The Vikings’ quarterback troubles have impacted wide receiver Justin Jefferson as much as anyone this season and things hit a new low against the Seahawks last Sunday.
Jefferson had two catches for four yards in rookie quarterback Max Brosmer’s debut and said on Thursday that “the frustration and the emotions definitely were high after the game.” Jefferson has fared better in J.J. McCarthy’s six starts, but his production hasn’t been up to previous levels and the team is on track to miss the playoffs for the fourth time in Jefferson’s six NFL seasons.
Jefferson has been supportive of McCarthy as the 2024 first-round pick tries to find his way and he dismissed the idea that this has been a wasted season on Thursday, but he did admit to how hard it has been to be part of a disappointing season.
“No, I wouldn’t say wasted,” Jefferson said, via Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com. “Obviously it’s a difficult season. It’s probably one of the most difficult seasons just off of the circumstances, having a young quarterback, having a different team, having young players on the team. So it’s just one of those years. Not every year is going to be a top-tier year for me. It’s really a part of the game, so it’s just all on me to expect a lot from these guys and to improve on anything that we need to improve on as an offense.”
McCarthy is set to return to the lineup against the Commanders this weekend and building some positive momentum into the offseason would be a best-case scenario for Jefferson and the Vikings at this point in the year. If they can’t, they’ll have some big decisions to make in order to avoid the chance that Jefferson changes his mind about the team wasting prime years.
