The Minnesota Vikings have a wide receiver group with mainly top players and a hurt tight end in T.J. Hockenson — basically, a situation suggesting the need to add a skilled player in the slot before training camp.
Aaron Schatz of ESPN identified slot receiver as a major gap in Minnesota’s team following the NFL draft.
“Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison are great on the outside, but the Vikings’ receiving group drops off after those two,” Schatz stated on May 9. “Brandon Powell is likely the starting slot receiver. He did have an average DVOA on 44 targets in 2023, but his 324 receiving yards were a career high after six years in the league. Trent Sherfield caught just 11 passes in Buffalo last season. Jalen Nailor has just 12 catches in two years for Minnesota. There are many unfamiliar names on this depth chart, and the Vikings would be the ideal team to reach out to a free agent who is not currently signed.”
The list of available wide receivers who fit the bill isn’t particularly long, considering that free agency started over two months ago. However, the market puts Minnesota in a position to find a one- or two-year option at a good price, and Hunter Renfrow suits the requirement.
Hunter Renfrow Has Struggled Since Pro Bowl Season in 2021
GettyWide receiver Hunter Renfrow, formerly of the Las Vegas Raiders.
Formerly of the Las Vegas Raiders, Renfrow’s stock was at an all-time high following the 2021 season. He caught 103 passes for 1,038 yards and 9 TDs that season, earning his first — and only — Pro Bowl nod.
Then Josh McDaniels arrived to replace disgraced head coach Jon Gruden, and the wheels began to come off of Renfrow’s career. The wideout inked a two-year, $32 million extension in June 2022, though his production fell off a cliff that season, in no small part because of injury.
Renfrow finished the year with only 10 games played and one start, tallying 36 receptions for 330 yards and 2 scores. He appeared in all 17 regular-season contests in 2023, starting three games, though his numbers dropped again to 25 catches for 255 yards. The end zone also eluded Renfrow last season for the first time in his five-year NFL career.
Injury to Vikings’ T.J. Hockenson May Provide More Chances for Player Like Hunter Renfrow
GettyTight end T.J. Hockenson of the Minnesota Vikings.
The Raiders released the 28-year-old wideout in March, opening up just north of $8.2 million in salary cap space in the process. Understandably, no team leapt at the chance to sign a player whose production trajectory has been in severe decline over the past two campaigns as he inches closer to the age of 30.
However, Renfrow represents potential for the kind of reclamation project that proves itself successful time and again in the NFL. Once a serious talent, Renfrow is more than capable of assuming the slot role in Minnesota as WR3 alongside the super-talented duo of Jefferson and Addison.
Moreover, the Vikings should be able to sign Renfrow to a team-friendly deal, creating the type of low-risk/high-reward scenario teams love. Renfrow could refresh his career via favorable matchups created by the headaches Jefferson and Addison will cause for opposing defenses.
Hockenson is still recovering from a serious knee injury he got in Week 16 last season and might not be ready for the start of the 2024 season. Even when the tight end, who has been chosen for the Pro Bowl twice, comes back, Renfrow will still be valuable as the fourth choice in a passing game that will be led by a new quarterback after the departure of Kirk Cousins to the Atlanta Falcons in free agency — either Sam Darnold, rookie J.J. McCarthy or a combination of both.
