The Minnesota Vikings made the smart call with Justin Jefferson against the Dolphins, and now they may be close to getting him back.
Keeping Jefferson on the sideline in Week 5 was less about chasing one win and more about protecting one of the league’s premier weapons for the stretch ahead. Minnesota already expected to handle Miami, so the bigger picture mattered more than forcing Jefferson back too soon.
That becomes even more important with tougher tests on deck, starting with a road trip to face the New Orleans Saints in Week 5. The Saints come in on a short week after playing the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football, but they still look like a real threat to hand Minnesota its first loss.
After Sunday’s game, Kevin O’Connell sounded encouraged about Jefferson’s status for the near future. The Vikings head coach said the wideout made progress last week and that his availability would depend on how he responds once limited work begins.
“I know he made great progress last week. We’re going to allow that to be a medical thing from the standpoint of if he’s able to start getting some limited work in,” O’Connell said to reporters about Jefferson, H/T Heavy. “We’ll see how he does throughout the week.
“I don’t have any real projection on if we’ll have him or not. I think it’s important to go into the week open minded.
He’s so impactful and so important to us. But at the same time, we want to get him back to 100%.”
Jefferson, who is arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL, has been excellent again this season. The injury has interrupted that run, but when healthy, he’s been playing at a high level.
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