Harry How/Getty Images Denzel Mims of the New York Jets before a game against the Los Angeles Rams on December 20, 2020. (
First-year Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah did not shy away from making his imprint on the franchise amid final roster cuts this week.
The new general manager made four trades in the past 10 days, including three since the 53-man roster deadline on Tuesday, August 30.
Adofo-Mensah was working the phones through Wednesday afternoon, when the Vikings landed Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Jalen Reagor in exchange for a 2023 seventh-round pick and a 2024 conditional fourth-round pick.
But while Adofo-Mensah was still searching for a wideout to add to the roster, another young receiver was on the Vikings general manager’s radar.
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Vikings Called Jets About Denzel Mims: Report
In the aftermath of the Reagor trade on August 31, SNYTV’s Connor Hughes reported that the Vikings called the New York Jets about acquiring 2020 second-round pick Denzel Mims.
However, the Jets’ asking price for Mims was too much for Minnesota.
“The #Vikings, #Cowboys and #Seahawks, along with the #Panthers, called the #Jets about trading for WR Denzel Mims, sources tell @SNYtv,” Hughes tweeted. “The Jets asking price was a 4th round pick. No team was willing to offer that, so Jets kept Mims.”
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Mims has become disgruntled in New York after seeing himself as a starter in the lineup but not winning the job with the coaching staff. He requested a trade on August 25.
He’s tallied 31 receptions and 490 yards in his first two seasons, but took a step backward in 2021, catching just eight passes for 133 yards in 11 games and three starts.
Vikings Pass on Mims’ Elite Physical Traits
Reagor and Mims’ careers have seen a similar trajectory as high-profile athletes who have yet to realize their ceiling in the league.
Mims, at 6-foot-3 and 207 pounds, possesses the frame of a physically dominant wide receiver with blazing straight-ahead speed. He ran a 4.38 40-time at the 2020 combine, ranking in the 90th percentile among wideouts, per Mockdraftable.
Coming out of Baylor, Mims was a borderline first-round prospect after finishing third in program history with 28 touchdowns.
“(Mims) became the only player in college football to score at least eight receiving touchdowns in each of the last three years. Mims boasts the athletic skill to win at every level of the field, but on tape he was at his best on straight-line or one-cut routes (slants, posts, go’s, etc.), although he showed much improved pattern movement at the Senior Bowl. He demonstrates the ability to make impressive extension grabs, but his ball skills are inconsistent, especially with a defensive back closing on the catch point,” The Athletic’s Dan Brugler wrote in his 2020 draft guide. “Overall, Mims must become a more consistent route technician, but he offers the length and contested catch ability of a big receiver while moving like a much smaller athlete to create separation.”
Denzel Mims
4.38 40-yard dash
6.66s 3-cone drill
38.5″ vertical
Made plays all week at the Senior Bowl
While Reagor, at 5-foot-11 and 206 pounds, may not have the same size as Mims, he’s had a better showing in the NFL so far, tallying 64 receptions for 695 yards and three touchdowns in two seasons.
The Vikings chose Reagor with the expectation he could be the team’s punt returner, a role Mims could not fill. Reagor’s ceiling could lead him to compete for third wide receiver reps with K.J. Osborn, but at the very least he can fill in as the team’s fourth while contributing on special teams.