Vikings Not in Top 5 of WR Corps Rankings
One might think that any NFL team possessing Justin Jefferson on a depth chart would command placement inside the Top 5 for wide receiver rankings.
But nope, at least not per Pro Football Focus.
Vikings Not in Top 5 of WR Corps Rankings
PFF ranked WR corps leaguewide heading into 2023 this week, and the Vikings curiously fell out of the Top 5 — at No. 7 while looking up at six other clubs.
Jefferson won the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year award in 2022 and spent most of his third season chasing two baroque feats — the league’s first 2,000-yard receiving season and Calvin Johnson’s single-season receiving yards record. Jefferson achieved neither but still won OPOY.
Now, though, he’ll hope to replicate his 2022 season without Adam Thielen, who left in free agency for the Carolina Panthers after the Vikings said goodbye via release in March. After parting ways with Thielen, Minnesota selected Jordan Addison from USC in Round 1 of April’s draft, so he should, in theory, free Jefferson up for even more wizardry this September.
On the PFF rankings, Trevor Sikkema determined these were team with the Top 10 WR corps for 2023:
- Cincinnati Bengals
- Philadelphia Eagles
- Miami Dolphins
- San Francisco 49ers
- Seattle Seahawks
- Dallas Cowboys
- Minnesota Vikings
- Las Vegas Raiders
- Buffalo Bills
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Sikkema explained, “Thank Justin Jefferson for the Vikings ranking in the top 10. Outside of Jefferson, Minnesota has T.J. Hockenson at tight end, a viable option for them. But then it’s K.J. Osborn, Jalen Reagor and rookie Jordan Addison.”
“Still, Jefferson carries due to his three straight elite receiving grades. His 92.5 receiving grade over all three campaigns ranks third to only Davante Adams (94.2) and Cooper Kupp (92.6),” Sikkema added.
Year Four wide receiver K.J. Osborn shouldn’t be discounted, either. In fact, Osborn seemed in line for WR2 duties for several weeks between Thielen’s release and Addison’s addition to the roster. Addison will now hope to nudge Osborn from WR2 job at training camp and in the preseason, but it wouldn’t be strange for Addison to start the season as WR3.
The Vikings should be set for the long-term at the WR position once general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and the aforementioned Jefferson lock in a contract extension. The transaction is expected to finalize this summer and should tip the scales at $30 to $35 million per season for the phenom playmaker.
Minnesota’s WR corps ranked 15th per PFF heading into the 2022 season.
Former Vikings TE Done for the Year
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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