Justin Jefferson Shoots Down Popular Fan Theory
Thanks to Netflix’s Receiver docuseries, more is known about Justin Jefferson and his injury last season.
Justin Jefferson Shoots Down Popular Fan Theory
And as it turns out, popular fan theories nine months ago were flatly false.
Jefferson injured his hamstring in a Week 5 contest at home versus the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. At the time, many fans suggested Justin should or would “shut it down” for the season as the young playmaker hadn’t signed a long-term contract.
Of course, Jefferson would sign a record-setting deal with the Vikings in June, but his future was less clear in October and November.
But in the Receiver series, Jefferson explained that sitting out, milking the injury, or allowing his team to tank was absolutely unthinkable and against his personal fiber. “No one, no one, no one in this game can ever tell me to not play or to tank the season or to do any of that other stuff because I’m not that type of person. I want to play. I love the game of football. I want to be the best,” Jefferson said during the 2023 season.
Ironically, Minnesota started winning games the moment Jefferson hit injured reserve. It fired up a 5-0 record amid his absence and promptly lost two when he returned. Nobody really understood it.
Jefferson added, “In order for that to happen, I’ve got to be out there on that field … There’s no prolonging the injury, there’s no, ‘Oh he’s sitting out because of the contract.’ It’s not any of that. At all.”
A handful of Vikings fans and followers of the NFL, on the whole, totally adore floating theories like, “Well, they should just tank the season then.” However, no player worth his salt is in the business of intentionally losing, especially when players have a shelf life with a specific team.
Or, for example, when Minnesota started the season with a 1-4 record, a famous rallying cry endorsed a Danielle Hunter trade so the team could “get something for him” while it still could. General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah conducted no such trade, and his team battled for a playoff spot until the bitter end. General managers, like players, aren’t habitually enthralled by losing on purpose despite fans’ zany theories that tanking results in Super Bowls. It doesn’t. The Cleveland Browns and New York Jets can tell you all about it.
And, unsurprisingly, tanking or “sitting out” because of a contract was never remotely on Jefferson’s radar. From the man’s lips.
Vikings Have a “Distressed Asset”
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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