Jalen Nailor broke two tackles and nearly stiff-armed his way out of a third on his 62-yard reception in the opening minutes Sunday, his eyes toward the end zone.
It was third-and-4, only the Vikings’ sixth snap on offense, when quarterback J.J. McCarthy found Nailor outpacing Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey on the left side of the field.
Nailor moved around Humphrey with ease as the cornerback fell to the ground. He threw cornerback Chidobe Awuzie off into the Vikings sideline with little effort. Then he stiff-armed safety Alohi Gilman long enough to pick up about another eight yards before he was brought down at the 4-yard line.
“I was trying to score,” Nailor laughed postgame about the stiff-arms. “I didn’t, but we still put it in at the end of the drive, so I’m excited with that.”
Nailor, whose nickname “Speedy” showed on that chunk play, stepped up as McCarthy’s connections with his top receiving targets — namely Justin Jefferson — were tested or shut down completely in the [Vikings’ 27-19 loss to the Ravens](https://www.startribune.com/minnesota-vikings-baltimore-ravens-27-19-jj-mccarthy-takeaways/601517067) on Sunday.
Vikings wide receiver Jalen Nailor (1) makes a 62-yard gain against Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey (44) in the first quarter. (Carlos Gonzalez/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Jefferson caught only four of 12 targets for 37 yards and was the intended receiver on both of McCarthy’s deep-pass interceptions. Jordan Addison caught three of 11 targets, and running back Aaron Jones Sr. was 3-for-6. Tight end T.J. Hockenson finished with two receptions on two targets.
“The ball didn’t really find my hand today,” Jefferson said. “That’s a part of football, and that’s a part of our life. ... We gotta go back to it and go back to work and practice. Fix the things we need to fix so on Sundays, it’s a cake walk.”
Jefferson has finished with fewer than 50 yards receiving in three of the four games McCarthy has started this season. The pair were unable to practice together most of training camp as Jefferson nursed a hamstring injury.