EAGAN, Minn. — Jake Reed caught 450 passes for 6,999 yards and 36 touchdowns in 12 NFL seasons, but the most crucial catch for the former Vikings and Saints receiver occurred nearly a quarter-century after his retirement.

Early detection — a key aspect of the NFL's Crucial Catch initiative — led to a surgical removal of cancer from Reed's right upper lung before the disease spread elsewhere in his body.

"I did catch a lot of footballs in my career, but this is the biggest catch," Reed said last Friday during an interview at TCO Studios. "Catching this, man, I tell you what, I will take this catch over any ball I caught in my career, so I want to thank the NFL."

The success story began with an annual exam of Reed's shoulder, which included an MRI. Reed's orthopedic doctor "saw something in my lung that didn't look right and pointed me toward the pulmonologist." But he initially hesitated pursuing that level of care.

He had "no breathing problems or anything."

Flights of stairs were never a problem, and walks with his wife Vinita were smooth strolls.

The same confidence that helped Reed post four consecutive 1,000 yards seasons with the Vikings from 1994-97 and form "Three Deep" with Cris Carter and Randy Moss in Minnesota's magical 1998 season remained.

The success story began with an annual exam of Reed's shoulder, which included an MRI. Reed's orthopedic doctor "saw something in my lung that didn't look right and pointed me toward the pulmonologist." But he initially hesitated pursuing that level of care.

He had "no breathing problems or anything."

Flights of stairs were never a problem, and walks with his wife Vinita were smooth strolls.

The same confidence that helped Reed post four consecutive 1,000 yards seasons with the Vikings from 1994-97 and form "Three Deep" with Cris Carter and Randy Moss in Minnesota's magical 1998 season remained.

Reed admitted he thought, "Can't nothing be wrong. I'm big, I'm strong, I'm healthy, I'm good," but now is encouraging others to not be so unyielding.

Reed's realization he was actively joining cancer warriors took the orthopedist continuing to encourage Reed to get examined, a consult with one pulmonologist and a second opinion from another who told him, " 'If something is growing in your body, it's not good growth. Nothing should be growing in your body.' And when he said that, that kind of clicked with me like, 'You're right. I need to really take this seriously.'

"I think the early detection really saved my life and really helped me with long-term issues because when you don't have any breathing problems and you feel you're healthy, why go get your lungs checked? You're not a smoker. It's a silent thing. And they end up taking like 8-10% of my lung out, cut it out," Reed shared. "That was the great part. They got that out of there. And once they got it out, they tested. It was cancerous, but they had to check my lymph nodes. It took about five to 10 days to come back. And that whole time, I was nervous, I was worried. Once it came back negative, me and my family, we were very happy about that, said a lot of prayers."

Iconic tribute

On Dec. 16, 2024, Reed and Carter walked out for the coin toss with Minnesota's captains clad in the Winter Warrior uniform, which was debuting along with the first usage of a white helmet in franchise history.

The duo proudly hoisted a Purple No. 84 jersey in honor of Moss, who had publicly disclosed his cancer diagnosis on Instagram three days before the game.

Reed was understandably worried about and wanted to show support for his friend. He also personally was in the monitoring stage prior to his eventual surgery.

"When I walked out holding that jersey, man, I'm going to tell you, I was very emotional, for Randy, seeing my boy sick like that and fighting a battle with that cancer," Reed recalled. "A lot of times you hear the word 'cancer, you think death,' so I was very emotional holding that jersey for so many reasons, for him and for myself."

Reed, now 59, kept his diagnosis private for quite some time. He described having some "zombie" moments where he would sit and stare into an abyss. His mother passed away after a battle with breast cancer, and he did not want a similar pain for his children.

Vinita knew, but their two adult children did not learn about Reed's two-plus hour removal surgery until after it was finished.

"Once my kids found out about it, they were angry at me for not telling them because they said, 'We are not little kids anymore. We're grown adults. You got to keep us in the loop.'

"So I would tell you, don't be afraid to share with your family and friends because that's your support group, because you're going to have some lows and highs."

A reunion with reels

Three Deep reunited this summer for a special episode of "Chasing 10," the YouTube fishing series hosted by Moss during which he and special guests chase 10-pound bass.

After learning about Reed's diagnosis, Moss invited his teammate to share his story to help increase awareness. Reed didn't feel shame or embarrassment, and he's glad he found courage to encourage other cancer warriors.

"I didn't know how I can really affect people, but I've had a couple of cancer patients reach out to me on my social media.

"One guy — I won't say his name — was going through lung cancer, the same thing I went through, but he didn't catch it in time, so he was doing the radiation, the chemo. He was sending me pictures," Reed said. "We've been texting back and forth since the first of the year, and I've been encouraging him."

This past weekend, Reed attended Minnesota's win against Miami, which overlapped with the annual Vikings Crucial Catch Game. Reed shared his story during an in-stadium interview with Vikings Entertainment Network's Tatum Everett, and a video message from Moss was played on the videoboard to promote fundraising for pediatric cancer.

Moss is raffling off his custom-built "Rookie of the Year" bass boat to raise money for the Children's Cancer Research Fund. The winner and one guest will be flown to Charlotte, North Carolina, to meet Moss and receive the keys to the boat from the Pro Football Hall of Famer. Visit chasing10.com for more on the fishing series and chasingacureforkids.org to enter the sweepstakes.

Reed wants anyone dealing with a cancer diagnosis to know that he or she is not alone and for everyone to understand the importance of early detection.

"I encourage everybody to get tested, take your annual physical, take it seriously. It can be life and death," Reed said. "If you don't get tested — sometimes it's anxiety; you don't want to know. I have heard some of my friends say, 'Man, if I got something going on with me, I don't want to know. Just let it take me out.' But you want to know because you've got people that love you and care for you and that depend on you.

"I encourage everybody to please get tested. Especially men over 50, go get tested," Reed said. "You can be in the best health. You can be jogging, you can be running, you can be lifting weights, you can do all those things, but just because you feel good doesn't mean you are good. So please get tested."

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