The Baltimore Ravens’ offseason has been dominated by three principal storylines, all tied around the offensive passing game. Getting quarterback Lamar Jackson under contract was priority number one, and likely influenced the other two variables, including moving on from Greg Roman as offensive coordinator and replacing him with Todd Monken.
Then there were the additions at wide receiver. All of the attention has been paid to the splashier moves, the signing of former All-Pro Odell Beckham Jr. to a one-year, $15 million contract (albeit one with four void years to minimize his cap hit this year) and the drafting of Zay Flowers in the first round. But he isn’t the only new face in that room, and ESPN’s Jamison Hensley notes based on what he showed during OTAs and minicamp that he shouldn’t be forgotten about.
“Agholor, a first-rounder in 2015, is on his fourth team in five years, but he has made a strong impression in his first offseason with the Ravens”, he wrote, saying that he “has repeatedly stood out, whether it’s a long touchdown grab or a nifty grab on a back-shoulder throw. Agholor is the clear-cut No. 4 wide receiver in Baltimore, but he’s making a case for having a bigger role in the passing game”.
A 2015 first-round draft pick of the Philadelphia Eagles, the Nigerian native never lived up to his pedigree. Between five years in Philadelphia, two with the New England Patriots, and one with the Las Vegas Raiders, he never once recorded a 1000-yard season. He’s only registered 50-plus catches twice with a high of 64. Notably, he does have two seasons with eight touchdowns, though has only scored three or more in a season three times.
But the Ravens did not sign him to be any kind of star. He is playing on just a one-year, $3.25 million deal, which, again, included a maximum void-year structure to minimize his 2023 cap hit. Between Beckham and Flowers and the return of Rashod Bateman, it’s unclear how many snaps he will even get.
But it’ll certainly be more than zero if anything we’ve heard out of Baltimore about what this offense is going to look like out of Monken is true. Garrett Downing noted for the team’s website that Agholor took an extensive number of reps with the first-team offense throughout OTAs and minicamp.
At least on paper, Baltimore would seem to have the deepest wide receiver group it has had in quite a while, perhaps in its history. That really depends on how they end up performing, though. Beckham hasn’t even played in over a year. Bateman is coming back from injury. Flowers is a rookie. And Agholor is bound to look better in spring practices than autumn games.
But hey, it’s still July. It’s the season for optimism for all 32 teams. Let’s not let reality sink in just yet. That’s part of the fun of the NFL calendar.
