After the Vikings cut receiver Greg Jennings in a salary-cap move and he signed with the Dolphins, Jennings’ family stayed behind in Minnesota. Jennings is now trying to get back there.
“I left [G.M.] Rick [Spielman] a voicemail,” Jennings said in a Wednesday appearance on KFAN. “I told [them], I’m waiting on you guys.”
For Jennings, the draw was simple. After being away from the team for a year, he wants to return to it.
“I miss being [in Minnesota],” Jennings said. “You appreciate something more when it’s taken away from you.”
In his only season with the Dolphins, Jennings caught 19 passes. He was cut in another salary-cap move by the Dolphins, who had a spot for him after trading Mike Wallace to the Vikings, which triggered the decision to release Jennings.
“It was a humbling year,” Jennings said. “This is what I desire. I desire to be home with my family. The only way I’m home with my family is if the Vikings pick up the phone and call me.”
Jennings, who turns 33 in September, believes he has something that the Vikings need.
“I know what Teddy [Bridgewater] missed,” Jennings said. “Sometimes you take for granted the veteran guys in the locker room. . . . When I look at the Vikings I see a young team. A team of guys with great leadership on the defensive side of the ball specifically. In a wide receiver room, where’s the veteran? Where’s the leadership? Where’s the accountability?”
There currently isn’t one, with 26-year-old slot receiver Jarius Wright serving as the elder statesman of the group. So if Jennings still has gas in the tank, he could add something important to the team’s offense.