Justin Jefferson fantasy football profile, news and stats

SEASON	GP	FPTS	RANK	TARGET	RECPT	REYD	RETD	REAVE
2023	16	347	1st	174	116	1674	10	14.4
2022	17	369	1th	184	128	1,809	8	14.1
3yr Ave	17	298	4th	146	98	1508	8	15.39

Has fifth-year option picked up

Latest Headline: Published 2023-04-25

The Vikings exercised Jefferson's fifth-year option for 2024 on Tuesday, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports.

This was a no-brainer for Minnesota, but it would be a shock if the two sides don't have a long-term contract worked out well before the start of the 2024 campaign. This is likely just a placeholder keeping Jefferson tied to the Vikings for at least the next two seasons. Since being taken 22nd overall in the 2020 NFL Draft, Jefferson has 324 catches for 4,825 yards and 25 touchdowns and has yet to miss a game. Turning 24 in June, Jefferson is coming off Offensive Player of the Year honors last season.

Fantasy Points by Week 2022

39.4

10.8

4.4

31

30.3

16.7

15.8

25.5

35.3

6.3

29.3

18.6

33.3

30.3

31.3

2.5

7.8

Weekly Stats 2022

		Fantasy Points			Betting		Receiving Stats												Routes Run
WEEK	STADIUM	GAME	RANK	TARGET	SPREAD	O/U	TRGT	REC	YD	TD	AVG	AIR	YAC	DROP	10+	20+	50+	SHARE	SLOT	TIGHT	WIDE
1 GB	Dome 72°	39.4	1st	4.38	-2.0	47.5	11	9	184	2	20.4	11	9	0%	6	5	1	36%	25%	0%	72%
2 @PHI	Outdoor 79°	10.8	45th	1.80	3.0	49.5	12	6	48	0	8.0	5	3	0%	2	0	0	27%	57%	0%	42%
3 DET	Dome 64°	4.4	76th	1.47	-6.5	52.5	6	3	14	0	4.7	2	2	0%	0	0	0	16%	21%	0%	78%
4 @NO	Outdoor 64°	31.0	1st	2.82	-4.0	44.5	13	10	147	0	14.7	9	6	9%	6	2	0	37%	19%	0%	79%
5 CHI	Dome 57°	30.3	2nd	2.53	-8.5	43.5	13	12	154	0	12.8	8	5	0%	8	1	0	33%	23%	0%	74%
6 @MIA	Outdoor 85°	16.7	17th	2.78	-3.5	45.5	8	6	107	0	17.8	6	12	0%	4	3	0	29%	15%	0%	81%
8 ARZ	Dome 53°	15.8	20th	2.63	-4.0	47.5	8	6	98	0	16.3	9	7	0%	3	2	0	26%	24%	0%	76%
9 @WAS	Outdoor 71°	25.5	4th	3.19	-3.0	43.5	13	7	115	1	16.4	12	4	13%	4	1	0	33%	27%	0%	73%
10 @BUF	Outdoor 38°	35.3	2nd	3.53	6.5	46.5	16	10	193	1	19.3	16	3	9%	8	4	0	32%	12%	0%	87%
11 DAL	Dome 29°	6.3	54th	2.10	2.5	47.5	5	3	33	0	11.0	9	2	0%	2	0	0	18%	22%	0%	76%
12 NE	Dome 36°	29.3	1st	3.26	-2.5	42.5	11	9	139	1	15.4	11	4	0%	4	3	0	30%	17%	0%	82%
13 NYJ	Dome 37°	18.6	15th	2.07	-3.0	45.5	11	7	45	1	6.4	6	0	22%	2	0	0	33%	20%	0%	77%
14 @DET	Dome 40°	33.3	2nd	3.03	2.5	52.5	15	11	223	0	20.3	15	5	0%	10	4	0	38%	28%	0%	70%
15 IND	Dome 19°	30.3	3rd	2.53	-3.5	47.5	16	12	123	1	10.3	6	4	0%	5	1	0	30%	30%	0%	68%
16 NYG	Dome 2°	31.3	2nd	2.61	-4.5	47.5	16	12	133	1	11.1	7	4	0%	8	1	0	34%	13%	0%	88%
17 @GB	Outdoor 39°	2.5	85th	2.50	3.5	47.5	5	1	15	0	15.0	14	1	0%	1	0	0	14%	30%	0%	70%
18 @CHI	Outdoor 32°	7.8	50th	1.95	-6.5	44.5	5	4	38	0	9.5	6	4	0%	1	1	0	16%	33%	0%	67%

