On April 28, ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter reported, citing a source, that San Francisco 49ers free agent Jauan Jennings met with the Minnesota Vikings as he explores his next opportunity in free agency.
Jennings’ visit with the Vikings lasted from April 28 to April 29, as Minnesota begins looking at options to fill the WR3 role behind Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.
With Jennings’ visit with the Vikings now over, Alec Lewis of The Athletic shared details on what was likely happening during the wide receiver’s time in the facilities.
“That visit was always kind of an exploratory type of feel,” Lewis said on the April 30 edition of “The Alec Lewis Show.” “It was never billed as ‘Jauan Jennings is coming here, it’s signing, done deal, over with and done for.‘ It was always more of a, ‘Hey, you come meet us.
“We’re going to spend time with you, see where you’re at, talk through everything, fit, role, what we’re about, what this building is about, and then, obviously, some of the financial ideas with where both sides stand.'”
Vikings Could Still Sign Jauan Jennings Despite Visit Ending
Moreover, Lewis shared that there’s still a possibility that Minnesota and Jennings reach a contract agreement in the future, even after he left the Vikings’ facilities without signing one.
“Just because Jauan Jennings was visiting, it was never like, ‘If this doesn’t happen, if he walks out of the building by Wednesday, what are we doing? The sky is falling. Do the Vikings even know what’s happening?‘” Lewis added. “Not at all. That’s not, I think, any expectation that that’s what this was about, just probably doesn’t hit the mark.“
Last season with the 49ers, Jennings posted a 68.3 overall PFF grade, ranking 48th among 81 qualifying wide receivers. His 70.6 receiving grade checked in at No. 42 on that same list.
Jennings finished with 55 catches on 88 targets for 643 yards and nine touchdowns, averaging 11.7 yards per reception. He added 180 yards after the catch and was credited with three drops over the course of the season.
Could Stefon Diggs Be an Option for Minnesota at WR?
Furthermore, with the trade of Jonathan Greenard, Minnesota has roughly $16 million in cap space, per OverTheCap.
With the Vikings having a little more money to spend, they can look at different veteran options to fill that WR3 role. As a result, Bleacher Report’s Joseph Zucker believes that the Vikings should be one of the teams looking to land the veteran free agent receiver.
“Would one of Diggs’ old teams consider a reunion?“ Zucker wrote in his April 25 article. “Jordan Addison has yet to make a true breakthrough with the Minnesota Vikings. The team’s depth really falls off once you get past him and Justin Jefferson as well.
“The Vikings have one quarterback on a one-year contract (Kyler Murray) and another who may be heading into a make-or-break season (J.J. McCarthy). Bringing Diggs back to Minneapolis has some merit.”
Last season with the New England Patriots, Diggs turned in an 87.5 overall PFF grade, placing him sixth among 81 qualifying wide receivers. His 87.5 receiving grade ranked seventh in that same group.
He finished with 85 catches on 100 targets for 1,013 yards and four touchdowns, averaging 11.9 yards per reception. He added 363 yards after the catch, was credited with two drops, and had an average depth of target of 8.7 yards.
Vikings Insider Shares Clear Update After Jauan Jennings’ Visit