Vikings WR Takes the Old QB’s Jersey Number
Josh Frey
|
For the past six seasons, the No. 8 jersey for the Minnesota Vikings has been worn by QB Kirk Cousins.
Well, that obviously is set to change in 2024 after Cousins departed Minnesota to sign with the Atlanta Falcons back in March. The QB headed out the door, and thus, a Vikings WR will become the next player to wear a purple No. 8 in Minnesota.
Vikings WR Takes the Old QB’s Jersey Number
That Vikings wide receiver is Trishton Jackson, who donned No. 9 for Minnesota during the 2023 season. However, with the No. 10 overall pick J.J. McCarthy coming in, Jackson gave up that No. 9 for the rookie quarterback. Now, he takes the old QB’s number.
Minnesota announced the jersey numbers for all their newcomers as well as changes from their retained players for the 2024 season on Tuesday afternoon. Jackson was amongst those notable changes.
Jackson has spent each of the past three seasons with the Vikings, but he didn’t make his NFL debut until the 2023 season. With Adam Thielen leaving Minnesota during the 2023 offseason and then injuries to both Justin Jefferson and K.J. Osborn during the year, the Vikings needed an unexpected presence to take on some snaps at the wide receiver position this past year.
Jackson was one of the players to help fill in as he played in seven games, appearing in 80 snaps with the offense as well as 14 with the special teams. In total, he caught a pair of passes for nine yards. One of those receptions was a pivotal two-point conversion during Minnesota’s comeback victory against the Atlanta Falcons.
With Osborn leaving the roster this spring to join the New England Patriots, the WR3 role in Minnesota is somewhat up for grabs at this point in time. The Vikings have watched a number of free agent possibilities come and go without much effort to replace Osborn.
As a result, it appears that Minnesota’s leadership has faith in the depth pieces to pick up any slack left behind by Osborn even though T.J. Hockenson likely is set to miss at least a chunk of the 2024 campaign because of his torn ACL.
We’ll see if this results in an increased role for Jackson. If it does, he’ll be donning a new jersey number for his new responsibilities in the offense.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Reference.
Brian Flores Drops an Interesting Comparison for New Vikings Pass Rusher
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.