Minnesota's Search For A Third Receiver Will Create A Case of the Memberberries

The conversation will surely come up on a hot day at TCO Performance Center next month.

Minnesota Vikings fans will be watching practice, and they will fix their eyes on the third receiver spot. The job currently belongs to Brandon Powell, who performed well in the No. 4 role and as a punt returner last season. Still, fans will contemplate how to improve the team with a month left in the season.

“Remember K.J. Osborn?” one fan will ask.

“Oh, I loved K.J. Osborn!” another fan replies.

“Remember Jarius Wright?”

“I remember!”

That's how Vikings fans view WR3. It’s a nostalgic position that has produced many players who still live in Vikings fans' memories. However, it might not be a major concern to an offense that may consider the third receiver position a case of the Memberberries.

For Vikings fans, this sounds a lot like their feelings for the third wide receiver. Almost every fan o of 30 had a “Three Deep” poster on their wall featuring Randy Moss, Cris Carter, and Jake Reed. When Reed moved on, Kelly Campbell took the torch and gave us A.F.R.O.S. (America’s Finest Receivers On Sundays). In 2009, Percy Harvin took over the NFL, working with Sidney Rice and Bernard Berrian.

More recently, fans have developed an affinity for Wright. He eclipsed 500 yards in a season just once during his six years in Minnesota. However, he made big plays, such as

Wright’s departure after the 2017 season left a void in the Vikings offense that Laquon Treadwell tried to fill before Osborn took over. He didn't record a catch during his rookie year. However, Osborn took a big leap forward in 2021, catching 50 passes for 655 yards and seven touchdowns.

Many believed there was another level to Osborn’s game after the 2021 season, but it never materialized under Kevin O’Connell. Osborn had identical stats with 60 catches for 650 yards and five touchdowns in 2022 and put up 540 yards and three touchdowns in 2023.

But while Osborn put up modest stats, the memories create a big hole in the minds of Vikings fans. Osborn’s

That puts Powell at a disadvantage in the minds of Vikings fans. Powell has played for four teams during his six-year career, and he only caught 29 passes for 324 yards and a touchdown in 2023. His biggest memory is a failed tush push that cost the Vikings an overtime game in Cincinnati last December. Many fans are looking to the free-agent list to try and fill that role.

But these names are also a case of the Memberberries. Michael Thomas may have helped you win a fantasy football league. Hunter Renfrow may have been a key bye-week pickup. Julio Jones is a future Hall of Famer. Randall Cobb used to destroy the Vikings when he was with the Green Bay Packers.

‘Member? Oh, I ‘member!

However, many of these players aren’t the same versions of what they once were. Thomas has battled injuries the past three seasons and has more drama than an episode of Desperate Housewives of New Orleans. Renfrow caught 103 passes for 1,038 yards and nine touchdowns in 2021. However, he only has 61 catches for 585 yards and two touchdowns over the past two seasons. Jones is 35 years old, and Cobb is to Aaron Rodgers what Thanasis Antetokounmpo is to his All-NBA brother Giannis.

O’Connell also doesn’t rely on a third receiver as much as people think. While O’Connell’s mentor, Sean McVay, used 11 personnel 93% of the time last season, the Vikings were around the league average at 64.8%. Osborn was also second on the team in run-blocking snaps among non-offensive linemen, with his 227 trailing Jordan Addison’s 278.

Addison and Osborn did the dirty work, allowing Justin Jefferson to be the lynchpin in Minnesota's offense and freeing up some of the team's other weapons. Addison benefitted by almost putting up a 1,000-yard rookie season, and since coming to Minnesota, T.J. Hockenson is one of the most productive tight ends in the league behind Travis Kelce.

The Aaron Jones addition could also be a factor. He caught 40 or more passes in four consecutive seasons from 2019 to 2022 before injuries limited him to 30 in 11 games last year.

With Jefferson, Addison, Jones, and Hockenson (when healthy) on the field, the third receiver position is reserved for the dirty work. The WR3 must clear everyone else up and make plays when the Vikings ask him.

In some ways, that was Wright and Osborn's strength. However, filling this void also doesn’t take one final splash signing. Fans may not trust Powell, but he could be exactly what the Vikings need in that role. That could leave any discussion to reminiscing over the past.