Vikings select receiver Tai Felton out of Maryland in the NFL draft’s third round

The Vikings entered Friday night with a long wait before they were on the clock again during the NFL draft’s second and third rounds.

General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah extended the wait to improve Minnesota’s draft capital on Saturday. The Vikings traded back with the Houston Texans, dropping from No. 97 to No. 102, where the team drafted Maryland receiver Tai Felton.

For trading back five spots, the Vikings gained an additional fifth-round pick (No. 142 overall) while sending their sixth-round pick (No. 187 overall) to Houston.

The Vikings now have picks No. 139 and No. 142 in the fifth round on Saturday.

Felton, a 6-foot-1, 183-pound team captain, developed into Maryland’s leading receiver as a three-star recruit in 2021 out of Ashburn, Va.

He is coming off a breakout season for the Terrapins, finishing fourth in the FBS with a program-record 96 receptions. Felton turned those catches into 1,124 yards and nine touchdowns.

There’s also “more juice to squeeze” as a special teamer, Vikings assistant GM Ryan Grigson said Friday night.

“He has returned kicks before, he has fair-caught punts, he can do it,” Grigson said. “He can field the ball. We feel like there’s more juice to squeeze on special teams. ... The type of player that is going to work to define a role for himself.”

Only five receivers ran faster than Felton’s 4.37-second 40-yard dash at this year’s NFL scouting combine. Grigson said the Vikings evaluated him as more than just a speed threat.

“He doesn’t go down easy,” Grigson said. “He doesn’t just ever want to let a play die.”

The data backs up that evaluation of Felton, who forced 26 missed tackles last season, according to Pro Football Focus. Only five receivers, including Panthers first-round pick Tet McMillan and Bears second-round pick Luther Burden, forced more missed tackles.

“Whenever you put the ball in my hands,” Felton said, “I’m going to make defenders miss.”

Felton joins a Vikings receiving corps that returns its top three targets from last season: Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and Jalen Nailor. They lost receiver Trent Sherfield, a key special teamer, in free agency and added former Cardinals and Purdue speedster Rondale Moore.

Felton said he’s looking forward to “learning from the best” in Jefferson. Felton will also reunite with former Maryland teammate Jeshaun Jones, a receiver who was on the Vikings practice squad last season.

After Felton met with Vikings reps at the combine, including receivers coach Keenan McCardell (a former assistant coach at Maryland), Jones told his former Maryland teammate that Vikings coaches came away impressed.

“Saying those guys like me,” Felton said. “After the combine, the heat picked up a little bit.”

During last season, Felton already heard from Jones — an undrafted signing by the Vikings — about one of the NFLPA’s highest-rated teams.

“He was basically saying how great the facilities were,” Felton said, “and how great the training staff is.”

The Vikings and Texans front offices seem to have each other on speed dial. Friday’s deal marked the fourth trade between the two teams since last year.

The Vikings did not possess their original second-round pick (56th overall) on Friday night, which was first dealt to Houston last year for the Texans’ first-round pick. Minnesota also acquired running back Cam Akers from Houston in the middle of last season. In March, the Vikings traded guard Ed Ingram to the Texans.

The Vikings second-rounder was eventually traded three times. The Texans later sent it to Buffalo for receiver Stefon Diggs, the former Vikings fifth-round pick from Maryland. On Friday night, the Bills traded the pick to the Bears while moving up in the second round. The Bears drafted Ozzy Trapilo, an offensive tackle out of Boston College, at No. 56 overall.

The Vikings also didn’t have their original third-round pick (88th overall). That went to Jacksonville during last year’s trade up for edge rusher Dallas Turner in the first round. The Jaguars drafted Tulane cornerback Caleb Ransaw with the pick.

The Vikings held the 97th overall pick as a compensatory selection awarded by the NFL, offsetting quarterback Kirk Cousins leaving in free agency last year for the Atlanta Falcons.

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