With Minnesota Vikings starters not playing in the second preseason game against the New England Patriots, Justin Jefferson would not have suited up even if he were healthy and had been practicing. But the star wide receiver has not practiced in a little over three weeks, as he deals with what was deemed a mild left hamstring strain.
The nature of soft tissue injuries in general, and Jefferson's history (he missed seven games in 2023 with a right hamstring strain), makes caution the obvious choice. While it would be nice if he were on the practice field building chemistry with J.J. McCarthy, ensuring Jefferson is available for Week 1 is all that matters, regardless of any other circumstances or concerns with the Vikings' wide receiver depth chart.
Having Jefferson work against the Patriots' cornerbacks in joint practices last week would have too easily invited the risk of his injury being aggravated, both in terms of the physicality an opponent would bring and Jefferson's competitiveness. So, right away, to practice, it was going to be extended a bit.
Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell offers (intentionally?) vague update on Justin Jefferson
After the game against the Patriots, Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell was asked if he expected Jefferson to return to practice this coming week. O'Connell is not usually one to engage in "coach-speak", but he stretched into that territory to start his response.
"He's definitely going to hopefully start doing more and more. I can't say what that's going to look like from a practice standpoint yet", O'Connell said.
O'Connell went on to laud what Jefferson has been doing behind the scenes, and how he has been easy to see out on the practice field despite not participating in any drills. Based on his presence on the practice field and what he's been seen doing at times, it appears his hamstring is fine.
Ya I think Justin Jefferson’s hammy is ok 😂 pic.twitter.com/YQqUJY9xfg
— Vikings Central (@VikesCentral) August 12, 2025
O'Connell then praised Jefferson for the work he's doing to "get back", with the bottom-line endpoint in mind.
"I think he's also making himself stronger", O'Connell said. "And ready to sustain, what very few players do in this league, which is almost essentially play every single snap, for the better part of the whole season."
"I think he's in a good spot. Hope to get him back getting reps with the first unit, as soon as possible, and that's kinda the plan right now."
Jefferson indeed rarely leaves the field, with more than 1,000 offensive snaps over all 17 games in three of the last four seasons. So while concern naturally rises the longer he's unable to practice, O'Connell's fairly vague words on Saturday are not a red flag about Jefferson's availability for Sept. 8 against the Chicago Bears.
If Jefferson has not returned to practice at a noticeable level and O'Connell is talking about him in a similar fashion after the third preseason game, then the concern dial will rightfully go up to an '11'.