Tag: Justin Jefferson

5 storylines to watch as Bears face the Vikings in Week 15

As the Bears prepare to face the Vikings, here’s what to watch for in their Week 15 match-up.

The Chicago Bears will face the Minnesota Vikings in what is, in many ways, a playoff game as both teams need a win to keep their slim postseason hopes alive in Week 15.

It’ll be a big test for the Bears, who just won their first game in the last two months. Especially considering the offense managed just six points when these two teams last met. But a lot has changed for both teams in five weeks.

Here are five storylines to watch as the Bears head into their Week 15 game against the Vikings.

Behind Enemy Lines: 6 questions with Vikings Wire

Before Sunday’s game, we caught up with managing editor Jack White of Vikings Wire to get the scoop on the Bears’ Week 15 opponent.

The Chicago Bears visit the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, needing to win in order to keep their slim playoff hopes alive.

A lot has changed since the last time these two teams met. In Week 10, Minnesota got the best of Chicago 19-13 as the Bears offense managed just six points. We’ll see if Chicago’s offense, which is averaging 30 points per game over the last three weeks, can find a way to keep their momentum going.

Before the game, we caught up with managing editor Jack White of Vikings Wire to get the scoop on the Bears’ Week 15 opponent.

Here are six questions with Vikings Wire:

The story of CeeDee Lamb and his black sheep quarterbacks

A look at Dallas Cowboys rookie wideout CeeDee Lamb with and without Dak Prescott.

To say that Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb’s statistical resume has hit a snag would be a bit of an understatement. Early in the season, the part of it in which he was paired up with quarterback Dak Prescott, he was the standard bearer among rookies. Since Week 6, his numbers have been outclassed by Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings, leaving some to forget just how good he can be.

Transitioning to the NFL is no easy feat, and while Lamb made it look effortless to start off his career, it turns out the situation a player lands in is nearly as important as the talent they bring to the table. Through five games, the Oklahoma product was tearing through the league. He was on pace for 93 catches, 1386 yards and six touchdowns. And while his production has slowed, the Cowboys Pro Football Focus Twitter account wants people to know how good he’s been from the slot this year in the aggregate.

That is all well and good of course, but the current trend is alarming. Lamb’s first five games accounted for 123 more yards than he’s had in the eight played since. His yards per catch has been cut off at the legs, making him seem like a plodding and pedestrian possession receiver, averaging just a yard more per reception than Jason Witten did in Dallas last year.

The problem is obvious: the quarterback play. Lamb is now stuck playing with players willing to check down at a moment’s notice instead of letting the play develop. The coaching staff is attempting to get him the ball, but it’s often on screen passes that are immediately snuffed out. He’s also not without fault, dropping six passes on the season according to Pro Football Reference, including a Hail Mary at the end of a half, which would have been spectacular, but counts against him nonetheless.

There’s still three games to rebound, though the offensive performances even with Andy Dalton under center have been largely underwhelming. Luckily for all involved, a career is not written in a year, and assuming that the Cowboys brass gets its stuff together and finally gets a deal for Prescott in place, there’s no limit to the kind of career Lamb can put together.

 

 

Behind enemy lines: Previewing the Vikings’ matchup with the Buccaneers

Here is Vikings Wire’s preview of the Minnesota Vikings’ Week 14 matchup with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Minnesota and Tampa Bay both have a lot riding on this game.

The Viking and Buccaneers would be in the playoffs if the postseason started today. Minnesota would have the No. 7 seed, while Tampa Bay would have the No. 6 seed.

But there are no guarantees. The Buccaneers are 7-5, but a losing streak could take them out of the postseason conversation. At 6-6, the Vikings are in the same boat.

Minnesota has mostly beaten struggling opponents during its win streak. It has a chance to prove it’s capable of beating top-tier talent on Sunday.

Vikings Wire interviewed Luke Easterling, the managing editor of Bucs Wire, to preview the matchup.

Here is the interview:

B/R lists Vikings’ best and worst moves

Here are some of the best and worst moves the Minnesota Vikings made in the 2020 NFL season, per Bleacher Report.

Minnesota had an eventful offseason.

Without much room to work in the salary cap, the Vikings saw a mass exodus in free agency. Minnesota corners Mackensie Alexander, Xavier Rhodes and Trae Waynes all signed elsewhere.

Defensive end Everson Griffen terminated his contract with the team. He then signed with the Cowboys in the offseason, only to be traded to the Lions later on. Minnesota also lost a starting defensive tackle: Linval Joseph.

And those are just a few of the moves the team made. So, obviously, Bleacher Report had a lot to work with when listing Minnesota’s best and worst moves. Here is what the outlet came up with for the Vikings:

Former LSU star Justin Jefferson hits major rookie milestone

Former LSU wideout Justin Jefferson has made his presence felt on his rookie season.

Former LSU wide receiver Justin Jefferson joined some elite company on Sunday when he went over 1,000 yards receiving as a rookie.

