Justin Jefferson is special. I’m not breaking new ground by pointing this out. His numbers speak for themselves. Despite this, it is nice to see when a young superstar is acknowledged instead of doubted. Take the last offseason, for example, with the now infamous Jefferson vs. Keenan Allen debate where people claimed that Allen was better than Jefferson despite Jefferson’s rookie season eclipsing Allen’s best statistical season.
After doubling down on a record-breaking rookie season, Jefferson is getting the rightful praise that he deserved last season. One person who is correcting his errors last season is NFL.com writer Dan Hanzus who added Jefferson to his “superstar club” after snubbing him last season.
I absolutely should have put Jefferson in this club after his fantastic rookie season. Lesson learned (as you see above with Ja’Marr Chase). When a young wideout enters the league and immediately eviscerates the competition, it ain’t gonna be a one-hit wonder situation. Jefferson was once again transcendent last season with Kirk Cousins, setting career highs in catches, yards and touchdowns en route to his second Pro Bowl selection. Like everyone else in Minneapolis, Jefferson is excited to be part of a modern Kevin O’Connell-run offense that should lean more heavily on the passing game than what we saw during the dying days of the Mike Zimmer regime. Yep, Jefferson could get even better in Year 3.
What is interesting to see here is not just Jefferson finally getting the respect that he deserves, but he has made it so that rookies who stand out at his level are also getting the praise they deserve. This season Hanzus also added Jefferson’s LSU teammate, Ja’Marr Chase, to the superstar club after just one season, citing Jefferson as part of the reason why.
Hanzus states that when a rookie thoroughly dominates the competition they face in their rookie year, it is unlikely to be a one-season wonder type of deal. Looking back at the reaction to both Jefferson and Chase’s rookie season, it is evident to see that the majority of people learned their lesson from the last offseason when they were quick to write off Jefferson, a mistake they won’t soon be making with Chase.
Despite it being a silly sort of club, Jefferson’s induction into this superstar club has given the Vikings fans legitimacy in their arguments the past offseason when they told everyone how special Jefferson is. Hopefully, this season in the new KOC offense, he can improve on his already stellar start to his career.
