Jalen

Nailor

Under contract through the 2025 season, Nailor is likely to reprise his role as the WR3 for the Vikings in the new league year after catching 28 passes for 414 yards and six touchdowns during the 2024 regular season. That said, he could be catching passes from a different quarterback considering Sam Darnold’s contract is up and his significant struggles to end the season against the Lions and Rams.

The 53 yards saw Nailor finish second on the team in receiving, with Justin Jefferson’s 54 just one yards ahead of him. The brutal outing drops the Vikings to the No. 5 seed and also sends them to a road playoff game against the Rams, one of only two teams to defeat the Vikings this season, in the Wildcard Round.

Well, this counts as a surprise. After being a non-factor for most of the year — particularly the last month-plus — Nailor had an outstanding day, particularly in the first half with the Packers focusing on Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. The wideout didn’t find much room in the second half, but it’ll be interesting to see if Minnesota makes Nailor a part of their gameplan to begin Week 18 against the Lions. Fantasy managers shouldn’t count on it.

Nailor, who caught a touchdown last week against the Bears, ran a route on 27 of Sam Darnold’s 41 drop backs against Arizona. For as long as Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison are healthy, Nailor won’t be a viable fantasy option.

Nailor hasn’t caught more than two passes or topped 16 in over a month. He served as the team’s No. 2 receiver early in the season when Jordan Addison was hurt but is now a rotational WR3. He will pop up for the occasional touchdown but doesn’t see the ball enough to warrant fantasy consideration.

Addison has taken an absolute beating in this game but has continued to play through whatever bumps and bruises he’s accumulated. However, it appears that the cramps, which may or may not be related, have finally taken him out of the game. The Vikings have a double-digit lead, so it’s unclear if they will need Addison to come back and tough this one out. Jalen Nailor should see more work with Addison out.

Nailor took advantage of double coverage on Justin Jefferson to sneak into the flat in the red zone, scoring from seven yards out on a third down in the third quarter. His days of being a primary contributor to the offense are most definitely behind him as the team welcomed back tight end T.J. Hockenson, but there should be sporadic touchdowns from the veteran journeyman the rest of the way.

The 16 yards were Nailor’s second fewest of the season, while one of Nailor’s missed connections was an egregious red zone drop. Not a good way to head into Week 9, where the Vikings are expected to get T.J. Hockenson back against the Colts. Nailor is barely cracking the top 70 right now in fantasy.

Nailor entered this game with two receptions in three games with Jordan Addison healthy. He was an afterthought when Minnesota was at full strength. That wasn’t the case versus Detroit as he saw one more target than Addison, though the second-year wideout still managed three grabs for 66 yards. Nailor is a good option as an NFL team’s No. 3 receiver, but his splash plays are too infrequent for fantasy managers to count on going forward.

With Jordan Addison (ankle) back on the field, Nailor’s scoring streak was halted at three games. He got out-targeted just 4-2 by Addison, but Addison scored twice on five touches. He is comfortably ahead of Nailor for No. 2 duties. Nailor isn’t going to see enough work to crack the top 60 as long as both Addison and Justin Jefferson are healthy.