Laquon Treadwell remaining optimistic about his future

But he’s still got an uphill battle ahead of him

The first three seasons of Laquon Treadwell’s career with the Minnesota Vikings have been massively disappointing, to say the least. After a rookie season that saw him record just one catch, his three-year career stats show just 56 receptions for 517 yards and one touchdown. As things currently stand, Treadwell is currently. . .at least nominally. . .the Vikings’ third receiver, but the team obviously expected bigger things from the man they took with the 23rd overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft.

The writing is pretty clearly on the wall for Treadwell after the team failed to pick up the fifth-year option on his rookie contract last month. Still, despite the disappointment he’s had thus far in his career, Treadwell remains optimistic in what could very well be his final year with the Vikings.

“I have enough motivation,” he said. “If you want to add that on, you can. But I have enough motivation. I haven’t had the best of my years here, and I just look forward to making something of this year and adding to this team and helping us win a Super Bowl.”

For what it’s worth, Treadwell feels as though he’s in a pretty good place going into the 2019 season, despite the rough times he’s had since becoming a Viking.

“The first couple of years I was trying to get my life figured out, trying to find balance in life, and I think I’ve found that,” Treadwell said. “And I’m going to continue to pursue that.”

Treadwell said he endured a “lot of outside factors that kind of took a little distraction on me and a toll on me.” He didn’t offer specifics but said he’s working to “continue to bring good people around me.”

While Treadwell is currently the #3 receiver on the Vikings’ depth chart, as we mentioned earlier, the competition for that spot is going to be one of the big storylines of camp. The Vikings drafted two wide receivers late in the 2019 NFL Draft in Dillon Mitchell and Olabisi Johnson, the team seems to like what Chad Beebe can potentially bring to the table, and free agent acquisition Jordan Taylor (who has some familiarity with Gary Kubiak’s offense) was reportedly impressive during the early Organized Team Activities.

I’d like to think that Laquon Treadwell is finally going to “get it” this season, if for no other reason than I’d like to see everyone in a Vikings’ uniform be able to make a significant contribution to the team. Is Treadwell going to become the player the Vikings hoped he would be when they drafted him in 2016? I’m not sure if there’s reason to be super optimistic about that, but there’s always a chance, I suppose.

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