The Minnesota Vikings are still waiting on clarity for Justin Jefferson, and Wednesday’s update didn’t give them much to work with.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell said the star receiver is “feeling a little bit better,” but Jefferson was not on the practice field and the team is “not in any place right now” to talk seriously about his chances for Week 4 against the Miami Dolphins. For now, Jefferson remains “day-to-day.”
“Just some injury updates for you guys: Justin Jefferson, Chuck Demmings and Brett Thorson will not practice today. I do consider Justin to be day-to-day.
He’s feeling a little bit better as the week progresses, but not in any place right now to talk about what that means for the weekend. But you should see everybody else accounted for at practice.”
Jefferson’s ankle was diagnosed Monday as a mild sprain, which at least gave the Vikings some relief after he was removed in the first quarter in Tampa in Week 3 and did not return. O’Connell said after that game that the team chose caution, even though Jefferson came close to going back in a couple of times.
The first availability report of the week is due later Wednesday, and O’Connell said that outside of the already known injuries, everyone else was expected to practice. That includes Jefferson, along with P Brett Thorson and CB Chuck Demmings, both dealing with hamstring injuries, sitting out Wednesday’s work.
Jefferson’s absence has been a major storyline through the first three games. He has 13 catches for 179 yards and 2 touchdowns this season. Across six-plus NFL seasons and 97 games, the former LSU standout has 592 receptions for 8,659 yards and 44 touchdowns.
Even with that résumé, the recent quarterback carousel and uneven play under center have kept him from looking like the same force Vikings fans grew used to seeing. He remains a 4x Pro Bowler, a 2x First-Team All-Pro, and the AP Offensive Player of the Year from 2022.
That context matters now because the Vikings’ offense needs to get rolling if the team is going to hit its ceiling. And the pairing at the center of that push has barely had any time together.
Entering Week 4, Kyler Murray and Jefferson have shared fewer than 20 offensive snaps this season. Murray played just 11 snaps in Week 1, missed Week 2, and then Jefferson went down after seven snaps in Tampa.
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For Vikings fans, that naturally brings the trade back into focus. McCarthys college success came in a system that did not ask him to carry much of the passing load, and his time in Minnesota showed how difficult that transition could be when the offense asked for more. If the Giants are already shaping their offense around those concerns, it only sharpens the question of what the Vikings believed they had, and why they were willing to move on when they did. [Read more 🡒]