Justin Jefferson is only 23 years old but already he’s one of the most important players on the Vikings, perhaps the most important player.
Jefferson’s record-breaking first three seasons established him as the league’s best receiver. The former LSU Tiger’s 128 catches and 1,809 receiving yards in 2023 were best among NFL receivers and good enough to earn him recognition as a finalist for NFL MVP this season.
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— NFL (@NFL) January 25, 2023
The decision to dish out the largest receiver contract in the league to Jefferson seems pretty straight forward for the Vikings. They don’t necessarily have to make a move on that this summer as Jefferson will be going into his fourth year of his rookie deal and the Vikings can use the fifth-year option.
The next question though is how much say should Jefferson have in the Vikings’ offseason decisions?
According to Purple Insider’s Matther Coller, Jefferson should have “a lot” of say in how the Vikings operate this offseason.
“Players have more power than they’ve ever had. So the Vikings need to understand where he stands, what’s going to make Justin Jefferson happy,” says Coller.
Star players in all sports are having more and more say in their future and how their team should build around them. Minnesota sports fans need to look no further than Target Field where in his (re)introductory press conference last month Carlos Correa was tongue-in-cheek referred to as the Twins’ assistant GM.
Coming off a 13-win season and an NFC North title the Vikings have plenty of offseason decisions to make, none more important than what to do with quarterback Kirk Cousins.
Cousins will be on the final year of his contract heading into next season. According to Over The Cap he’ll have a $36 million cap hit.
Asking the ultra-competitive Jefferson to take a step back and undergo an offensive rebuild risks another star receiver demanding a trade away from Minnesota.
“He’s aware that no matter where he is and what he’s doing two things are going to be true for him: he’s going to catch footballs and make money,” said Coller. “Those things don’t matter because they’ll come to him either way. Winning is a different story and it could influence the way the Vikings go.”
Minnesota’s front office has to convince Jefferson they’ve got the right plan going forward.
Coller calls the handling of Jefferson a “complex thing,” that if handled correctly, Jefferson will be a Viking for a long time.
