One of the most surprising performances of the year was Nelson Agholor breaking out for the Las Vegas Raiders. Widely viewed as a first-round bust from the Chip Kelly era in Philadelphia, Agholor really didn’t have any sort of market in free agency and signed a one-year deal with the Raiders at the veteran minimum level.
Agholor fit in perfectly in Jon Gruden’s offense, making big play after big play down the field. He finished the season with 896 yards and eight touchdowns on just 48 receptions. He averaged an incredible 18.7 yards per reception, doubling what he posted in his final year with the Eagles.
In a recent article by Ben Linsey of Pro Football Focus, he named every team’s most improved player from the 2020 season. For the Raiders, that was none other than Agholor. Take a look at what the site had to say about the former USC standout:
“In 2019 with Philadelphia, Agholor averaged just 9.3 yards per reception and caught three of his 15 targets on passes 20 or more yards downfield. With the Raiders in 2020, Agholor averaged over 18 yards per reception and caught twice as many touchdowns on passes 20-plus yards downfield (six) as he had total receptions the prior year. As a result, the Raiders are going to have a tough time re-signing him to another one-year, $1 million deal this offseason.”
Agholor should have a much more robust free-agent market in the next month as the NFL searches for players who can create big plays. Given how well he performed for the Raiders this season, it does feel likely that the team will want to bring him back. At just 27-years old, Agholor is still in his prime and should be even better next year with the Raiders, if he decides to return to Las Vegas.
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