Wide receiver is a position that is rich with history in the 64 years of the Minnesota Vikings franchise.
From Sammy White, Gene Washington and Ahmad Rashad to Anthony Carter, Cris Carter and Randy Moss to Percy Harvin, Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen, the Vikings franchise has almost always had great wide receivers.
The latest great receiver is Justin Jefferson. The 22nd pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, Jefferson earned the honor of being the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history this June and has continued dominating the NFL this season.
Kevin O'Connell talks what he wants in wide receivers
When you take a look at the Vikings' wide receiver room, there is one thingthat stands out: speed. Head coach Kevin O'Connell was asked about that in his Friday press conference and broke down how they built the wide receiver room.
"Yeah, I think, you look at the really, our receiver position starts with Justin Jefferson. He plays so fast, an incredible explosive athlete, dynamic change of direction, he can really play all three spots. So we wanted to make sure that the rest of that room consisted of guys that could, first and foremost, win one on one matchups, and how they do that might look differently with each guy you're talking about, but we prioritized Jordan Addison as a player that would ultimately complement that one a 1b field with Justin. Jordan is flying around the field. He's hitting some crazy numbers, speed wise. He's always been a guy, from a route running standpoint, that came into this league, capable of doing everything that we ask of him. I think he's growing from an understanding and just an experience standpoint, of how he's being defended, how we can help him, how he can maximize using some of our formations, and where he aligns, maybe with Justin, away from Justin.
"Then I think the emergence of Jalen Nailor, there's a reason why we call him speedy, and that wasn't a name I gave him. People have been calling him speedy for his whole life, practically. He runs really well. He's been dynamic with his route running, making some huge plays, especially on those weighty downs, like he's had a touchdown in a lot of our games (first three) up until last week, and then Jordan Addison comes back and has two of them. So you're seeing the impact. And then I don't think enough has been said about Brandon Powell, Trent Sherfield, even Trishton (Jackson) when he was up there for a couple weeks. Just total complete players run game impact physicality, and then guys that, if you throw it to them and they get the one on one on that rep, they can all make the play. So I think Sam's been really, really happy with that group, top to bottom. We just got to keep on figuring out new ways to deploy those guys to try to have a big impact on game day."
There are two main things that stand out about O'Connell's answer and they coincide with each other: ability to create separation with route running and speed. You don't always need to display speed when route running but there is something to burst when you are getting off the block and coming out of your break.
Over the course of the last three drafts from Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, the Vikings have appeared to shift from judging speed with testing to GPS data. Addison wasn't the quickest or fastest with his athletic testing but he did hits some high speeds at USC. How you move on the field matters more than it does on the track.
Plus, his route running is excellent and it makes a major impact on the field in a similar, but not quite as elite, as Jefferson's. Nailor has certainly learned a lot about how to use his speed to create separation, as he's shown a lot of subtitle nuance in how he's running his routes.
Finding receivers who know how to get open on their own is a major priority for O'Connell and his offense and he's got multiple guys who can do just that.
