Nelson Agholor was taken by the Eagles at No. 20 in the first round of the NFL Draft. Photo by T. J. Engler / contrastphotography.com

Were we all let down by not being able to pull off the trade for Marcus Mariota? I know I was and I am sure most Eagle fans were.

I have maintained all along that Marcus will never be the NFL QB he could be without Chip as his head coach and Chip will never be the NFL head coach he desires to be without Marcus. The flyin’ Hawaiian was a perfect system fit.

But now reality sets in and it’s about how the Eagles improve and how they can get better.

Nelson Agholor is a nice start. On a perfect spring night in the Windy City Mr. Agholor’s name was called in the first round, the fourth wide receiver drafted on the special night. Eventually two more wide receivers’ name would be called in the first round, making it a total of six new shiny toys for their respective teams to highlight and amalgamate into their scheme.

If 2014 was an indication that college wide receivers, no matter where they are drafted, are ready to impact the NFL then we should fully expect 2015 to provide the same type of production.

So, who is Nelson Agholor? As any scout in this business knows, scouting is the study of movement and when a good set of football eyes watches Agholor they see a silky smooth, sneaky-fast, skilled player.

It’s not hard to place a first-round grade on him when you study his game against Cal-Berkley last year: 16 receptions and 21 total targets for well over 200 yards was one of the more impressive performances in all of college football in 2014.

To Chip Kelley’s fascination with him, and it was fully evident as he became USC’s go-to wideout this year, he could and did line up anywhere, including the backfield. Typically, in Chip’s system they have inside and outside receivers. In Chip’s first two seasons, every receiver was an inside receiver or an outside receiver.

Even the phenomenal season that Jeremy Maclin had in 2014 saw him catch all 85 receptions and his 10 touchdowns from the outside receiver position.
But as we are finding out in Philadelphia, and we hear it in almost every analysis, it’s about matchups.

With Nelson Agholor, he can be the best matchup player the Eagles now have since he can play both inside and outside and may even line up in the backfield to run a wheel route or two.

If the Eagles line up in Week 2 against the Dallas Cowboys and Kelly feels like he can get Agholar against the fourth cornerback of the Cowboys, then expect a big afternoon for the fantasy owners of Agholor.

One thing all Eagle fans have to get used to is that just because a player sets records for rushing yards or receiving yards or points scored doesn’t really matter.

Running back LeSean McCoy set a season record for rushing yards and a one-game record against Detroit with 217 yards on the ground in 2013 and he’s in Buffalo now. Heck, tight end Zach Ertz caught 15 passes in a game the Eagles lost late in December at Washington. As a team the Eagles scored a team-record 474 points last year. Get used to record performances.

And I am sure that quarterback Sam Bradford will set personal records this year for yards, completion percentage and touchdowns thrown. Get used to it. It’s a function of the spread offense, and the tempo the Eagles like to play at.

But it is only about playoff victories. That’s where the Birds are at. It’s Chips team..He has control. He is picking the groceries. It’s his vision. Anyone can select players but it’s about building a TEAM and selling a Super Bowl vision.

Nelson Agholor is a fine selection who will be instantly successful.

While the Marcus Mariota dream never materialized, it’s now time for reality to set in. Welcome Sam Bradford and your newest shiny weapon. Bradford to Agholor. Get used to Merrill Reese calling that connection many, many times next season.