Vikings Star Justin Jefferson Breaks Silence on Trade Rumors
The Minnesota Vikings are facing uncertainty with star wide receiver Justin Jefferson this offseason, since the team has major uncertainty at quarterback.
That has led to trade rumors involving Jefferson, and the Buffalo Bills look like a plausible one with quarterback Josh Allen and the recent hiring of Joe Brady as head coach. Brady was the offensive coordinator at LSU during the championship run in Jefferson’s final collegiate season.
If the Vikings did make a deal with the Bills for Jefferson, it wouldn’t be the first time a star wide receiver got sent from Minnesota to Buffalo. That happened with Stefon Diggs in 2020. For now, Jefferson put those rumors to rest when he talked with Kay Adams on her show Up & Adams.
“I’ve been hearing a couple (Bills) Mafia fans talking a little bit here and there, but I’m a Viking,” Jefferson told Adams on Wednesday.
That’s it. Jefferson didn’t say much more except, “I’m gonna say I keep it cold in Minnesota” instead of Buffalo in reference to Sleep Number, which he promoted during his chat with Adams.
Jefferson also made it clear that he doesn’t want to create drama for the future this offseason, as he discussed the quarterback situation. He’s more focused on working with the Vikings’ current plan and moving forward with it for now.
“Yeah, I’m going to let it happen, and I don’t need to show it either. I’m not going to be posting it on Instagram or social media,” Jefferson said. “That’s not my decision. I don’t care who’s throwing me that ball. That’s not my main priority, and I’ve said that multiple times. I don’t really care who’s going to be throwing that ball.”
“That person that’s throwing that ball needs to throw that ball, and lead us into that big dance at the end of the season. As of right now, J.J. is my quarterback. For me, it’s to get him to where we need to go, it starts off right now,” Jefferson added.
Jefferson had career lows in yards with 1,048 and touchdowns with two last season. However, it was McCarthy’s first-ever NFL season as a starter, and the Vikings went through backups Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer during the season amid injuries. Jefferson admitted uncertainty when asked how he even eclipsed 1,000 yards for a sixth straight season.
“Honestly, I don’t know,” Jefferson said. “I really don’t. There were some games I only had one or two catches. Obviously, it was a plan to get me more catches, more yards, more TDS [touchdowns], but it just didn’t happen that way.”
That said, Jefferson expressed his confidence in what McCarthy did well and what he could become in 2026. McCarthy had 10 starts and threw for 1,632 yards and 11 touchdowns versus 12 interceptions in 2025.
“If you look at the film, you look at the things that he’s done. He’s done very good things,” Jefferson said. “Obviously, it wasn’t the most spectacular thing. Those are things that he understands and we all understand as a building that there are some things to work on.”
“But J.J. is a really good quarterback. He’s a really good guy personally to sit there and talk to and he’s a great leader, a great motivator,” Jefferson added.
Amid the quarterback speculation and Jefferson’s commitment to no drama, Jefferson also didn’t run with Adams’ mention of former LSU teammate Joe Burrow. The Cincinnati Bengals quarterback has been the subject of trade rumors this offseason.
“I mean, that’s always going to be my guy. I love Joe. I always love how he plays, how he anticipates the game, how he carries himself. Everything about Joe, I love Joe,” Jefferson said. “But that’s not my quarterback. As of now, it’s about getting J.J. right and getting him to where we need to go.”
