Immediately after the Miami Dolphins stunned the Las Vegas Raiders with a last-minute victory in Week 16 of the 2020 NFL season, Raiders wide receiver Nelson Agholor ripped his teammates and told them they “sucked.”
While recounting the Raiders’ collapse as a potential playoff team, Vic Tafur of The Athletic cited the Agholor outburst as an indication of a lack of accountability on the team.
“It was Week 16 and the Raiders had just blown a win over the Miami Dolphins in the final 19 seconds,” Tafur wrote. “The players staggered off the dead-quiet Allegiant Stadium field in shock, anger and shame. They had once been sitting pretty with a 6-3 record and now, as they started to take off their sweaty jerseys and pads, they were 7-8.
“Agholor, in the words of teammates, was pissed. The receiver walked to the middle of the locker room before coach Jon Gruden addressed the team and started screaming at them.
“This was Agholor’s first season with the Raiders, after a stint with the Eagles where he had starred in a Super Bowl win. And he wanted to make sure everyone realized what had just taken place. What he saw.
“Agholor, according to those in the room, said his teammates were selfish and didn’t work hard enough, and that they had quit against the Dolphins as well as in the previous two losses. He said there was no accountability in the locker room, and on winning teams players play for one another and the coaches. The Raiders’ performance over the previous six games was unacceptable, and too many people within the team were just flat-out accepting it.
“Agholor told his teammates that they sucked.”
The stunning loss came as a result of a furious drive by Dolphins quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick that began on the Dolphins’ 25-yard line with 19 seconds left and the team trailing 25-23.
Fitzpatrick managed to complete a 34-yard pass to Mack Hollins that had 15 extra yards tacked on because of a defensive penalty. That meltdown allowed the Dolphins’ Jason Sanders to kick a game-winning 44-yard field goal.
While the Raiders did win their final game of the season, it wasn’t enough to keep their playoff hopes alive.
That turned what looked to be a bright first year in Las Vegas for the Raiders into one that left Agholor and others bitterly disappointed.
The 27-year-old Agholor ended his first season with the Raiders by grabbing 48 passes for 896 yards and eight touchdowns.
Agholor signed a team-friendly one-year contract with the Raiders, but given his productive campaign, his price tag will likely be higher this offseason. That may mean he ends up elsewhere, with his outburst at teammates making for a biting goodbye.
