The Minnesota Vikings season finally came to a close on Sunday in Week 18 following a win at home over the Chicago Bears to put a bow on what was a very interesting season in Minnesota. Behind an up-and-down year that ended in disappointment, Justin Jefferson and the Vikings failed to reach the playoffs and will be watching the postseason from home yet again.
Even with nothing to play for in the season finale in Week 18, there was at least one thing for fans and others to tune into and keep an eye on in Minnesota’s last game. That was a potential franchise record that star wide receiver Justin Jefferson was nearing and had a chance to break late in the game against Chicago.
Ultimately, that didn’t occur even though it could have, and Jefferson should be livid with the Vikings coaching staff for at least not giving him an opportunity to make history.
Minnesota Vikings Coaching Staff Did Wrong By Justin Jefferson
Record Within Reach
Coming into the Week 18 finale, Jefferson was within 123 receiving yards of breaking a new franchise single-season record for most receiving yards in a year. That record has been held by Hall of Fame wideout Randy Moss, having recorded 1,632 yards in 2003 to sit atop the record books.
"@RandyMoss, I'm coming to get you." – @JJettas2
Jefferson is 123 yards away from the @Vikings single-season receiving yards record (1,632). 👀
📺: #CHIvsMIN — 1pm ET on FOX
📱: NFL app pic.twitter.com/XfirBetUWJ— NFL (@NFL) January 9, 2022
Although that would be a tough task and record to surpass while coming into the game 123 yards away, Jefferson had an opportunity late in the game to break the record only to not be allowed an opportunity to even try and do so. Jefferson finished the game with five catches for 107 yards and one touchdown, meaning he was just 17 yards shy of setting the new franchise record and passing Moss.
In the fourth quarter after a 45-yard touchdown, Jefferson was 16 yards away from tying Moss’ mark, and there was plenty of time left to allow him that chance. Except one thing held that back from happening, and that was the fact that the Vikings coaching staff decided it was a great time to run the ball and run out the clock rather than allow the wide receiver the chance to achieve a personal milestone.
Minnesota had two opportunities in the final half of the fourth quarter to give the ball to Jefferson, but the play-calling set out not only didn’t give the ball to Jefferson but didn’t even throw in his direction another time in the game. Under normal circumstances, the coaching staff shouldn’t care about personal milestones or achievements of players especially when a game is out of reach. However, given that the season was over and there was nothing else to play for, the coaches should have given Jefferson the opportunity to make history.
Jefferson might not publicly show frustration about not getting the ball or not getting the chance to set the personal franchise record, but you would imagine he would be upset with the coaching staff and the play-calling behind the scenes.
Impressive Season, but Could Have Been Better
Regardless of the whole single-season receiving record and attempting to break Moss’ mark in Week 18, Jefferson still put together an impressive season in his sophomore campaign and continues to prove to everyone he is a star in the NFL. With that said, Minnesota could have taken advantage of him more and targeted him more which would have resulted in his season being even better.
More often than not this season, the Vikings have leaned towards trying to establish the run while going away from Jefferson and the passing game. Then, once the team fell behind on the scoreboard, they would be forced to throw the ball to Jefferson or his teammate Adam Thielen to play catch-up. If Minnesota would have incorporated him even more into the offensive scheme, you would think that his numbers would have been even more impressive with the season now over.
In 17 games this year, Jefferson finished the campaign with 108 catches for a total of 1,616 yards and 10 touchdowns. Those are all career-best numbers, surpassing his impressive rookie showing that resulted in 88 catches for 1,400 yards and seven touchdowns. For a two-year total, Jefferson has managed to haul in 196 catches for 3,016 yards and 17 touchdowns, with those total catches and receiving yards being the most in league history in a player’s first two seasons.
Justin Jefferson first 2 seasons:
196 catches
3,016 yardsBoth are most in NFL history. pic.twitter.com/Xz83vshion
— StatMuse (@statmuse) January 9, 2022
Jefferson should become a bigger part of the Vikings offense, and perhaps doing so earlier in the year would have been enough to allow him to break Moss’ single-season receiving record this year. Jefferson has a lot to be proud of for his performance this year, but he should be upset with the Vikings coaching staff not even giving him a chance to add another achievement to his resume.
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
