Tag: Justin Jefferson

Justin Jefferson misses out on Rookie of the Year award

Instead, it went to Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert.

The NFL had its annual award ceremony last night.

While it was somewhat expected, Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert won the league’s Offensive Rookie of the Year award.

That’s a little disappointing for Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson, who finished with 88 catches for 1,400 yards and seven touchdowns.

Regardless, you can’t take away from the season that Jefferson had. Jefferson looks like the next big thing at the wide receiver position in the NFL, which is great news for the Vikings.

Watch: Every Chargers QB Justin Herbert touchdown from rookie season

Relive every touchdown from Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert’s sensational rookie season.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert played his way into being named the NFL’s top offensive rookie from the 2020 season.

Herbert’s outstanding campaign was a bit unexpected. It all began after being called upon to start just five minutes before the Week 2 matchup against the Chiefs due to QB Tyrod Taylor’s medical emergency.

Herbert was able to put together quite the performance with 302 passing yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions.

Little did we know the game was only just a glimpse of greatness. Herbert went on to throw for over 4,300 yards and totaled 36 touchdowns, the most by any rookie in NFL history.

To relive the former Oregon product’s sensational season, here is every one of Herbert’s touchdowns from the 2020 season:

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Chargers QB Justin Herbert named AP Offensive Rookie of the Year

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert beat out Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson for the prestigious award.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert capped off a fascinating debut campaign by nabbing the 2020 Associated Press NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award at Saturday’s NFL Honors ceremony.

Even though Los Angeles’ season resulted in a 7-9 record, the No. 6 pick in the 2020 NFL draft gave a reason to optimistic for the future, setting numerous records during his first professional season.

Herbert set NFL single-season records for the most passing touchdowns by a rookie quarterback (31) and most total touchdowns by a rookie quarterback (36). He posted the most completions (396) and second-most passing yards (4,336) by a rookie quarterback in NFL history

In addition, Herbert posted eight games with at least 300 passing yards, surpassing Andrew Luck (six games in 2012) for the most 300-yard passing games by a rookie quarterback in league history.

This all came after Herbert was asked to come in to start Week 2 against the Chiefs after a medical emergency five minutes to QB Tyrod Taylor before the game started. It was then when a star was born.

Randy Moss is a big fan of Justin Jefferson

Jefferson broke many of Moss’ rookie records with the Vikings.

Justin Jefferson had the best rookie season for any Vikings wide receiver since Randy Moss back in 1998.

Moss enjoyed every bit of watching Jefferson in 2020, even if the former LSU star was breaking his records.

“He’s the future of the Minnesota Vikings,” Moss said in a conference call via Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press. “No disrespect to Adam Thielen. They go hand in hand, and he’s a great teacher for this young man. As long as (Jefferson) is out there learning, and wanting to get better, it’s a great situation to be in.”

The Jefferson pick was an absolute home run and while losing Stefon Diggs wasn’t ideal, Jefferson eased the pain and the Vikings’ wide receiver position looks bright.

Thielen had a career-high 14 touchdowns last season, but he is on the wrong side of 30 years old. Even so, the two make up one of the best one-two punches in the NFL.

Vikings rookie class ranked as the seventh-most productive in 2020

The Minnesota Vikings rookie class, which consists of players like Justin Jefferson and Cameron Dantzler, definitely has some potential.

Now that all but two of the teams in the NFL are done playing this year, fans and analysts around the league can take a look at how each rookie class made an impact.

For the Vikings, the team got quite a bit of production out of their rookies. Pro Football Focus tabbed this year’s Vikings class as the seventh-most productive in 2020. Here’s what the outlet said:

“Minnesota had more draft picks in the 2020 NFL draft than any other franchise, with a whopping 15. Only five of those 15 played significant time, but there were two from that handful that really surpassed expectations: wide receiver Justin Jefferson (No. 22 overall) and cornerback Cameron Dantzler (No. 89 overall).”

Dantzler and Jefferson both have high ceilings. Factor in the potential for Ezra Cleveland and D.J. Wonnum and this Vikings team could make great strides in 2021. However, the Vikings desperately need yet another NFL draft to go their way this year. If that happens, Minnesota could be looking at improvement.

LSU product is the NFL’s most efficient wide receiver

Justin Jefferson is already making noise in the NFL after just one year.

The LSU passing game was on fire between quarterback Joe Burrow, Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase in a historical 2019 season that was capped off with a national championship victory.

LSU sent a host of players on to the 2020 NFL Draft after that, and they’re producing quite well at the next level.

So well, in fact, that former Tigers wide receiver Justin Jefferson (now with the Minnesota Vikings) is the NFL’s most efficient player at the position, according to a release from Pro Football Focus.

