Eagles head coach Doug Pederson said he’s still considering benching starting receiver Nelson Agholor for an undetermined amount of time or possibly reducing his workload depending on what he sees from the struggling Agholor at practice this week.
Pederson also said Agholor has spent time over the last couple weeks with the Eagles’ staff psychologist.
“I’ve just got to see from his standpoint like how he handles this week,” Pederson said before practice Wednesday.
“This will be a big week for him. How he handles it mentally, how he reacts with his teammates, how he reacts on the practice field, with different things that have sort of fallen in his lap.
“It’s just how well he responds. Can he handle a little adversity in his career? I know exactly where he sits because I sat there a few years ago as a quarterback. So I know what he’s going through and I know what he’s thinking, so I can relate.”
The Eagles, 5-5, face the Packers on Monday night in a nationally televised game at the Linc.
After a nightmarish game Sunday in Seattle in which he cost the Eagles a touchdown with a penalty, dropped a pass that would have turned into a big play or possibly a touchdown, and finished with no catches, Agholor spoke bluntly about his mental struggles as a former first-round pick who has not produced.
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“Right now, I need to find a way to let go of my mental block,” he said. “I've got to get out of my own head. Pressing so much and worried about so many things.”
Agholor has just seven receiving yards in his last two games and is averaging 16½ yards per game in the last five. He hasn’t scored a touchdown since opening day and has just three career receptions over 21 yards.
Pederson said he spoke with Agholor privately and although he wouldn’t divulge the results of that conversation, he said he wants Agholor to approach the next few days as if he’s going to play against Green Bay.
“Listen, he’s got to get himself ready to play,” Pederson said. “We’ve got a game Monday night and he’s still a big part of the team, so business as usual.”
The Eagles added undrafted rookie wide receiver Paul Turner, who led the NFL in catches during the preseason, to the 53-man roster on Monday.
Pederson said there’s a “real possibility” he would reduce Agholor’s role even if he is active Monday night.
“You know, my concern with Nelson too — and I mentioned this the other day — is him as a person and where is he mentally as a person, and I don’t want to expose him to anything that will hurt him there as an individual, as a human being,” Pederson said.
“I just know this is also about life. And it’s about him as a person and it’s not so much about football and I want to make sure Nelson is right as a person, as a human being.
“So if it means lessening the load, then I’ll lessen the load and try to take a little bit off his plate.”
Of the 35 NFL wide receivers who’ve started at least 20 games over the past two seasons, Agholor ranks last with 547 yards, last with 50 receptions and last with two touchdown catches.
Agholor, 23, was the 20th player taken in last year’s draft. He’s only the third wide receiver the Eagles have taken in the first round in the last 30 years, following Freddie Mitchell in 2001 and Jeremy Maclin in 2009.
“I think a lot of the pressure is outside more than internal, quite honestly,” Pederson said. “I think that’s where the pressure stems.
“People put expectations on players, and I think some of it might be warranted, some of it’s not, it’s just a matter of he’s in a new scheme change, he’s learning some new techniques, learning some new plays, and I think sometimes that’s where a lot of the pressure is added, is external.
“I still have confidence in him and we’ll see as the week goes.”
Pederson said Agholor understands what’s at stake here. It’s not like the Eagles have very much depth at wide receiver, but if Turner or Bryce Treggs or Dorial Green-Beckham take advantage of Agholor’s absence, it could be a while before he sees the field again.
“He understands,” Pederson said. “He knows where he’s at, and he knows where I stand. Again, just looking forward to getting him out there on the field this week and seeing where he’s at.”