive in spite of those contracts is hitting on Drafts and this team have been missing on two many.

 

[Midship]

Possibly the worst signing of the offseason (Smith included). Just a massive whiff.

 

[UrbanCowboy]

Agree the Raiders season was an outlier -- but showed he can do it. He had a couple decent years in Philly where he was not just a deep threat. I think he'll be better for us next year. It's just the overpay in free agency that stings. For years, we laughed at everyone else for over-paying in free agency, but we were forced to do it last year. So be it, let's move forward. And pray for a good draft.

 

[PatsFan2]

Agholor 2/22
Godchaux 2/15
Wynn. 3.6 mill in 2021 10.4 in 2022

New England Patriots Salary Cap | Over the Cap

New England Patriots salary cap, contracts, bonus money, dead money, and cap savings for every player

overthecap.com

So that's what $10 Mill get you these days?? We definitely overpaid.

 

[PatsFan2]

Nelson Agholor 2020 Raiders highlights.
900 yards, 8TDs. Led league in yards per reception (speedster).

A shame Aguilar was less than a refection of that here.