Tag: Justin Jefferson

Justin Jefferson puts Marshon Lattimore among his toughest opponents in the NFL

Star Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson says Saints Pro Bowler Marshon Lattimore is one of the toughest corners he’s faced in NFL:

We’re experiencing a golden age of wide receiver talent in the NFL these days, with the pipeline sending gifted high school recruits through the workouts circuit and into pass-happy college programs resulting in a glut of high-end draft prospects for pro teams to fight over. But few players have taken the league by storm lately quick like Justin Jefferson. The former LSU Tiger has racked up 196 receptions for 3,016 receiving yards through his first two years in the NFL, immediately asserting himself as one of the game’s best young playmakers.

And he’s seen some serious competition through two seasons with the Minnesota Vikings. Jefferson spoke about the best defenders he’s run against in the pros during an interview with the Ringer NFL Show podcast, naming two cornerbacks as the toughest matchups he’s seen so far: Los Angeles Rams superstar Jalen Ramsey and the New Orleans Saints’ Marshon Lattimore, a four-time Pro Bowler.

“Jalen Ramsey, of course, is a top-tier cornerback. His ability to be long and to be aggressive. That’s definitely one of the three things that is so difficult to get by him,” Jefferson said, continuing, “Marshon Lattimore is also a difficult corner to go up against. He’s twitchy, he’s fast and you can’t really beat him off the ball too much. So it’s all technical.”

Play-by-play charting from Pro Football Focus found that Jefferson was thrown to 8 times during his 2020 meeting with Lattimore, snagging 4 receptions for 55 yards in Lattimore’s coverage. Lattimore broke up two passes and kept him out of the end zone. That’s a nice day of work against such a special talent — Jefferson is already averaging 5.9 receptions for 91.4 receiving yards per game in his young career. The Saints pass defense as a whole limited Jefferson to 5 catches and 85 yards during Minnesota’s 52-33 defeat.

New Orleans will be counting on more dominant performances from Lattimore in the future, including an early-season rematch with Jefferson (in London on Oct. 2, during Week 4). With a veteran free agents Tyrann Mathieu and Marcus Maye stepping in at safety, and a couple of young corners competing to start opposite Lattimore in Paulson Adebo and Alontae Taylor, he’s now the longest-tenured starter in the secondary, with 80 games played for the Saints (7 in the postseason). Next-most is C.J. Gardner-Johnson, with 46 appearances (3 playoff games).

So Lattimore has more to worry about than just stopping the elite receivers lining up against him each Sunday. That seniority he’s inherited following Marcus Williams’ departure and Malcolm Jenkins’ retirement is going to lead to younger teammates looking to him for leadership. It’s a new challenge, maybe, but Lattimore has shown us he can tackle new changes before. It’ll be fascinating to see this next stage of his career unfold.

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Justin Jefferson believes he can do more than Cooper Kupp

Jefferson could do it even better than Kupp did last season.

People have been asking if Justin Jefferson is going to be the next Cooper Kupp ever since it was announced that Kevin O’Connell would be taking over as head coach for the Minnesota Vikings.

But honestly—and this is no slight intended for Kupp—that question is a bit disingenuous because there’s only one Justin Jefferson.

When appearing on The Ringer NFL Show, the two-time All-Pro receiver talked about the different challenge he poses for opposing defenses within O’Connell’s pass-heavy offense.

“Pretty much where Cooper Kupp was at that’s pretty much where I’m at. But my ability to move in different positions is gonna be more,” said Jefferson. “I’m able to go in outside. You don’t really see Cooper Kupp lining outside as many times as I would. Or me lining in the backfield, or me just lining up in different positions to get the ball.”

Brett Kollmann of “The Film Room” does an incredible job of breaking down the actual film of how Jefferson’s usage within O’Connell’s offense will compare to Kupp’s.

But there’s no question that Jefferson is the more versatile receiver with the greater physical gifts, which makes his pairing with O’Connell that much more interesting.

Does that mean he’s going to have 2,000-plus yards receiving this season or even outdo Kupp’s ridiculous 1,947-yard season? Not at all.

But it also isn’t out of the realm of possibility, either.

Jefferson hauled in 108 receptions for 1,616 yards and 10 touchdowns with Mike Zimmer as his head coach last season. If that’s any indication of what the future will look like, then it’s going to be a long year for opposing defenses lining up against this Vikings offense.

