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Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The New England Patriots' revision of their receiving corps is turning into a full-blown makeover. Getting an athletic, fast, YAC machine-like tight end Jonnu Smith was the headliner, but following closely behind were the two deals the team made with wide receivers Nelson Agholor (two years, $26 million) and Kendrick Bourne (three years, $22.5 million). Suddenly, the Patriots offense is loaded with wideouts -- something the team just didn't have a lot of last season.

And speaking of last season, no one quite had a bounce-back campaign at wide receiver like Agholor. After signing a one-year deal as basically an afterthought, Agholor emerged as the Raiders' top threat at receiver, posting career-highs in yardage (896), yards per catch (18.7) and 20-plus-yard receptions (15) while matching a career-best eight touchdowns. Of his 82 targets, 28% of them (23) were on throws 20-plus yards downfield. He caught 11 for 444 yards and six scores, making for a 48% catch rate just on these big plays.

The Patriots tried just 34 throws of 20-plus yards in 2020 -- the lowest in the league according to Pro Football Focus. Perhaps Agholor's addition will facilitate more bombs from the Patriots and, presumably, Cam Newton.

But Agholor also looked very slick as a short-area route-runner, breaking away from defenders quickly in his cuts. His 5.0 yards after catch per reception doesn't seem exceptional, but it did rank 34th among qualifying wide receivers and was effectively on pace as other speedsters like Tyreek Hill (4.9), Brandon Aiyuk (4.8) and Marquise Brown (4.7). Agholor also has experience lining up everywhere -- the Raiders put him out wide on 70% of his snaps in 2020, just a year removed from when the Eagles put him in the slot 67% of the time. The hunch is that Agholor will be used both as a deep threat and as a chain-mover.

Bourne has similar versatility to Agholor in that he's had plenty of experience working in the slot for the 49ers, and like Agholor, he's coming off of a career-best season (49 catches, 667 yards), but his numbers don't suggest that a breakout season is forthcoming. Rather, Bourne fills the need as a solid receiver who could play a lot and contribute steadily. He's generally shown off a set of reliable hands (at least a 66% catch rate in each of his past two seasons), though he has been prone to drops (eight over 118 targets).

Unless there's a major offensive philosophy shift in New England, it's possible both receivers disappoint. The Patriots threw passes on just 49% of their plays -- second-lowest in the league. Newton's arm was a liability as he threw on target 74.6% of the time (29th among qualifying quarterbacks). Smith's addition at tight end will significantly soak up some targets, plus there should be at least one or two holdovers from last year's receiving corps including Julian Edelman, Jakobi Meyers and N'Keal Harry. 

Agholor is worth taking a chance on past pick No. 100 as a reserve receiver, but there shouldn't be much of a commitment to him if he starts the season off slowly. Fantasy managers might not see Bourne get picked in their drafts at all.

At present moment, the Raiders' flashy talents like Darren Waller and Henry Ruggs look even better as Fantasy assets, but the expectation is that Las Vegas will bring another receiver into the valley to create mismatches on offense. Depending on who that receiver is, the expectations for Waller and especially Ruggs would fall back to earth. It might take two or three quality receivers to come in and significantly hurt Waller's stud status -- he'll remain a top-3 Fantasy tight end no matter what. Ruggs' role might be limited to screens, slants and the deep ball, sort of like Agholor last season, but without as many targets. Ruggs still might get picked before Agholor in 2021 drafts even if the Raiders add a capable receiver.