https://www.vikings.com/news/myles-price-training-camp-offensive-opportunities-2026

Myles Price Building on Returner's Role with Offensive Opportunities

EAGAN, Minn. — Myles Price is why people should not judge a book by its cover.

The Vikings wide receiver, who has a compact frame at 5-foot-9 and 183 pounds, unceremoniously received his NFL shot in 2025 as an undrafted free agent out of Indiana after four seasons at Texas Tech.

Price, known to teammates as "Jug," proved to meet the criteria Minnesota sought in a return specialist and he poured out impressive plays in his debut season. He regularly caused doubletakes in the audience — and induced migraines in opponents — when he had the rock in his palm and the field in front of him.

Price owns a fidgety first step that sets him up for success, plus the fearlessness to make massive moments feel miniature. He took the Vikings trust in him to heart and then reset the franchise record for combined kick and punt return yardage in one season — and did it by excelling in both disciplines.

His three games racking 65-plus punt return yards tied the team's gold standard in a single year, set initially in 1997 by David Palmer and done again in 2006 by Mewelde Moore. Furthermore, his six efforts with 120-plus kick return yards broke Cordarrelle Patterson's old club record of five such games in 2013.

Price's tally of 1,777 yards — 298 on 30 punts (9.9 avg.) and 1,479 on 57 kickoffs (25.9 avg.) — counted as the 10th most by a player in NFL history without that player scoring a touchdown in either phase. He had longs of 43 and 61 yards, respectively, and did bolt for six on a kickoff at Detroit in Week 9, except it was spoiled by a holding penalty (that didn't really stop someone from thwarting Price's head of steam).

As good as they were, the future is waiting.

Price is energized to run it back as a third-phase ace as Year 2 for him looms. But also, he's developed offensively and is excited to "show the coaches and my team that I'm ready for the moment," he shared.

"However [they] need me," Price said, he wants to contribute. His training camp suggests he can.

Price's brightest moment through 10 practices has been the best — bar none — by any receiver this summer. With Pro Football Hall of Famers Cris Carter and Larry Fitzgerald in the house July 30, he made a sweet split-second adjustment on an arcing deep pass from Carson Wentz and held on to the ball as he landed inside the 10-yard line. Price's acceleration, play strength and knack for uncovering on corners, crossers, post routes — the whole gamut, frankly — are manifesting on the grass every day at practice.

"I think I'm a better route runner" now than a year ago, Price noted before Saturday's session. "Just knowing how to get to my depth. I'm really trying to stress that this camp, just make sure I'm getting to all my landmarks, being where I'm supposed to be and being where the quarterback needs me to be."

His emphasis on what he does before he catches the ball shifted into overdrive, so to speak, when he was training in the offseason with popular WR coach David Robinson after getting a finger stitched up.

The procedure limited what Price could do with his hands, so he obsessed over his footwork and transitions. Specifically, he aimed to increase speed coming out of the top of his breaks rather than cruising. The other goal he set for camp and his second NFL season is to eliminate missed assignments.

More than a calendar year in the offensive system has served him well in that capacity.

"Man, it's slowing down a lot," Price said of his comfort at receiver. "I remember last year, this time, I was hearing those play calls, and I was so confused on what's going on; I was asking everybody, 'Hold on, what's that?' But now I'm calmer back there. I'm able to hear the call, know the call and do my job."

Offensive Coordinator Wes Phillips noted Wednesday that he's "seen a lot of growth" from Price this spring and summer after initially not knowing "where he would end up being as a true wide receiver."

"You go into the offseason program, and you could tell right away that he's been putting in work," Phillips said. "His route transitions [are better]. He's always had good hands. He's got more speed than people think he does. Even though he's got a fast [40-yard dash] time (he reportedly ran in the low 4.4s at Indiana's Pro Day) — maybe it's just the body type, but he's shown that he can run by guys. He can make guys miss. He's quick off the line of scrimmage versus bump. So really excited about his future."

When Phillips was asked about Price's size — or lack thereof — he emphasized that the 24-year-old is plenty strong, tough and "conscientious with learning his stuff — knowing what to do and where to be.

"Like I said, his progression, I've been really impressed with and I'm proud of him," Phillips added.

So is Special Teams Coordinator Matt Daniels, who was resolute in Price's rookie-year playmaking — even after Price put a couple balls on the ground trying to do too much — and anticipates a layered role.

"If you ask the offensive guys, you know, Year 1 Myles as a receiver versus Year 2 Myles as a receiver is day and night," Daniels commented Saturday when he was asked about Price's evolution. "He's consistently been making plays out here from an offensive standpoint [and] continues to pick up the playbook as that F (slot) position. And I'm sure those guys will utilize him from an offensive standpoint.

"But from a returner standpoint, [the next step is] how good can we be at premium ball security? You know, tracking it, catching it, being a great decision-maker back there," Daniels continued, expanding on Price's desire to make a positive impact. "We all know Myles is a very aggressive guy when it comes to returning balls, but we just have to make sure that those aggressive decisions don't lead to reckless actions afterwards. So, I would just say, how good can we be at getting him involved — whether he does play in these preseason games back as a returner or he doesn't — how can we create these game actions for him to be able to go out and make these great decisions in terms of holding on to the football?"

In Price's book, his next step is to give the offense a hand, first, by cribbing returns.

"I know I'm capable of doing that," he said with a confident grin. "I got to give a little bit more."