Jefferson led the way with an average of 11.6 yards per catch based on stats back through 2019, while Tennessee Titans wide receiver AJ Brown (11.3 yards), Kansas City Chiefs wideout Mecole Hardman (10.7 yards) and Tampa Bay Buccaneers pass-catcher Chris Godwin (10.7 yards) brought up the back of the list.

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The future looks bright for Jefferson within Minnesota’s offensive scheme.

The ex-Bayou Bengal totaled 88 receptions for 1,400 yards and seven touchdowns, averaging 15.9 yards per catch as he put together an immaculate rookie season.

Jefferson was quite the force at LSU, catching a total of 165 passes for 2,415 yards and 24 touchdowns.

His breakout season came in 2020, when he reeled in 111 receptions for 1,540 yards and 18 touchdowns.

With Jefferson taking the field with the offense, Minnesota has a lot to be excited about for years to come.

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Chargers QB Justin Herbert named Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert earned the honors nine times during the 2020 season.

Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert has been named the Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year, becoming the team’s first player to win it since wide receiver Keenan Allen in 2013.

After QB Tyrod Taylor was ruled out prior to the Week 2 matchup against the Chiefs with a punctured lung, Herbert gave no reason to resort back to him upon returning.

Herbert threw for 4336 yards and 31 touchdowns against 10 interceptions. He also recorded 5 touchdowns rushing. Along the way, he broke multiple records.

Herbert won the Pepsi Zero Sugar Rookie of the Week award nine times in 2020, tying Ben Roethlisberger for the most since 2004.

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Herbert beat out Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson. The other finalists were Jaguars running back James Robinson, Colts running back Jonathan Taylor and Buccaneers offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs.

Herbert is the current favorite to win Offensive Rookie of the Year, which is recognized by the league.

See where the Vikings rookies landed in ESPN’s 2020 redraft

See where members of the Minnesota Vikings rookie class, like Justin Jefferson and Cameron Dantzler, were taken in ESPN’s 2020 redraft.

The Vikings had a record-breaking 15 picks in last year’s NFL draft. While some Minnesota players ended up struggling to adjust to the league in their first year, others thrived and could take on bigger roles in 2021.

ESPN took notice of the players the Vikings hit on. The outlet did a redraft of 2020 and Minnesota had four players featured in the first two rounds, despite having three picks through that time.

A redraft can be helpful to look at. It assesses the quality of the original pick. Jefferson’s draft stock going up in hindsight and Minnesota landing a number of players in ESPN’s two-round redraft bodes well for the team’s ability to evaluate talent.

Here is where the players went in the redraft:

PFF names Vikings WR Justin Jefferson its Rookie of the Year

At least Pro Football Focus knows who the Rookie of the Year is: Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson.

Vikings wide receive Justin Jefferson was so good in 2020, he wasn’t just considered one of the better rookies, but one of the better wideouts in the NFL this season.

Pro Football Focus has rewarded him for his stellar season. PFF named him a second-team All-Pro. The outlet also pretty consistently gave him high grades for his individual performances. He ended up with a PFF grade of 90.4 overall.

Now, Jefferson has yet another honor given to him by PFF. He has been named the outlet’s Rookie of the Year. Here’s what it said about the Vikings wide receiver:

“When you break a franchise record that was once held by Hall of Fame wide receiver Randy Moss, you’re doing something pretty well. When you do it as a rookie and then break the overall NFL record in the same year, you’re deserving of Rookie of the Year honors.

I know that Justin Herbert did some special things this season, and at times Chase Young looked phenomenal, but Jefferson was on another level compared to other rookies and his season held up compared to the best receivers in the league regardless of experience.”

It remains to be seen whether Jefferson beats out players like Herbert and Young for other rookie-related accolades. But either way, the Vikings found a wide receiver for the long term and the short term. Not bad for a team that needed to replace Stefon Diggs.

Vikings 2020 season review: Wide receivers

See Vikings Wire’s season review of Minnesota’s wide receiver position for the 2020 NFL season.

In 2020, the Vikings entered an important turning point for their wide receiver position.

Minnesota traded Stefon Diggs, the team’s leading receiver from 2019. During his time with the Vikings, Diggs was mostly either the best or second-best receiving threat on the team.

Diggs’ absence left a void that needed to be filled. Could the Vikings replace his production with Justin Jefferson, in addition to other receivers taking on bigger roles?

The Vikings can take solace in the fact that Jefferson seems up for the task. He finished with 1,400 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. Jefferson thrived in his first NFL season, which made for an interesting storyline for an important position group.

Here is Vikings Wire’s review: