Getty New England Patriots, Nelson Agholor
Individual success on the football field creates appeal, and with that appeal comes rumors and speculation about player movement.
There have been rumors of a Nelson Agholor trade since the beginning of the offseason. He’s still with the New England Patriots, and after his strong performance in a Week 2 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, it’s no wonder he’s showing up as one of the players on Bleacher Report’s trade big board.
B/R’s Kristopher Knox named the Indianapolis Colts and Green Bay Packers as potential suitors for Agholor. As Knox mentions, the Patriots could save a little under $10 million if they dealt him to a team that could afford to absorb the final year of his contract.
Green Bay has $9.4 million available, so they could clear room for him with a relatively minor move.
Agholor, 29, had his best game as a Patriot in the Week 2 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. He tallied six catches for 110 yards and a sparkling TD catch on a 50-50 ball that would have been intercepted had Agholor not made such an athletic play to take it away from the Steelers’ defender.
Agholor had a disappointing season in 2021, his first with the Patriots, but he’s already on pace to blow his numbers from last year out of the water and put up career-best across the boards.
It’s early, but Agholor is on pace for 77 receptions, 1,173 yards, and 9 TDs. If he continues playing at this level, his trade value will skyrocket, and New England might have a tougher decision on a potential trade.
The Agholor trade conversation should be interesting leading up to the trade deadline.
Patriots Notes and Quotes: Justin Herron Trade Explained
We’ve discussed the potential trade involving Agholor, but the Patriots did pull the trigger on a minor move on Thursday. New England traded reserve offensive tackle Justin Herron to the Las Vegas Raiders and a seventh-round pick for a sixth-rounder. Both picks are in the 2024 NFL Draft.
The trade reunites Herron with his former offensive coordinator. Josh McDaniels served as the Patriots’ OC for 13 years across two stints with the organization. McDaniels left the Patriots during the offseason to become the Raiders’ new head coach.
McDaniels and the Raiders are off to an 0-2 start to the season, and the team’s offensive line situation is a bit of a mess. Herron could step in and play a major role for the Raiders, which he wasn’t doing with the Patriots.
In New England, Herron was buried behind Trent Brown, Isaiah Wynn, and seemingly Yodny Cajuste. In Las Vegas, the path to the field seems to be clearer.
Patriots Notes and Quotes: Kendrick Bourne Talks Buy-In
The Patriots played WR Kendrick Bourne on just two snaps in the season-opening loss to the Miami Dolphins in Week 1. He was much more involved in Week 2 and heading into the Week 3 battle at home against the Baltimore Ravens; Bourne is stressing the buy-in concept.
“You have to buy in, and then you win,” Bourne said to local media and transcribed by the Boston Globe’s Christopher L. Gasper. “You can’t just come to the game and it all works out. Everybody just buying in to their role, buying in to working hard, buying in to making the plays at practice, and then you see the result. So, definitely buying in, and then you see the result.”
The hope is that Bourne can pick up even more responsibility and involvement on offense. The widespread belief is that more Bourne should equate to more points on the board for the Patriots.
We shall see.