Should Justin Jefferson Be the New Tom Brady?
If you’ve watched any NFL action over the past handful of years, you’ve come to know that certain quarterbacks are given plenty of attention when it comes to generating penalties. Long-time stars like Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers are often gifted roughing the passer flags for being breathed on. With Justin Jefferson emerging as a similar talent in the wide receiver realm, when will he get this same treatment?
Amid the Minnesota Vikings comeback against the Indianapolis Colts, cornerback Stephon Gilmore found an opportunity to lay out the talented wide receiver. Having been cooked to the tune of 123 yards when the dust settled, Gilmore likely saw this as an opportunity to get even. While he did go into Jefferson with his shoulder, he also clearly got his helmet and drew a flag.
Asked about the play after the game, head coach Kevin O’Connell said, “I think it was about the fifth or sixth week in a row he took a type of hit that drew a flag. Clearly, there’s an emphasis (from) the teams we’re playing that, some of those hits, they don’t just seem to be by accident at times.”
It’s hard to argue against the first-year head coach. As teams consistently get torched by Jefferson, whether they employ safety help or not, they’ve begun looking for other ways to slow him down. Although the NFL has a handful of shutdown corners that follow wide receivers, few teams have what Darrelle Revis was in his heyday. On top of that, the Vikings offense has enough dynamic playmakers to spread the ball around that there is rarely an opportunity to guess where each pass is going.
Should Justin Jefferson Be the New Tom Brady?
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Jefferson was immediately taken to the blue medical tent after the Gilmore hit. He did not appear to suffer any concussion symptoms and was allowed to return for Minnesota. It was not the first time Jefferson was taken off the field against the Colts, and as O’Connell noted, this has also become a weekly trend.
As the Minnesota Vikings look towards a playoff run, many of their hopes will rely heavily upon the production of Jefferson and the offense. He’s within sniffing distance of the single-season NFL receiving yards record, which would certainly boost his resume thus far. With the Vikings having the playoffs locked up, they could look to keep him out of danger and dial back these types of hits he’s taking. For the former LSU product, I’d bet against him wanting to sit or come close to records well within his reach.
How Jefferson fares against a lackluster New York Giants defense, this weekend could go a long way toward determining how the rest of his regular season plays out. Needing to average roughly 125 yards over the final three games to hit 2,000, a big outburst this weekend could make playing in the final two contests more workable. The Vikings defensive woes are far from over, and against a Giants team that can score in the red zone, they’ll need to take another step forward.
The hope for both O’Connell and Jefferson would be that referees could enhance protection of a true NFL superstar. He isn’t as involved in every play like Brady or Rodgers, but he’s undoubtedly as dynamic as they are on the field, and the league is better off with him available. Allowing opposing defenses to take shots at him isn’t a good look, and that can’t be an encouraged strategy.
Ted Schwerzler is a blogger from the Twin Cities that is focused on all things Minnesota Twins and Minnesota Vikings. He’s active on Twitter and writes weekly for Twins Daily. As a former college athlete and avid sports fan, covering our pro teams with a passion has always seemed like such a natural outlet.
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