Former Vikings Speedster Signs New Deal
The Minnesota Vikings have not made any big investments in free agency, primarily focusing on their in-house free agents. Other teams have had the same idea, trying to keep their explosive players. Among those is the New York Jets, who have kept a former Viking in the building.
Former Vikings draft pick and kick return ace Kene Nwangwu will stay in the AFC East.
Josh Alper of NBC Sports wrote last week, “Return specialist Kene Nwangwu is returning to the Jets. According to multiple reports, Nwangwu has agreed to re-sign with the team. It’s a one-year deal worth $2 million with $1 million guaranteed and another $1 million available in incentives.”
His stint with the purple franchise started in 2021 when then-GM Rick Spielman used a fourth-round pick to bring the Iowa State speedster to the Twin Cities. He was not envisioned to be a threat to unseat either Dalvin Cook or Alexander Mattison. No, his job was to strike fear into the opponents on special teams.
Nwangwu was clocked with a 4.31 40-yard dash prior to the draft, but missed the first half of his rookie season with an injury. Once healthy, he returned a pair of kickoffs for touchdowns in the second half of the campaign. In year two, he scored another kick return in a massive game against the Patriots on Thanksgiving. That return changed the entire game, which could’ve easily been lost without it.
With the Vikings, he appeared in 37 games, rushed 27 times for 88 yards, and caught six passes for 30 yards. His 68 kick returns resulted in three touchdowns. It was a very surprising when the Vikings said goodbye to him after the 2024 preseason, turning to Ty Chandler instead.
After his exit, Nwangwu was claimed off waivers by the New Orleans Saints but failed his physical and was released back to the waiver wire. A couple of weeks later, the Jets signed him to the practice squad. He had a quiet season until December, when he made his first Jets appearance and immediately took a kickoff to the house. A season-ending injury in the following week cost him the chance to make more noise.
However, Nwangwu returned for a second season and once again was among the best in the business in the new kick-return environment.
SB Nation’s John B. commented last week, “Since a December 2024 call-up to the active roster, he has been electric with a 36.2-yard average and 2 touchdowns on kickoff returns across 14 games. The only real question mark with Nwangwu has been durability, as he has suffered multiple injuries that have caused him to miss time in that stretch. At the end of the day, even if he misses time, having Nwangwu for any number of games is better than having him no games.”
The Vikings have zero return touchdowns since his departure. Last year, they handed the keys to the return game to rookie Myles Price, who showed flashes, but also mind-boggling mistakes with fumbles and taking the ball out of the endzone rather than taking the sweet touchback boost that put the ball all the way to the 35.
Nwangwu is one of the elite returners in the game, and the Vikings let him walk in what perhaps should be considered an unforced error.
At 28, Nwangwu returns to the Jets for a third season.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Sports Reference helped with this article.