One Word Evidently Describes Jordan Addison So Far
Dustin Baker
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We’ve got the adjectives — well, one of them — to describe a Minnesota Vikings rookie, and yes, that word pertains to wide receiver Jordan Addison.
“Smooth,” a source inside the Vikings orbit told VikingsTerritory this week, and the word sums up Addison’s to-date performance inside the walls of team headquarters in Eagan.
One Word Evidently Describes Jordan Addison So Far
The source is also notoriously quiet and skeptical about rookies, especially at this time on the calendar, enhancing the outlook of Addison’s career all the more.
In fact, in the last 20 years, the source has only ‘talked this way’ about two Vikings rookies, Adrian Peterson and Percy Harvin — company Addison should like to keep. Minnesota unearthed Addison from the 1st Round of the 2023 NFL Draft after ample speculation that general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah would trade down on draft night or use the pick on a defensive player to improve the Vikings second-worst-in-the-NFL defense per yards allowed.
But the club fell in love with Addison, 21, and he’ll play on Sundays opposite Justin Jefferson, whose resume has taken the league by storm in the last three seasons. Vikings fans have long clamored for a redux of “Three Deep,” an era featuring Randy Moss, Cris Carter, and Jake Reed — and this might be the closest thing to that, well, ever in Vikings-speak.
Addison and the Vikings made their relationship official last week, inking a standard 1st-Round-rookie agreement for four years and $13.7 million with a 5th-year team option in 2027. The USC standout is now a Vikings for at least the next four seasons — and probably longer.
Two weeks ago, Mina Kimes mentioned Addison’s possible impact on the Vikings, “I think the offense is going to be good. The Addison pick…I was higher on him than some. I understand the questions about his size, but I really just think he has elite separation skills […] I think the Vikings and Kevin O’Connell, that offense is a really good landing place for Addison in terms of playing to his strengths, finding ways to hide his weaknesses.”
The new Viking is 5’11 and 170 pounds, so he certainly won’t emulate any Three-Deep alumni in stature, but he was a workhorse WR and target hog at Pittsburgh and USC. On days when opposing defensive coordinators decide to sell out and stop Jefferson — that strategy worked against the Vikings last year — Addison should become available through the air for Kirk Cousins to feast. That’s the plan, anyway.
Addison spoke to reporters upon arriving in Minnesota after the draft and vividly illustrated his toolkit — or artwork per his words, “When I’m running my routes, I like to look at it like I’m an artist. And I’m going out there painting pictures.”
In college, Addison tabulated 3,134 receiving yards and 29 touchdowns in three seasons — a smooth statline.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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