Ex Eagles WR Jalen Reagor Has Fifth-Year Option Declined by Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings have elected not to pick up the fifth-year option on former Philadelphia Eagles receiver Jalen Reagor.

Minnesota Vikings receiver Jalen Reagor has had a rough start to his NFL career.

The Philadelphia Eagles selected the former TCU Horned Frogs receiver with the No. 21 pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. Reagor never meshed well with the Eagles, only posting 64 receptions for 695 yards and three touchdowns in two seasons. Making matters worse was the fact that the Vikings selected Justin Jefferson, arguably the best receiver in the league today, with the pick immediately after Reagor.

After two disappointing seasons, Philadelphia decided to move on and traded him to Minnesota in August, ironically enough. Instead of a career revival, though, Reagor struggled even more with Minnesota, totaling just eight catches for 104 yards with the team last season. Now, the latest blow comes with the Vikings declining his fifth-year option for the 2024 season. 

This move isn't much of a surprise, but is still another disappointment for the former first-round pick. Additionally, the Vikings selecting USC receiver Jordan Addison with the No. 23 pick in this year's draft likely diminishes Reagor's role with the team even more.

The 2020 draft class in general has seen a notably low number of players had their fifth-year options picked up. Only 12 of the 27 eligible first-round picks have had their fifth-year options picked up, by far the lowest since the league implemented this system. The previous low was 17 players in the 2016 draft class.

Although the Reagor pick didn't work out well for the Eagles, they have rebounded nicely from it. In 2021, one year after drafting Reagor, they drafted DeVonta Smith with the No. 10 pick, then traded for A.J. Brown a year later. It may not have happened as originally planned, but the Eagles now have one of the best receiving duos in the league.

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