The Minnesota Vikings will head into September with plenty of offensive questions and no shortage of opinions about the answers. Whoever wins the quarterback job must steady an underwhelming group, while Kevin O’Connell and his staff have a lot to prove after the passing game lost its bite.
Justin Jefferson is the closest thing this offense has to an easy button. Minnesota can debate quarterback development, protection, and run-pass balance all summer, but September looks much less intimidating when No. 18 is getting fed.
Jefferson drew only 20 targets over last season’s first three games. While it was an oddly modest total for the roster’s best player, it was not unexpected given the lack of rhythm at the quarterback spot. Doubling that workload would pressure defenses and give the offense a reliable answer while its quarterback situation settles.
Justin Jefferson can quiet Minnesota Vikings questions in a hurry
“The easiest way to start getting some people to not ask questions is by getting 18 the football,” Vikings fan Jacob said on the "Purple Daily" podcast earlier this week. He predicted 450 yards and two touchdowns through three weeks, meaning Jefferson would average 150 yards while everyone else remembers where to line up.
A buck 50 per week is lofty, even for Jefferson, but it would sure silence critics. "Purple Daily" host Phil Mackey expects the opportunity. “He will be very heavily targeted in September,” Mackey said. “We’re going to double it to 40. At least 40 targets in the first three games of the season.”
40 targets would reshape the early game plans and could nudge O'Connell away from his preferred run percentage. If presumed favorite Kyler Murray wins the job, O'Connell and his quarterback must create chances without asking Jefferson to beat double coverage on every third down. Motion, stacks, slot snaps, and quick throws can manufacture touches before the rush arrives.
Jefferson has 579 catches for 8,480 yards and 42 touchdowns across six NFL seasons. His career highs remain the 128 catches, 184 targets and 1,809 yards he posted in 2022, while his 10-touchdown seasons in 2021 and 2024 share his personal best.
Minnesota is four seasons removed from that historic campaign, and last year’s 84 catches, 1,048 yards and two scores felt strangely ordinary.
Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson keep Minnesota from becoming a literal one-man show. A 40-target opening stretch would give Jefferson more than 13 looks per game after he averaged fewer than seven across last year’s first three.
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