Performance Splits: 2020 to 2022

				Fantasy Points			Receiving Averages
LOCATION	STADIUM	GP	GS	GM	TOUCH	RANK	TRGT	REC	YD	TD	AVE	AIR	YAC	DROP	10+	20+	50+
Home	Dome	25	24	0.9	2.27	23rd	9.6	6.9	102	0.8	14.8	10.1	4.7	4%	4.0	1.7	0.1
Away	Outdoor	18	18	0.9	1.59	78th	9.3	5.6	80	0.2	14.2	9.3	5.0	4%	3.3	1.2	0.1
Away	Dome	4	4	6.6	2.06	39th	12.8	9.3	156	0.3	16.8	11.7	5.3	0%	7.3	2.0	0.0
Away	Retractable Dome	3	2	4.5	2.23	54th	6.0	4.3	71	0.3	16.3	12.8	3.5	13%	3.3	1.7	0.0

Career Stats by Season: 2020 to 2022

					Fantasy Points		Receiving Stats												Routes Run
SEASON	AGE	TEAM	GP	GS	TOTAL	RANK	TRGT	REC	YD	TD	AVG	AIR	YAC	DROP	10+	20+	50+	SHARE	SLOT	TIGHT	WIDE
2020	21	MIN	16	14	274	12th	125	88	1,400	7	15.9	11	5	2%	56	23	2	26%	24%	0%	76%
2021	22	MIN	17	17	330	4th	167	108	1,616	10	15.0	11	4	6%	67	27	2	29%	25%	0%	75%
2022	23	MIN	17	17	369	1st	184	128	1,809	8	14.1	9	5	4%	74	28	1	29%	24%	0%	75%

Yards ball travels in the "Air" per completion. "YAC" is average yards gained after catch. "Drop"ped pass rate. "Share" of team passing targets.

Takes home OPOY

Latest Headline: Published 2023-02-09

Jefferson was named the 2022 NFL Offensive Player of the Year on Thursday, Field Yates of ESPN reports.

Jefferson has taken a step forward in production in each of his three seasons in the NFL, and he finished 2022 with 128 receptions for 1,809 yards and eight touchdowns across 17 games. He consistently put up big receiving lines to reach those marks, surpassing 100 receiving yards in 10 games and 150 yards on four occasions. The Vikings will almost certainly pick up Jefferson's fifth-year option on his rookie deal that guarantees he will remain with the team through 2024, though it's also possible that he'll reach a long-term deal with Minnesota this offseason.

Big plays limited in loss

Latest Headline: Published 2023-01-15

Jefferson corralled seven of nine targets for 47 yards in Sunday's 31-24 playoff loss to the Giants.

Jefferson finished second in targets and receptions behind T.J. Hockenson (10-129-0), but he failed to record a reception greater than nine yards. While this wasn't a poor fantasy line, there were certainly higher expectations for the league's leading receiver in 2022. The 23-year-old finished the regular season with a gaudy receiving line of 128-1,809-8 across 17 games. Jefferson will enter the final year of his rookie contract looking to continue the steady improvement he has shown in each of his first three seasons in the NFL.

Rested during second half

Latest Headline: Published 2023-01-08

Jefferson caught four of five targets for 38 yards in Sunday's 29-13 win over the Bears.

Jefferson's production came exclusively during the first half, as Minnesota opted to rest its offensive starters following halftime. The decision restricted Jefferson to his second straight game with under 40 receiving yards, a steep decline from his league-leading production. With the Vikings now slated to host a playoff game, however, Jefferson will strive to be back at his best the next time he takes the field.

May not play full game

Latest Headline: Published 2023-01-06

Head coach Kevin O'Connell intimated Friday that Jefferson and other key starters on offense and defense may not play the entirety of the Vikings' Week 18 game in Chicago, Joe Nelson of SI.com reports. "We've got a pretty clear cut plan with how we want to go about the whole game, but we're going to go in with the expectation of our guys going and try to get off to a good start and play good football," O'Connell said.

Minnesota is assured no worse than the No. 3 seed in the NFC playoffs regardless of how this weekend's games transpire, but since the Vikings will need a win over the Bears plus a Cardinals win over the heavily-favored 49ers to climb to the No. 2 seed, O'Connell may not have much incentive to expose key players to an injury heading into the wild-card round. While Jefferson and all of the Vikings' other starting skill-position players look poised to play at least one series, the uncertainty of whether they'll play much beyond that makes it tough to reliably project any in Week 18 season-long or DFS lineups.

Just one catch Sunday

Latest Headline: Published 2023-01-01

Jefferson caught one of five targets for 15 yards in Sunday's 41-17 loss to the Packers.

It was a brutal showing for Jefferson, one that likely cost him a chance to break Calvin Johnson's NFL record for receiving yards in a season, but the whole Vikings offense struggled after losing two offensive linemen to injuries early in the game. The team might prioritize the health of its stars in a relatively meaningless regular-season finale, so Jefferson may not see much of the field in Week 18 against the Bears.

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