Josh Oliver

Josh Oliver (born March 21, 1997) is an American professional football tight end for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the San Jose State Spartans.

Early life Born in Templeton, California, Oliver attended Paso Robles High School in Paso Robles, California.

During the 2014 season, Oliver compiled 453 receiving yards and seven touchdown catches in helping PRHS advance to the CIF Southern California Division III championship game.

He was a high school and college teammate of Bailey Gaither, future United States Football League wide receiver and return specialist.

Meanwhile, for his play at linebacker, Oliver was selected as the 2014 CIF Southern Section Northern Division Defensive Player of the Year in January 2015. He accumulated 13 sacks and two interceptions (returned for 28 yards) as a senior.

College career Initially listed as an "athlete" in much of the recruiting process, Oliver was announced as a tight end upon signing a National Letter of Intent with San Jose State, as then-positional coach Dan Ferrigno commented he "[had] the tools to become an elite tight end."

Oliver played at SJSU from 2015 to 2018. During his career, he had 98 receptions for 1,067 yards and seven touchdowns, and was a Mountain West Conference All-Academic honoree in all four of his years.

As a freshman, his blocking was reportedly recognized to be a significant contributing factor toward Tyler Ervin breaking the program's single-season rushing yardage record. He also emerged as a receiving threat, with his first collegiate touchdown catch coming during the Spartans' Cure Bowl victory over Georgia State.

Midway through the 2018 season, Oliver won a John Mackey Award as the national tight end of the week after producing eight catches for 158 yards against Hawai'i on September 27 (setting a school single-game receiving yardage record by a tight end).

He earned first-team All-Mountain West Conference selection and served as a team captain in 2018, during a season in which his 56 receptions ranked third among FBS-level tight ends. Oliver was invited to the Senior Bowl after the season.

Professional career

Jacksonville Jaguars Oliver was drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the third round, 69th overall, of the 2019 NFL draft. He was placed on injured reserve on November 18, 2019.

Oliver had surgery on a broken bone in his foot and was placed on injured reserve again on August 20, 2020.

Baltimore Ravens

On March 18, 2021, Oliver was traded to the Baltimore Ravens in exchange for a conditional 2022 seventh-round selection. He had nine receptions for 66 yards in 14 games in the 2021 season.

In Week 3 of the 2022 season against the New England Patriots, he caught his first career touchdown pass from a yard out from quarterback Lamar Jackson. He finished the game with two receptions for eight yards and the aforementioned touchdown in the 37–26 win. In the 2022 season, he finished with 14 receptions for 149 yards and two touchdowns. Per Pro Football Focus, Oliver graded as the top run-blocking tight end in the NFL amongst the 53 tight ends who played at least 200 blocking snaps for the year.

Minnesota Vikings On March 15, 2023, Oliver signed a three-year, $21 million contract with the Minnesota Vikings. He finished the 2023 season with 22 receptions for 213 yards and two touchdowns.

Oliver finished the 2024 season with 22 receptions for 258 yards and three touchdowns.

On June 10, 2025, Oliver signed a three-year, $23.25 million contract extension with the Vikings.

NFL career statistics Legend Bold Career high

Regular season Year Team Games Receiving Fumbles GP GS Tgt Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Fmb Lost 2019 JAX 4 1 6 3 15 5.0 6 0 0 0 2021 BAL 14 1 15 9 66 7.3 19 0 1 0 2022 BAL 17 9 25 14 149 10.6 40 2 0 0 2023 MIN 17 14 28 22 213 9.7 33 2 1 1 2024 MIN 15 12 28 22 258 11.7 28 3 0 0 2025 MIN 15 7 19 15 160 10.7 32 4 0 0Career 82 44 121 85 861 10.1 40 11 2 1

Postseason Year Team Games Receiving Fumbles GP GS Tgt Rec Yds Avg Lng TD Fmb Lost 2022 BAL 1 1 2 2 26 13.0 19 0 0 0 2024 MIN 1 1 1 1 5 5.0 5 0 0 0Career 2 2 3 3 31 10.3 19 0 0 0