Justin Jefferson Wants to Keep Improving
An idea we’ve come back to at various points is that Justin Jefferson still has room to grow.
To be clear, I can’t find much fault in his opening two seasons. The former LSU receiver has been remarkable since coming into the NFL. He has been a second-team All Pro in both years, and one could reasonably argue that he ought to have been on the first team. Clearing 100 catches and 1600 yards as a sophomore is impressive stuff, especially when we consider the context of an underperforming team and a player making the NFL transition while Covid is creating some challenges.
It’s this recent history that helped make Jefferson’s press conference notable. He made it clear that he believes he’s still got a lot of room to improve:
When asked about a third-year breakout, Jefferson didn’t know how to precisely identify what that would mean for him. Not too long afterwards, he commented on his desire to be the best WR in the NFL: “Well I’m not labelled at the best receiver at this point, so that’s my motivation.” He goes on indicate that he’s looking to be a great teammate, as well.
“I can work on a lot of things,” Jefferson explained, “I can work on my whole game. There’s always room for improvement, always things that I need to touch up on. I’m not the best to ever play the game, so there’s always stuff that I need to touch up on. Some weaknesses I feel that I still have.” Shortly thereafter, Jefferson proclaimed that “my best version of myself hasn’t come yet.” That’s a scary reality for the rest of the NFL.
It was also encouraging to hear him speak about his desire to see the Vikings win more. The goal, according to Jefferson, is to marry some individual strong play with team success. Jefferson noted that his locker is right next to Kirk Cousins’ and that their connection keeps growing.
Minnesota needs Justin Jefferson to be elite in 2022. He’s already their best player, so they’ll be leaning on him to give the team an edge in each game they play. If he can keep ascending, Minnesota’s offense will be very hard to slow down.
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