The Vikings’ New Playmaker Earns a Surprising Bit of Praise
The Vikings’ new playmaker — receiver Tai Felton — is known for a specific attribute: speed.
As a result, the insight from Jeshaun Jones came as a bit of a surprise. Jones, a college teammate, gets asked about Felton’s best, most unique ability: “If I had to say one, I’d say his route running.” Not long afterwards, Jones does mention Felton’s speed before doubling down. “If I had to give him one attribute” Jones contends, “I’d say his route running is his top ability.”
Tai Felton — The Vikings’ New Playmaker
In the NFL, almost every player is fast. Yes, some are speedier than others — one thinks of DeSean Jackson and Tyreek Hill as some recent examples — but getting by as being just a speedster can be tough.
Oftentimes, players making a jump to a new level of football need to develop their game to keep winning. A player who was accustomed to winning in college due to being faster than his peers may not be capable of doing so in the pros. Creating separation to make a play on the ball may therefore require a receiver to develop other skills.
Refine one’s release off the line of scrimmage, get stronger to better box out defensive backs on a jump ball (Jalen Nailor?), and ensure one’s mitts never drop a pass. And, of course, there’s perhaps the best thing a receiver can do: become a route runner who has the precision of a surgeon.
In basically any sport, a playmaker is looking to create room to make a play. Think of Steph Curry dribbling a defender into circles before putting up a shot or Kirill Kaprizov stick-handling an opponent out of his skates before putting the puck in the top corner.
Same idea is existing for Mr. Felton, folks. Possessing blistering speed is a great thing. At times, Felton is going to find green grass simply due to his 4.37 speed. The reality will become especially prominent in moments when the defense is going all-out to shutdown Justin Jefferson, someone who has a knack for attracting attention from the other team.
Tai Felton, though, can’t spend his whole career finding space due to Jefferson’s magnificence. Nor can he rely on speed alone, even if it is one of his best, most exciting attributes.
Rather, the 22-year-old playmaker needs to push his craft further. Jeshaun Jones sees great ability as a route runner but that’s something that will need to expand. We are, after all, talking about a major leap when we’re discussing the NCAA versus the NFL.
Tai Felton, like Jones, is a bit unique insofar as he spent his full college career at Maryland. During his final season, Felton put together some impressive numbers: 96 catches, 1,124 yards, and 9 touchdowns.
The 11.7 yards-per-reception average is a bit modest for someone so fast, suggesting that Felton was asked to catch short passes aplenty (as the catch total hints). Note that the year before, Felton averaged 15.1 yards per catch, suggesting he was featured as more of a deep threat.
Within the context of the Vikings’ offense, Tai Felton is (likely) going to be the WR3 or WR4. Being the third receiver means being the fourth or fifth option in the passing game since T.J. Hockenson and Aaron Jones will get their fair share of targets.
The early role may therefore involve being a burner, flying down the field to challenge the deep safety. Being a vertical threat who demands eyeballs from the free safety will make it easier for teammates to find open room to operate, which is to say nothing of the times when he fully shakes loose for a long score.
As his career progresses, though, Tai Felton would do well to live up to the assessment from Jeshaun Jones. Become a tactician as a route runner. Doing so will lead to a long, productive NFL career.
Editor’s Note: Information from Sports Reference CFB helped with this piece.
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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 Bluesky (@VikingsGazette). If you feel so inclined, subscribe to his Substack, The Vikings Gazette, for more great Vikings content.