EAGAN, Minn. — Justin Jefferson is ready to put on a show.
No, not the one you’re thinking of — not just yet anyway. Let’s stay in the present for the moment.
Jefferson’s family is coming to town this week for the Vikings’ practices at TCO Performance Center. And if the 23-year-old isn’t precise with every assignment, he’s going to hear from his most demanding coaches when they’re all back at his house at the end of the day.
“You already know there’s going to be a lot of criticism when I get back to the house,” Jefferson said with the smile that’s taken over Minnesota for the past two years. “I’ve got to have every route on point, every catch on point.”
So yeah, Jefferson isn’t ready to give them any fodder for criticism. Not after the offseason he just had.
“It is definitely good to see them in my habitat and seeing what I do best,” Jefferson said The Athletic. “I love showing them routes, showing them different things I’ve done in practice, just giving them a little taste for what I got this upcoming season.”
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— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) July 29, 2022
And that’s the real show, the one Jefferson has vowed to unveil in front of the world.
The third-year wideout has proclaimed that he’ll be the best receiver in the NFL by the end of the season. Right now, in his mind, he’s only behind Raiders superstar Davante Adams.
It’s a bold claim, especially in light of a receiver revolution that has taken over the league in recent years. But Jefferson has a point.
He’s got more receiving yards (3,016) than anyone on the planet over the last two seasons and ranks seventh with 196 catches and 10th with 17 touchdowns. He also ranks first in yards per catch (15.4) among the 51 players in the league with at least 111 receptions since 2020. Jefferson has also done it for a team that hasn’t ranked in the top 10 in passing yards in either of his two seasons.
So now, about that show — first, the one this week, and then, the one beyond — it comes back to family. They motivate him in both the short and long term. He wants to be the best for them.
For his brother, Jordan, who spent four days with the Buccaneers in 2012 but never got back into the NFL. For his brother, Rickey, who spent some time with the Raiders and Saints but never played a game.
“My brothers have been a main factor,” Jefferson said about his motivation for greatness. “My family, they played football before me, they showed me the ropes, being there for me, supporting me all the way. For them not to be on the same level as me, I definitely do it for them. We all had that dream as little kids playing in the yard.
“To be the first one in the first round, to be on the team and be this high of a receiver is definitely something special in my family.”
That’s why, when Jefferson declares his intentions to be the best in the league, there’s a genuine meaning behind the words. He believes it’ll happen. He intends to make it so.
“I always have that goal of being a Hall of Famer,” Jefferson said. “No Hall of Famer is the best at what they do. The stuff I’ve done already, the stuff I’m looking forward to doing in the future, I just want to be the best and be known for being the best. I definitely feel like it’s coming up.”
He doesn’t lack for confidence because he’s worked to achieve it.
“It’s really just keeping my head up and just wanting to be the best,” Jefferson said.
Jefferson had a short offseason. He needed to get back to work.
He refined his balance, his explosion off the line, his hands and his work against one-on-one coverage. In his mind, those were a few of his weaknesses.
Then there was the arrival of head coach Kevin O’Connell, who spent the previous two seasons as the Rams offensive coordinator. O’Connell is expected to rejuvenate the Vikings’ offense, and he FaceTimed Jefferson during his first day in the office.
“My biggest thing with him from day one,” O’Connell said The Athletic“you will do as much as you’re capable of handling from a mental standpoint, and he has been phenomenal from the jump of really diving in and learning this, learning how we want to play, watching the tape.”
Jefferson and O’Connell got together to watch a ton of movies. Of course, there were long sessions on the Rams offense, particularly on receivers like Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods, but Jefferson didn’t just narrow his focus on specific players. O’Connell plans to move Jefferson all over the offense, so the wideout worked to gain an understanding of every position and every concept.
The O’Connell element is huge, too. Like coach Sean McVay’s offense with the Rams, O’Connell is working to implement concepts that will naturally free up Jefferson from defensive coverages with the idea of reducing the burden of having to constantly beat coverages that are bearing down on the Vikings’ most explosive receiver . To an extent, it’s a similar approach the Rams took with Kupp when there were 80,000 people in the stadium who knew where the ball was heading.
“It’s been great,” Jefferson said. “It’s been crazy to witness from this point of view. Watching the Rams last season and seeing the different plays they did, seeing Cooper Kupp wide open so many times, it’s a phenomenal thing to happen here with the team and this new style of offense.”
If Jefferson achieves his goal of reaching the receiver pinnacle, a financial reward will follow. The market exploded this offseason with Adams, Tyreek Hill, Kupp, AJ Brown, Stefon Diggs, DK Metcalf, Deebo Samuel, Terry McLaurin, Mike Williams and Chris Godwin all signing deals in excess of $20 million in average annual value.
He’s aware of his colleagues’ accomplishments in that regard, but Jefferson isn’t concerned about a new deal at this point, considering he isn’t eligible for one until next offseason.
“I love it,” Jefferson said. “I love it that it’s coming now. All of the top receivers are getting paid this year. The future is very bright. Definitely, the market is getting higher. At this moment, I’m trying to focus on winning the Super Bowl. After the Super Bowl, we can definitely talk more about that.”
Jefferson has more pressing goals in mind.
He’s getting ready for the show.
(Photo: David Berding/Getty Images)
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