Agholor wants to make difference
Third-year wide receiver has new mentality
PHILADELPHIA » The Eagles will enter CenturyLink Field in Seattle Sunday, Nelson Agholor included. He will be back, in so many ways.
It was just over a year ago, in that same stadium, when none of that was a given for the Eagles’ 2015 first-round draft choice. It was there, after a 2615 loss to the Seahawks, that Agholor was questioning his mental approach to the game. It was there, after he’d made no receptions, dropped a potential touchdown pass and committed a difference-making turnover, that he sat in his locker and wondered aloud about his career.
“I’ve got to get out of my own head,” he said at the time. “I am pressing too much. I am worried about too many things.”
He’s not worried about as much this time. Instead, the receiver is enjoying a revival season, one with six touchdowns, including two last week in a 31-3 victory over the Chicago Bears. A year later, he has become one of Carson Wentz’s most reliable options, no longer prone to dropping passes … or dropping his head in any self-analysis.
“I made a goal for myself in the offseason to just be better and to not be denied,” Agholor said Thursday after practice at the NovaCare Complex. “And I think it all changed when I told myself I would not be denied.”
Doug Pederson told Agholor something else after that Seattle game. He told him he’d be scratched the next week,
the Birds would play the Packers. Though Agholor did return to play five more games in 2016, his status in the Eagles’ organization seemed uncertain.
“I respect Doug,” Agholor said. “I believe he makes the best decisions for the organization. I think he thought that was the best decision for me. I’m appreciative, because I love where I am right now. And I know where I want to be.”
His head clear, his status too, Agholor is grateful to be heading to Seattle Sunday.
“I appreciate getting better each week and having fun with it, man,” he said. “I love my ability to shake things off and to keep on trying to get better and focus on that. And it’s all great because it is coming in a situation where we are winning football games. That’s the most important thing. When you win football games as an individual, you allow yourself to grow and get better each day. You don’t stunt your growth by thinking too much or worrying too much.”
Several factors allowed Agholor to recover from that 2016 low point. His first-round pedigree helped. Pederson did not give up on him entirely. He had a growing bond with Wentz. But he knew then that it had to start with his own focus.
“I love what I do,” he said. “I love the process of it, too. I love the grind. I love getting better every day. And a challenge is great for me, because it is part of what I like to do. I never thought everything in this life would be easy, so I just like to keep on getting better. That’s just me. And I think there are a lot of other people like that. We love to get better, and we invite adversity in a way. I really love that part of the game, because it makes you better. “That’s just where my head is.” Agholor, 24, has learned plenty in the past year, including how to hang onto passes. In that, he learned plenty about himself, too.
“I learned that I can have a whole of fun when I play fast,” he said. “Every time something special happens to me, I play very fast. And I prepared well. I paid attention to the details and the coaching that has been given. I have trusted my quarterback and my quarterback has trusted me. And I am having a lot of fun just being on schedule. That comes from film study and working hard in practice.”
His recovery, he insists, is not complete.
“I’m not done yet,” Agholor said. “That’s the thing. I just want to keep on getting better. And I love what we are doing here as a team. And I just hope that my growth continues to add great things to this team.” *** Several Eagles were planning to watch the Redskins-Cowboys game on TV Thursday. They were aware that a Dallas loss would have meant the Birds were NFC East champions.
“But at the same time, we are focused on Seattle,” Brandon Graham said. “And hopefully after the game, we can be wearing (division championship) shirts and hats and stuff like that. That would be cool.”
*** When the Eagles acquired Jay Ajayi three games ago, there seemed a chance that it would cut into the workload of LeGarrette Blount.
But Blount, who was averaging 12.25 carries per game before Ajayi’s arrival, has averaged 12.33 attempts since the addition of the former Dolphin.
“It’s situational,” Blount said. “Some games you can get no carries. Some games you can get 10 carries. Some games you can get 15 carries. It just goes based on how the game is going, how the flow of the game is going, based on the score, what we need, our position on the field. There are so many things that play a factor in it.