Greg Jennings may have led the Minnesota Vikings in receiving last season, but he does not expect to repeat the success in 2014. While the team might have a competition taking place at the quarterback position, the veteran receiver does not see the same thing taking place throughout the rest of the roster. Jennings might be the strong veteran, but he believes second-year pro Cordarrelle Patterson will be the new offensive star.
The Vikings may not have an established starting quarterback just yet, but Jennings believes that no matter what kind of offense the team runs, Patterson will be the better receiver than he was in his rookie year. With new head coach Mike Zimmer and offensive coordinator Norv Turner in place, Jennings believes the expectations are raised for everyone to meet.
"I wanted him to know that, coming in, the expectation of you is no longer 'rookie.' It's, 'You gotta go. We saw what you can do. We're gonna showcase this,'" Jennings said, via ESPN.com. "For me, it was making sure that he understands that he has to be a professional. He has to be a pro's pro when he steps foot in this building, because we're expecting (him) to give us what we've seen you put out there."
Jennings was brought in last season to not only help stabilize the offense, but be a mentor to the young wide receiver Minnesota drafted in the first round. Patterson was not exactly a model of consistency his first year, but neither was the quarterback play, offering him little help. He exceled in kickoff returns, netting two scores while also proving to be extremely versatile. Jennings believes Patterson just needs more opportunities in the upcoming season.
"As a rookie, not being given a whole lot of opportunities and then coming on strong at the end of the year, the expectation of Eight-Four went to another level. I'm going to be honest: Once I saw him make a couple plays, I'm like, 'We've got to get him the ball. He does too much well for us not to get him the ball," Jennings said.
Improvement from Patterson will be needed for whoever starts at quarterback. The Vikings have remained coy on the options as Matt Cassel and Teddy Bridgewater appear to be battling it out. The veteran is listed on top of the depth chart, but Zimmer is not ruling out starting a rookie. Pairing Jennings and Patterson together with Adrian Peterson was supposed to give Minnesota a dynamic offense last season. Turner is hoping that will be the case this year.
