Vikings Receiver Already Off the 53-Man Roster
The Minnesota Vikings finalized their initial 53-man roster on Tuesday and made the first change on Wednesday when Adam Thielen joined the squad after two years in Carolina. GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah secured the veteran receiver in the morning hours.
Vikings Receiver Already Off the 53-Man Roster
Thielen arrived, putting the team to 54 players, one over the limit of 53. That’s automatically bad news for someone on the roster, and this time, the Vikings chose to axe Tim Jones. The receiver and special teamer was immediately signed to the practice squad, the team announced.
Vikings.com’s Craig Peters wrote, “The Vikings on Wednesday announced they terminated the contract of receiver Tim Jones. The move occurred a few hours after Minnesota announced a trade with Carolina to bring receiver Adam Thielen back to the Vikings. Jones will be staying in Minnesota as one of 16 players signed to the team’s practice squad.”
Because Jones is a so-called vested veteran with enough seasons in his resume, he didn’t have to go through the waivers process and was immediately eligible to re-sign with the club.
The current wide receiver depth chart looks like this:
- Justin Jefferson
- Adam Thielen
- Jalen Nailor
- Tai Felton
- Myles Price
On the practice squad remain three wideouts in addition to Jones: Lucky Jackson, Jeshaun Jones, and Dontae Fleming.
Tim Jones initially signed with the Vikings a week after free agency had officially opened. His calling card is special teams, although it didn’t look like it in the preseason, when the experienced coverage player received three separate penalties in that phase.
Last preseason, then-Jaguars coach Doug Pederson commented on him and linebacker Caleb Johnson providing value on special teams, “Both have been staples on special teams, and I think it’s a credit to them, but I think it’s a message to the young players on our roster – that if you want to play in this league and you want to play on the club, you bust your tail on special teams. Both of those guys have kind of come up through that and have done a nice job. They’ve earned their spots. These guys, they’re pros. They know how to come in every day and work hard and they’re diligent about their craft and have earned the spot.”
He went undrafted out of Southern Miss in 2021 and signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars, where he spent the first four seasons of his career. The first year took place on the practice squad, but he made the 53-man roster in 2022 and began contributing.
In fact, he has played in all 51 games over the last three seasons, logging three starts. Jones caught 17 passes for 154 yards, showing that most of his value will come in the forgotten third phase.
Jones said a year ago, “My big role on this team is special teams. Coming out of college, I never would have thought I’d play special teams, but I’ve grown to love what I do and just coming here to work every day.”
Throughout his tenure with the Jaguars, about half of his snaps took place on special teams. He played 653 offensive snaps and 648 as a special teamer. Also on his resume are six tackles and a fumble recovery.
In the preseason, Jones caught six passes for 73 yards. He’ll stick around and potentially might even play in some games. Each practice squad player can be elevated to the gameday roster three times per season (that is, before the team needs to hand over a more permanent spot on the 53-man roster) and his special-teams prowess could give him a shot.
Jones is 27 years old.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.