Jefferson, selected No. 22 overall in the 2020 NFL draft, caught nine passes for 121 yards and a touchdown in the Minnesota Vikings’ 27-24 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

After that performance, Jefferson now has 61 receptions for 1,039 yards and seven touchdowns. The Vikings still have four games to play in the 2020 season.

Jefferson joined the legendary Randy Moss as the only rookie receivers for Minnesota to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark.

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Jefferson is also just the fifth player in the Super Bowl era to go over 1,000 yards in his first 12 career games, joining Moss, Odell Beckham Jr., Anquan Boldin and Marques Colston, per Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network.

As a junior for LSU in 2019, Jefferson had 111 receptions for 1,540 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Jefferson’s play is a big reason why the Vikings currently have the NFC’s final playoff spot.

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Vikings WR Justin Jefferson is in elite company

Jefferson continues to pile up crazy numbers in his rookie campaign with the Vikings.

Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson continues to do his thing.

In Sunday’s win over the Jaguars, the rookie piled up 121 receiving yards and a touchdown.

Jefferson now has 1,039 receiving yards through 12 games. He joins Odell Beckham Jr., Marques Colston, Anquan Boldin and Randy Moss as the only other players to accomplish that feat.

With four games remaining, Jefferson is on pace for 1,385 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. That’s a ‘Rookie of the Year’ type season and certainly makes the Stefon Diggs trade look like a win-win deal for both teams.

Jefferson also became the first Vikings rookie receiver to have 1,000 yards in a season since Moss.

Jefferson has been especially hot as of late, averaging 103 yards over his last four contests.

There should be some opportunities for Jefferson to shine in Week 14 with the Vikings taking on the Bucs in Tampa Bay. The Bucs rank 22nd against the pass this season.

With Justin Jefferson topping 1,000 receiving yards, here’s a look at his rookie season so far

In honor of Vikings WR Justin Jefferson already topping 1,000 receiving yards on the year, here is a look at his rookie NFL season so far.

When the the Vikings drafted Justin Jefferson, it seemed like he might be able to replace some of Stefon Diggs’ production in the Minnesota offense.

Don’t get me wrong: Jefferson seemed like a good prospect. But Diggs was a top-tier wideout in the NFL. It would be unfair to think Jefferson could just come in and replace all of what Diggs provided to the Vikings.

Well, consider my expectations exceeded. Jefferson has topped 1,000 receiving yards, becoming the first Vikings player since Randy Moss to do so as a rookie.

Jefferson’s totals through 12 games are 1,039 receiving yards, 61 receptions and seven touchdowns. Diggs’ totals from 2019? 1,130 receiving yards and six touchdowns in 15 games.  Jefferson has come in and essentially replaced Diggs’ production in the Vikings offense when you consider that he has played three less games than Diggs did in 2019.

So, let’s take a brief look back at Jefferson’s rookie year so far:

Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Minnesota Vikings: Everything we know

Minnesota Vikings News: See the Vikings’ game recap from the Week 13 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

For Minnesota, this had all the makings of a disappointing defeat.

The Vikings were at home against an inferior opponent, reminiscent of the Falcons and Cowboys games. Minnesota lost arguably its best defensive player, Eric Kendricks, to an injury very close to kickoff.

Jaguars quarterback Mike Glennon isn’t by any means top tier, but he has his days, just like Cowboys quarterback Andy Dalton. It was Dalton’s day against the Vikings and that seemed like the case for Glennon.

The Jacksonville quarterback led two unanswered scoring drives to give his team a 9-0 lead. Just when the Vikings climbed back into having a shot at the postseason, it seemed like their hopes were slipping away against one of the worst teams in the NFL.

Minnesota (6-6) held off the upset and it has its defense to thank. The group forced five turnovers from the Jacksonville offense and held the Jaguars to 17 points (the Vikings offense threw an interception returned for a touchdown).

Vikings WR Justin Jefferson talks about his big role in the offense

Minnesota Vikings rookie wide receiver Justin Jefferson has adjusted well to his large role in the Vikings offense.

Last week, wide receiver Adam Thielen was not activated off the reserve/COVID-19 in time for the Panthers game, which was a concerning development for the Vikings offense.

Thielen has been the Vikings’ best red zone target this season. Kirk Cousins has been good recently, but he had both Thielen and Justin Jefferson to rely on.

This game was different, but Cousins was stellar. He found wide receiver Chad Beebe and tight end Kyle Rudolph more often, but more importantly, he found a way to get Jefferson the ball despite the rookie being by far the best receiving target Minnesota had for the Carolina game.

All in all, Jefferson has adjusted well to his large role in the Vikings offense.

“I love it, just being targeted a lot,” Jefferson said, via Courtney Cronin of ESPN. “It definitely boosts your confidence, especially if you’re on a rhythm just catching short catches and moving the ball — as long as Kirk is trusting me and giving me the opportunity to make those catches. We’re definitely working with each other week in and week out, and we’re getting better and better each week.”

Now, Thielen is off the reserve/COVID-19 list. Cousins gets his main wide receiver duo back for the Jaguars game. Minnesota might need a big day from its offense against Jacksonville in Week 13. If that’s the case, look for Jefferson and Thielen to both be involved.