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5 Vikings players you’d be crazy not to have on your fantasy team

These players could put your fantasy football team over the top in 2022.

The fantasy football season being nearly upon us means one of two things: The days of bragging for that obnoxious, sore winner in your fantasy league are finally numbered, or if you were the winner, it’s back to the grind of proving why you’re the rightful king or queen of your league.

As for the Minnesota Vikings, they will be at the center of it all.

Not only could they have the best player in all of fantasy football in 2022, but there are multiple players on their roster capable of carrying your team to a championship.

Things have changed now that there’s a new head coach in town. Kevin O’Connell was hired after the exceptional job he did as the offensive coordinator for a Los Angeles Rams team that went on to win Super Bowl LVI. Imagine what he could do in Minnesota.

Here are five Vikings players you’d be crazy not to have on your fantasy team.

Justin Jefferson mentions Jalen Ramsey as one of the toughest CBs he’s faced

Justin Jefferson mentioned Jalen Ramsey and Marshon Lattimore as the two toughest CBs he’s faced in the NFL

Just about every wide receiver Jalen Ramsey has gone up against mentions the Rams cornerback as one of the premier players in the NFL. Justin Jefferson is just the latest to heave compliments Ramsey’s way.

The Vikings’ standing receiver was asked on The Ringer NFL Show which cornerbacks have given him the most trouble. He first mentioned Ramsey, then added Marshon Lattimore, too.

“Jalen Ramsey, of course, is a top-tier cornerback,” Jefferson said. “His ability to be long and to be fast and to be aggressive. That’s definitely one of the three things that is so difficult to get by him. He knows when some things are coming or when some in-breaking or out-breaking routes are coming.”

Ramsey and Jefferson squared off last season and it was a battle. Ramsey covered Jefferson on 21 snaps and was targeted five times. Jefferson caught three of those passes for 24 yards, with one first down and a long catch of 9 yards.

Many fans thought it was Jefferson who dominated that battle because he put up 116 yards, but two catches for 50 yards came against Darious Williams. So Ramsey more than held his own.

The Rams don’t face the Vikings in 2022, but should both teams have a good regular season, they could potentially meet in the playoffs for Round 2 of Ramsey vs. Jefferson.

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Justin Jefferson names two toughest corners he’s faced in NFL

There are at least two cornerbacks that left a strong impression on Jefferson.

Despite only being two years into his NFL career, Justin Jefferson is already one of the best receivers in the game.

But game recognizes game, and the Minnesota Vikings star wideout has faced his fair share of elite opposition at the cornerback position. When appearing on The Ringer NFL Show, he was asked to name the top corners he’s gone head-to-head with as a Viking.

It didn’t take him long to settle on a couple of players from two of the best defensive teams in the league.

“Jalen Ramsey, of course, is a top-tier cornerback,” said Jefferson. “His ability to be long and to be aggressive. That’s definitely one of the three things that is so difficult to get by him. …Marshon Lattimore is also a difficult corner to go up against. He’s twitchy, he’s fast and you can’t really beat him off the ball too much. So it’s all technical.”

Ramsey is one of the foundational pieces of the juggernaut Los Angeles Rams defense that just won a Super Bowl. Meanwhile, Lattimore stars in another high-ranking defensive unit for the New Orleans Saints.

Jefferson will actually get another crack at Lattimore when the Vikings face the Saints in Week 4 of the 2022 season at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. And perhaps, if the season goes according to plan, there could be another run-in with Ramsey in a future playoff game as well.

But things will clearly be different this time around.

The third-year version of Jefferson with head coach Kevin O’Connell at the helm of the Vikings offense could be a problem for everyone, including Ramsey and Lattimore.

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Alabama lands star LB from JUCO ranks, Justin Jefferson

Alabama lands a JUCO stud LB in Justin Jefferson!

The Crimson Tide landed a commit from JUCO linebacker Justin Jefferson today. Jefferson attended Pearl River CC in Poplarville, MS, and ran a blistering 4.34 40-yard dash.

Jefferson is 6’3 and 210 pounds, an outstanding frame for an interior linebacker. As a senior in high school, Jefferson was First Team All-State and had 116 tackles. During this past season with Pearl River, he had 53 tackles, three sacks, and one interception in nine games.

Despite being a JUCO guy, Jefferson has garnished a lot of interest as he ultimately chose the Tide over the likes of Auburn, Florida, Oregon and many more.

