Luke Braun's Film Room: Can We Learn Anything From Jalen Nailor’s One-Catch 2023 Debut?

Wide Left has coerced Luke Braun into producing film room breakdowns from time to time. This time, Braun covers Jalen Nailor's 2023 debut and why it was so unproductive.

There is a lot going on with the Minnesota Vikings. Between Justin Jefferson’s approaching return from injured reserve, Joshua Dobbs’ improbable surge and Anthony Barr’s emotional homecoming, it would be forgivable to forget about Jalen Nailor’s sophomore season debut.

Nailor finally returned to the field after a frustrating bout with injuries. A lower leg injury consumed most of his 2023 training camp, and just three weeks after his return, a hamstring injury placed him on IR. He missed seven total games before returning against New Orleans on Sunday. 

In that game, only Jordan Addison played more snaps among skill players. His 67 snaps put him in the second wide receiver spot above Brandon Powell, at least as far as playing time is concerned. He ran 42 routes and caught just one pass for 16 yards. 

Jalen Nailor Didn’t Produce. Why?

Some questions probably come to mind. Why so little production? Was it scheme, Nailor’s talent, quarterbacking or a mix of all three? Is Nailor just rusty? Is he bad?

To answer this, we first have to look at Nailor’s usage. I charted 43 “passing” reps, from true routes to decoy assignments to blocking on pick plays or run-pass options. I also charted whether Nailor was on the front side or the back side of the progression (i.e. whether Josh Dobbs looked his way first or not).

Nailor was only on the front side of the progression for 13 of those reps. One of those was a pick play RPO that Dobbs handed off. Had he thrown it, Nailor would have blocked.

That leaves 12 true opportunities to get the ball and thirty plays on the back side, often the third — or even fourth — read on the play. Nailor’s most common route was a “basic,” or an in route. Seven of the nine basic routes he ran came on the back side of the progression.

Jalen Nailor’s Banishment to the Back Side

One way to demonstrate this is to look at a play called Flag Bow, pictured below. This concept has Dobbs consider two other routes before flipping his stance to look at the backside basic. In this play, those two routes would likely feature Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson. So regardless of Nailor’s separation, to see a target, first Dobbs has to decline both Addison and Hockenson.

Take the 3rd down play below, for example. Dobbs reads Hockenson on the flat and then Addison on the corner. He chooses to throw to Addison, so Nailor never gets a look, despite getting separation. That’s not a judgment on Joshua Dobbs or Jalen Nailor, it’s just life as a wide receiver. You can win routes over and over and over, but never get a look. Someone will always go last.

Running a later route in the progression isn’t guaranteed banishment to Tartarus. Justin Jefferson has made part of his living running backside basics and posts while Kirk Cousins progresses past his first and second reads.

In fact, the backside basic is a staple of the Shanahan/McVay offense, whether piloted by Kirk Cousins, Matt Stafford or Jimmy Garoppolo. It takes longer to get to, but it is not a true decoy route.

Jalen Nailor Running True Decoy Routes