Nov 24, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jalen Nailor (83) celebrates after making a stop against the New England Patriots during the fourth quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports.
Slowly, the momentum appears to be slipping away from the Vikings veteran.
Slot receiver Brandon Powell entered training camp as the favorite to be Minnesota’s WR3. Lately, though, the conversation has often centred on Jalen Nailor, the super fast third-year receiver who has been showing up in training camp. Is he slowly stealing away the WR3 job?
Keep in mind that Kevin O’Connell is a fan of Powell.
When asked about the WR3 battle last week, O’Connell described it as “competitive” before offering some extended thoughts on the shifty journeyman: “As many good things as Brandon Powell did for us last year, maybe without a lot of the time on task repetition in training camp, BP is able to take the experience that he had in LA in a similar offense and come in and apply not only the scheme, but the physicality and the want-to in the run game to try to play his role when we’re in 11-personnel.”
Later on in the same answer, O’Connell brings Nailor into the mix, as well. The point at that stage was to emphasize the need for versatility in the WR3.
Plus, the Saturday press conference led to these thoughts on Nailor: “We’re all kind of very optimistic about Jalen because he’s proven what he is as a football player. It’s not a question of that. It’s just a matter of, can he be out there? Can he start to handle the versatility that comes with playing in a huddle with Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison? And that goes for [Brandon Powell] and Trent [Sherfield] and all the rest of our guys, as well.”
Why is there such optimism for the speedy Nailor? Consider Exhibit A:
Keep in mind that the pass completion is coming against the 1st-team defense. That’s Shaq Griffin in coverage as Byron Murphy Jr. comes into view toward the end. The #0 in the shorter area of the field belongs to starting linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. In other words, it’s a long, contested catch between J.J. McCarthy and Jalen Nailor against Brian Flores’ top guys.
The highlights don’t stop there. Consider another:
Recently, Darren Wolfon took some time to chat with the young receiver. Nailor explains that he understands the offense better and is looking to “improve and gain the trust of my coaches and teammates.” There’s then a reflection on doing more — ice baths, Pilates, yoga, etc. — to avoid getting hurt as much.
“I think I have a great chance,” Nailor responded when asked about being the WR3.
A recent piece on Vikings.com also made note of Nailor’s play, kicking praise over to the former 6th-Round selection.
Craig Peters offered some thoughts based on the Saturday performance: “The corner ball to Nailor from Darnold was part of a big day for the third-year receiver. Nailor also made an impressive catch on a Nick Mullens pass that was a little behind him, to go along with receptions from Darnold and McCarthy.”
Now, don’t forget that Powell still has a great shot at being the WR3. Or, at the very least, getting worked into the mix for that spot. The man was re-signed for a reason; in fact, he was given a raise, seeing his cap charge grow to $2 million. That comes after turning 29 catches into 324 yards and a touchdown. He did that work while working inside and outside, picking up 263 snaps in the slot and 141 out wide.
There’s an obvious appeal with Jalen Nailor, though. He has a bit better size and is capable of getting open down the field. He’ll need to show he can block well in the run game and do some good things underneath, but he should be capable of getting open over the top, especially from within an offense where so much of the attention is going to be paid to Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson.
As camp keeps rolling, keep an eye on Nailor. Slowly, he may be working himself into the opening at WR3.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference, PFF, and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter and as a co-host for Notes from the North, a humble Vikings podcast.