Jefferson and Addison both questionable for Week 5

The Vikings’ No. 1 wide receiver is on track to play in Week 5 against the Saints, but it would be really nice to see him practice in full tomorrow. Ideally, the full participation upgrade would have come today. Regardless, Jefferson is the type of veteran who does not need to practice fully in order to play. He is a WR1 if active.

According to ESPN’s Kevin Seifert, Jefferson said, “the plan is definitely to play Sunday, but who knows?” Overall, we take this as a net positive, but the Vikings’ No. 1 wide receiver is still clearly rehabbing his ankle injury. For now, we tentatively expect him to be active this week.

This is a good sign. Jefferson is tentatively on track to play in Week 5 against the Saints. Ideally, he will upgrade to full participation tomorrow, though. O’Connell told reporters last week that his No. 1 wide receiver had made “great progress” in his rehab program. That indeed appears to be the case. He will be a WR1 if active.

Jefferson made “great progress” this week, according to O’Connell, but it is still too early to say whether the Vikings’ star wide receiver will be good to go. Jefferson did not practice at all in Week 4. Hopefully, he is feeling well enough to resume practicing by Wednesday. Stay tuned.

Jefferson injured his ankle in Week 3 and reportedly “got close” to returning to the game. Holding him out appears to have been the right call. He did not practice at all this week. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported yesterday that Jefferson is “hopeful” to play in Week 5 against the Saints. Jefferson’s Week 4 absence elevates Jordan Addison to the top receiving role.

Jefferson suffered an ankle injury in Week 3’s win over the Buccaneers. He didn’t practice this week and has already been ruled out for Week 4 against the Dolphins. According to Fowler, the Vikings are “hopeful” Jefferson could return next week against the Saints and don’t believe the injury will be a long-term issue. In the meantime, Jordan Addison will serve as the WR1 this week against Miami.

He didn’t practice at any point this week despite optimistic words from Kevin O’Connell and company. O’Connell said he just “couldn’t get there” this week and he will receive treatment over the weekend. The Vikings coach also noted next week — Jefferson’s return to New Orleans after a storied college career at LSU — is a “big one for him next week.” If they were going to rest him against one team, the lowly Dolphins make sense. Jordan Addison will get a bump and Jauan Jennings could be a FLEX option against Miami.

Jefferson has not practiced this week and will likely be ruled out for Week 4’s game in the near future. While his injury is not believed to be serious, the Vikings would likely prefer not to risk further injury in a home game against the Dolphins that they can win without him. We’ll check back in with an update once head coach Kevin O’Connell has a chance to speak with media, but there’s a good chance Jordan Addison and Jauan Jennings will serve as the Vikings’ top two receivers this week.

The talk around Jefferson this week has been mostly optimistic, but two missed practices in a row are two missed practices in a row. Friday’s status will be hugely important for his odds of getting on the questionable line. If there’s any real doubt about how he’ll play, we’d imagine the Vikings would sit him against the lowly Dolphins.

Jefferson seemingly has a chance to face the Dolphins in Week 4, but his participation level at Thursday and Friday’s practices should give us a better sense of his availability. If active against the Dolphins, Jefferson would be startable as a WR1 despite the injury. He caught 2-of-2 targets for 32 yards on seven snaps last week before exiting.