The Madden ‘23 launch trailer prominently featured Justin Jefferson. He promoted the new feature, FieldSense, which he said would allow him to “finally throw the rock.” In the trailer, the real-life Jefferson tosses the ball to his virtual self in the corner of the end zone. Who can blame Electronic Arts for wanting Jefferson to promote their game? He broke Randy Moss’ records last year, brought The Griddy to Fornite, and thrived in Kevin O’Connell’s modern offense.
The only downside? Now everyone wants Jefferson pitching their stuff, and he wants to get paid like a quarterback. Jefferson says he didn’t attend organized team activities (OTAs) because he was working on endorsement deals. “I had a lot of stuff going on,” Jefferson said on the first day of minicamp. “They didn’t really force me to come back too much. It didn’t really seem like I was missing too much. They definitely wanted me back here. I wanted to be back here, but I had a lot of stuff going on. [The contract] is not too much part of it. It’s just me being myself, having stuff to do. But I’m glad to be back here.”
Jefferson’s contract had to be a factor, though. Jefferson won’t get what teams pay the league’s top quarterbacks. But he’s about to make serious money.
- The Las Vegas Raiders gave Davante Adams a five-year, $140 million contract ($65 million guaranteed) last year.
- Tyreek Hill is playing on a four-year, $120 million deal ($72 million guaranteed).
- Cooper Kupp is on a shorter contract (three years, $80 million), but he got $75 million guaranteed from the Los Angeles Rams.
Given that he already has 4,825 receiving yards in three years and won Offensive Player of the Year last season, Jefferson will likely reset the market. The Vikings could reasonably offer him a five-year, $150 million contract with $80 million guaranteed. For comparison, Cousins signed a three-year, $84 million fully-guaranteed contract with Minnesota in 2018, and they extended him for $66 million ($31 million guaranteed) in 2020. Therefore, Jefferson could get roughly the money Cousins got on his first two contracts while earning a similar guaranteed amount to his first one.
If he was upset about his situation, Jefferson could hold out. Danielle Hunter did. According to the collective-bargaining agreement between the NFL and NFL Players Association, teams must fine players $16,459 for missing the first day of minicamp and $32,920 for the second. Players in a contract dispute are willing to pay the fine out of principle. But Jefferson has made every indication that things are good. “I don’t really see it as a cloud hanging over my head,” he said. “The contract comes with the game.” Asked if he will attend training camp, Jefferson said, “Oh yeah.”
The Vikings have a lot of other things to clean up before the season starts in September. Not only is Hunter in a contract dispute, but they overhauled their cornerback group. That means they hired Brian Flores to overlook a unit that lost Za’Darius Smith’s pass rush and Patrick Peterson in the secondary. It’ll be a quixotic task to ensure that opposing quarterbacks don’t have ample time to pick apart Minnesota’s defense. Fortunately, Flores passed on the Arizona Cardinals job, allowing the Vikings to hire one of the game’s best defensive minds.
There’s also the question of who Minnesota’s quarterback of the future is and how Cousins will play in a contract year. Cousins reportedly was willing to take a relative discount but wanted a longer-term deal. The Vikings passed, opting for flexibility. They have to pay Jefferson and Hockenson, and they probably want to give themselves the opportunity to work something out with Hunter. Furthermore, Minnesota will likely want to see if they can get a younger quarterback with higher upside in the draft.
However, the old regime signed Cousins because he provided certainty at a position where the Vikings haven’t had stability since Fran Tarkenton was under center. Cousins played his best football under O’Connell, who placed him in a modern offense and enabled him as an avid supporter. But where Cousins is a game manager who can drive the car, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell may eventually want someone who can push their vehicle to its limits. Perhaps Cousins does so in a contract year. But if he doesn’t, Minnesota will suddenly have instability at the game’s most important position again.
Still, Minnesota’s fate ultimately lies in Jefferson’s hands. He’s the franchise. Jefferson elevates Cousins and the offense. He opens things up for Hockenson and the other receivers around him. The Vikings can become contenders if they put the right quarterback under center and supplement Jefferson with talent. They also need to build a good enough defense to allow the offense to win them games. But they have to extend Jefferson first. However, by showing up to minicamp and dismissing any doubts about his dedication to the team, Jefferson dispelled much of the anxiety anyone should have about his future in Minnesota.
