5 reasons why Justin Jefferson will instantly impact the Vikings in 2020

Jefferson knows how to get open

One of the biggest flaws of the Vikings offense at the moment is that Kirk Cousins doesn’t exactly have the creativity needed to extend plays.

While it’s something Minnesota fans have been begging for him to improve over the years, that hasn’t exactly happened. However, the best thing that the Vikings can do for him is to add players who are good at working off the script around him.

Jefferson’s time at LSU coincided with the rise of 2020 No. 1 overall pick Joe Burrow. While Burrow has a truckload more pocket presence than Cousins does, Jefferson was able to take advantage of it to get himself in a position to help. As Burrow extended the plays, Jefferson was usually a safety net and it led to 111 receptions last season.

Now Cousins isn’t going to suddenly turn into Patrick Mahomes in the pocket, but Minnesota does have ways of helping them to buy time.

31.4 percent of Cousins’ attempts last season came off of play-action and with many of those plays coming off designed bootlegs, that’s enough time for someone like Jefferson to eventually find his way open.

Last season, Adam Thielen was one of the biggest beneficiaries of the Vikings offense. But adding Jefferson could give Cousins another interesting toy downfield.