The Minnesota Vikings receiver has not seen a ton of passes thrown his way this season, but when he has, he’s made the best of his opportunities.
In 12 games this season, Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jarius Wright has just 14 catches. A drastic difference in the 42 passes he hauled in just three seasons ago for the Vikings in 2014.
But of Wright’s 14 receptions, 11 of them have resulted in a first down or a touchdown for Minnesota this year. If the receiver is getting a pass thrown his way on third down this season, there is a very good chance that his efforts will amount to the Vikings getting a new set of downs.
In his sixth year with Minnesota, Wright is making the best of his opportunities on the field for his team no matter how few or frequent they may come each week. Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer talked on Monday about how his veteran receiver has been able to do so well for the team on third down this season.
"“First thing about Jarius is, he’s a very good person that works his rear end off each and every week. He’s got good speed, he’s got good quickness, catches the ball good. He’s a tough competitor.More from The Viking Age6 biggest draft steals in Minnesota Vikings historyFormer Vikings first-round pick could reportedly return to NFC NorthBears analyst has extremely embarrassing Kirk Cousins take6 Vikings who (maybe) won’t make the 53-man roster in 2023Predicting what the Vikings will do in the 2023 NFL Draft based on 2022Whenever he gets the opportunity to go in, he knows all the receiver positions if he needs to be. He’s just a guy that loves to go out there and get a chance to play and when he does, he usually makes a play.”"
Wright has been one of the keys to a Minnesota offense that is currently the best in the NFL this season when it comes to converting on third down. An aspect of their team that has greatly improved from a year ago when they ranked 18th in the league with a 38 percent conversion rate.
After this season, however, Wright could possibly be shown the door by the Vikings. The receiver’s current contract does not expire until 2020, but it would only cost Minnesota $1.12 million to release him in 2018.
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With a number of younger pass-catchers on the Vikings’ roster and a bunch of extensions to be made for a handful of the team’s players in the near future, this year being Wright’s last with Minnesota unfortunately seems like a strong possibility. But for now, the receiver is doing his best to make plays for the Vikings in 2017 and the team is definitely reaping the benefits of his efforts.