In the middle of his second season with the New England Patriots, former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jalen Reagor decided to make an unusual post on his personal Instagram account on Tuesday that appeared to be an attempt to compare himself to a luxury sports car.
#Patriots WR Jalen Reagor with an interesting post on Instagram 🤔
— Carlos Talks Pats (@LosTalksPats) September 17, 2024
You have to wonder if the veteran wide receiver is unhappy being on New England’s practice squad.
(via jalenreagor IG) pic.twitter.com/Oup43SKaYw
Reagor had not yet appeared in a game for the Patriots this season, and his post seemed like it was him making his frustrations known to the public. But this apparently didn't sit too well with New England because shortly after sharing this post, he was released from the team's practice squad.
Former Minnesota Vikings WR Jalen Reagor released by New England Patriots after foolish social media post
Tuesday's events are just the latest in what has been a puzzling NFL career since Reagor entered the league in 2020.
After he was selected in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles (one pick before Minnesota drafted Justin Jefferson), there was a lot of excitement surrounding Reagor's potential in the league.
But mistakes on and off the field led to the Eagles moving on from him after only two seasons when they traded him to Minnesota before the start of the 2022 campaign.
During his time with the franchise, Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has taken chances on multiple players who failed to initially meet their potential after entering the NFL, and the trade for Reagor was one of the earliest examples of this.
Unfortunately, Reagor's struggles only continued during his time with Minnesota. He did appear in all 17 games for the Vikings in 2022, but he only caught eight passes for 104 yards and one touchdown. His duties with Minnesota were mainly on special teams, and during his 17 appearances, he returned 26 punts for 167 yards (6.4 average).
After flashing a bit in the Vikings' 2023 training camp and preseason, some thought Reagor was going to stick around with the team for another season. However, Minnesota didn't end up keeping him on its final 2023 roster, and shortly after leaving the Twin Cities, he signed with the Patriots.
Reagor appeared in 11 games with New England last season, but again, he didn't do much with his opportunities, as he was only able to accumulate a total of seven catches for 138 yards and no touchdowns.
He re-signed with the Patriots earlier this year, and after not making the team's final 2024 roster, he agreed to sign to New England's practice squad. But after not being called up to the Patriots' active roster in either of their first two games this season, Reagor was clearly unhappy, and he let it be known with what he shared on Instagram on Tuesday.
But now, instead of not getting any opportunities to play as a member of New England's practice squad, he no longer has a home in the NFL.
It's possible that another team could take a chance on him in the near future, but his time in the league certainly seems to be inching closer to the end.