Few Vikings have been more consistent than receiver Jalen Nailor of late. He caught a back shoulder to seal the win over the Detroit Lions, then followed it up with the best showing of his career in Sunday’s loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

“Sometimes they’re going to take away our best guy and the other guys have to step up,” said Nailor, who finished with five catches for 124 yards and a touchdown. “It was me today and I made the most of those opportunities.”

Nailor breakout didn’t surprise head coach Kevin O’Connell when he was asked about it after the game, nor did it surprise offensive coordinator Wes Phillips 48 hours later.

“I saw this type of performance coming from him,” Phillips said. “It was a matter of him getting those opportunities and being in the right place regardless of the play or the progressions. He’s just a guy that consistently wins on tape. We’ve got a lot of guys that can do that, and the ball found him.”

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jalen Nailor (1) pulls down a quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) pass in front of Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey (44) for a 62 yard catch in the first quarter of a NFL game at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on Sunday, Nov. 9, 2025. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

There were a number of plays from Nailor that stood out. He caught a deep pass from quarterback J.J. McCarthy on the opening possession, then raced up the field for a 62-yard gain. He later hauled in an intermediate crosser over the the middle for an 18-yard gain.

“I’ve said it since Week 1 that Speedy was going to show up for us,” McCarthy said. “There are going to be a lot more games like that for Speedy.”

That’s a nickname Nailor has carried since he was a little kid. He garnered the nickname in childhood because, well, he was always much faster than his peers. It’s stuck with him into adulthood because, well, that’s still very much the case.

The ability to separate from defenders played a role in Nailor being selected by the Vikings in the sixth round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He’s steadily carved out a niche for himself since then, despite being taken in a later round.

Though he has never been a focal point for the Vikings with all the the other weapons they have on offense, Nailor has earned the respect of his teammates by doing the dirty work behind the scenes. He took pride in that part, knowing if he continued to do developed, his moment was eventually going to come.

That’s exactly what happened for Nailor. After making a splash in the early stages of the game, Nailor flashed again down the stretch, keeping a drive alive with an acrobatic catch, then toe tapping in the back of the end zone for a score a few plays later.

“A heck of a catch,” O’Connell said. “I thought Speedy was huge for us really taking advantage of those opportunities.”

The only problem with Nailor balling out for the Vikings is that they most likely won’t be able to keep him. He is set to be a free agent in the offseason, and should be in line for a significant pay raise.

It’s not out of the realm of possibility for Nailor to garner a deal that pays him somewhere near $15 million per year when comparing his skill set to the rest of the market.

Baltimore Ravens receiver Rashod Bateman’s contract has an average annual value of $12.25 million, Atlanta Falcons receiver Darnell Mooney’s contract has an average annual value of $13 million and Buffalo Bills receiver Khalil Shakir’s contract has an average annual value of $13.25 million.

There’s a chance Nailor’s contract could clear those numbers if he continues to produce at a high level.

“We’re always confident in the guys in our room to make those plays when they get those opportunities,” star receiver Justin Jefferson said. “I’m very proud of him for coming up clutch and doing what we expect him to do.”

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