While the joy of the NFL draft is not overlooked there is another side to the event that is not talked about as much. Somebody getting a new job means that another person is losing a job, or at least getting bumped down the totem pole. On the second and third days, it is more about roster battles, but in round one, the player coming in has a strong edge. For the Baltimore Ravens, Nelson Agholor cannot be feeling good.
Nelson Agholor is a loser of Baltimore Ravens draft
When Agholor signed with the Ravens, he was looking like one of the biggest moves of the offseason. The Ravens were stuck in a tough spot, and they did not have much room to maneuver. Agholor joined Rashod Bateman as the likely top two wide receivers.
Then came Odell Beckham. It was clear when the Ravens signed Agholor that they were not done at wide receiver. The question was whether they would draft or sign somebody. When they signed Beckham, that seemed to be the end of it. They had Bateman and Beckham on the outside, and then they shifted Agholor into the slot role. This was still a fine job for Agholor.
Then came the NFL draft. The thought was that with Beckham in the mix, the team may go with a cornerback early. However, because cornerback is the deeper position group, the Ravens still decided to go wide receiver with Zay Flowers.
This stings because Flowers is likely to play in the slot. For the most part he can do everything they signed Agholor for, and he can do it better. It is hard to see the Ravens starting Agholor anymore.
To be fair, he still has a legitimate role on this roster. What helps Agholor is that he can play all three wide receiver spots on the field. Beyond that, Bateman and Beckham have injury histories, and Flowers is just a rookie who may hit bumps in the road.
So, Agholor will be needed and he will step in here and there. That is much different than how things looked when Agholor initially signed with the team, though. He went from the clear number two to the clear number four in the span of about a month. Not the best day for Nelson Agholor.