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Florida one of two schools vying hard for this JUCO LB transfer

The Gators are hot in pursuit of this JUCO linebacker target.

The recruiting trail has been a hot one this month as Florida football continues to push forward its rebuild of a once-proud program. While the primary focus has been on prospects from the high school ranks, particularly the 2023 and 2024 classes, there is another avenue that head coach Billy Napier and his staff have also been exploring — the junior college transfer portal.

Among those available from the JUCO ranks is linebacker [autotag]Justin Jefferson[/autotag] out of Poplarville (Missippi) Pearl River Community College, who made an official visit date for the Swamp this past weekend.

“I really liked and thought it was everything I expected and then some,” he told Swamp247. “I got a lot of time around the players and the coaches and got to know their culture and the plan for their program. They mapped things out about how they want me there and want to get me on the field early. They want me to play a big role in their defense.”

The 6-foot-1-inch, 215-pound linebacker got a chance to spend some quality time with inside linebacker coach [autotag]Jay Bateman[/autotag] in particular, but also got some solid exposure to other members of the staff as well.

“I was with Coach [Jay] Bateman, Coach PT [Patrick Toney], and Coach [Jamar] Chaney,” Jefferson explained to 1standTenFlorida. “They really liked my game and think that I could make a good impact for them.” The attention he received from the coaches gave the rising senior a family kind of feeling.

“It was just the amount of communication from me, my mom, coach Napier, coach Bateman, coach PT, coach Chaney, everybody; coach Hocke, the strength and conditioning coach, everybody. It was just a lot of love coming toward me,” he offered to Gators Online.

Jefferson is not ranked by 247Sports, however, On3 rates him as a four-star prospect with its Recruiting Prediction Machine giving the Texas A&M Aggies the best chance of landing him at 29.3% while the Gators are close behind at 25.7% and the Oregon Ducks also in the mix at 22%.

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Ranking the WRs on Colts’ 2022 schedule

The Colts will face a tough slate of WRs in 2022.

The Indianapolis Colts defense will undergo some changes with new coordinator Gus Bradley, and his secondary will be tested often throughout the 2022 season.

At full strength, the Colts secondary looks solid on paper. We still don’t know the status of cornerback Kenny Moore II and his contract situation while the safety position got a bit thinner due to the retirement of Khari Willis.

We looked at ranking the quarterbacks and running backs on the Colts’ schedule. Now, it’s time to take a look at the wide receivers.

Which receiver should be chosen second in fantasy football drafts?

Is this one closer than the average draft position suggests?

There is little debate as to which wide receiver is going to be the first one to come off draft boards or fetch the highest asking price in auctions. Coming off his monster 2021 season, it’s hard to argue that it would be anyone other than Cooper Kupp of the Los Angeles Rams.

The question then becomes who checks in at No. 2? That is up for debate, and three candidates are looking to be that guy – Davante Adams of the Las Vegas Raiders, Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings and Ja’Marr Chase of the Cincinnati Bengals. Each one can make a strong case for being the next player to come off the board as a roster cornerstone piece.

Before we get any more words on the page, the overall consensus in ADP solidly favors Jefferson. Is it presumptuous, or is the third-year Viking an unquestioned lock after reviewing all of the key factors at play?

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Justin Jefferson reveals biggest difference with Kevin O’Connell as coach

This won’t be the same Vikings offense you remember from last season, according to Justin Jefferson.

This isn’t the same Minnesota Vikings offense you remember from the Mike Zimmer era.

Just ask star wideout Justin Jefferson about the immediate changes he’s noticed with Kevin O’Connell firmly implanted as the team’s new head coach.

“It’s not a run-first offense anymore,” Jefferson said, when appearing on the NFL Network. “Just us being able to put different people in different positions and distributing the ball, really. I’m so excited in this offense, us just being in OTAs learning the plays, going through it with our defense and stuff. We’re all excited, we’re all happy to have [O’Connell]. It’s definitely a different vibe and different connection in the building with him there.”

It’s quite scary to think about how well Jefferson performed in a run-first offense with a defensive-minded head coach overseeing things.

He hauled in 108 receptions for 1,616 yards and 10 touchdowns to cap off a second consecutive All-Pro season. Now, he’ll be the No. 1 receiver in an intricate offense led by the man that called the offensive plays for the Super Bowl-winning Los Angeles Rams.

“Jets” was flying last season, but he should be soaring under O’Connell in 2022.