Vikings Training Camp Takeaways: Emerging star is biggest surprise through 7 practice, and a favorite for Mr. Mankato
After doing close to nothing as a rookie, Tai Felton has shown a lot of promise during the first two weeks of training camp.
The Minnesota Vikings might have an emerging star on their hands, and it was one nobody expected. Second-year wide receiver Tai Felton has been one of the standout players through the first week of training camp, launching himself into the Mr. Mankato conversation.
Through the first seven practices of training camp, Felton has been one of the better players during Vikings training camp, which is a nice surprise after last season.
Felton, the third-round pick out of Maryland from the 2025 NFL Draft, showed next to nothing as a rookie. He played just 46 snaps on offense with 293 on special teams. He was objectively great as a gunner and on coverage teams and had a couple of interesting returns as a return man, but as a receiver, he showed nothing. That raised legitimate questions about whether he could stick around with the Vikings long term.
The KJ Osborn comparison makes more sense by the day
The comparison here is K.J. Osborn. If you don’t remember, Osborn was a fifth-round pick out of Miami in 2020, who was drafted as a kick returner. The Vikings didn’t think much of him on offense. He did not have a good rookie season as a returner, and he honestly never did that again for good reason. He then shocked everyone by earning the wide receiver 3 job coming out of camp in 2021 and became a good player for the Vikings for a few years before eventually pricing himself out. Minnesota drafted Jordan Addison in 2023, Osborn’s final season with the team, and the rest is history.
That emergence was massive for the Vikings because they had a productive third receiver on a fifth-round rookie contract. With Felton, the ceiling could be similar on a third-round rookie deal, even as a final pick of the third round.
Coming into last season, expectations were modest. Felton is fast, runs well in a linear fashion, stands 6-foot-2, and weighs just under 200 pounds. Maryland used him as a mismatch weapon, doing anything they could to get the ball in his hands. There was belief he could contribute for Minnesota, but it never materialized. That’s not a huge deal because sometimes it takes a year to acclimate. The Vikings didn’t need him with Addison, Jalen Nailor, and Justin Jefferson ahead of him. He was the fourth option, and the team rarely ran four-wide sets because of Adam Thielen and a strong tight end room.
Training camp notes tell the story
Felton came into this camp feeling different. He feels energized and ready to roll, consistently getting open from the moment pads came on. Here are the notes from the first several practices:
From Monday, Aug. 3:
“Tai Felton continues to show receiving chops. He caught a Murray pass in the corner of the end zone like he was re-enacting the Air Jordan logo. It’s too early to make any declarative statements, but I’m curious if this could be a K.J. Osborn surge.”
From Tuesday, Aug. 4:
“Tai Felton continues to look improved from last season, making impressive catches and getting open in team drills. If this continues, the Vikings will have an embarrassment of riches at the wide receiver position.”
From Wednesday, Aug. 5:
“Over the first six days of training camp, there were multiple moments where Felton flashed. It think we are past it being a flash in the pan, and he’s now just good at football.
Felton was consistently getting open every which way, including scoring on a deep post from Murray. He’s showcasing a well rounded ability to get open, especially deep. That will translate in this offense.
We may be looking at a K.J. Osborn situation with Felton.”
Felton is doing everything you want to see
He is getting open with digs, comebacks, outs, and deep routes, using that speed to sell vertically. Whatever you need him to do, he is showcasing the ability to do it. There are still technical elements he needs to improve. He needs to decelerate better and drop his hips more, even though that does look improved from his college tape. Becoming more of a technician is the next step, and wide receivers coach Keenan McCardell likely believed he could pull that out of him, as he did with Nailor.
The fact that Felton has special teams acumen on top of his offensive development is a bonus. When we’re talking about Mr. Mankato, Felton may be the No. 1 candidate. That sounds crazy, but it shouldn’t feel crazy. Felton is a dude, and he keeps showing it.
There are still a few weeks of training camp and three preseason games to figure out how good Felton truly is. The Vikings signed Jauan Jennings to add a different element to the receiver room, but the better Felton plays, the less that signing was needed as a necessity. If Felton earns the wide receiver 3 role, Jennings becomes a power player rather than a bona fide starter. That would be a huge embarrassment of riches for Minnesota.
