Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson continues to command respect around the NFL, including Las Vegas Raiders star wide receiver Davante Adams.
Appearing on the inaugural episode of The Matt Lombardo Show podcast, the Heavy senior NFL reporter asked Adams which new-age receivers have the best chance of joining the elite tier of wideouts in the league.
Adams was quick to point out that Jefferson is already there.
“I mean you gotta go with Justin Jefferson. Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase. Those two. Those LSU boys are just all that. They come into the league ready to play at a different level than a lot of other guys,” Adams said. “You know, when I was that age, I couldn’t touch those guys as far as what they’re accomplishing right now. So I got a lot of respect for what they’re doing.”
#Raiders WR showing nothing but RESPECT toward #Vikings star Justin Jefferson💪😈
Per: @HeavyOnSports‘ podcast w/ @MattLombardoNFL
Adams isn’t just blowing smoke. He had a two-year learning curve before becoming Aaron Rodgers’ favorite target — and it still took him until his fifth season to surpass 1,000 receiving yards.
Meanwhile, Jefferson outpaced every receiver in NFL history with 3,016 receiving yards in his first two seasons.
Adams also named Jefferson one of the league’s best route runners.
Davante Adams Says Justin Jefferson Looked Like a Vet His Rookie Year
This isn’t the first time Adams has heaped significant praise onto the young Vikings star.
During the 2021 season, Adams spoke glowingly of Jefferson, saying he had the look of a sixth-year veteran just from watching Jefferson’s rookie film.
“I see a six-year vet when I watch him play. … Last year, he looked like he was already in his fourth season,” Adams said in November 2021 after Jefferson’s rookie year, per Green Bay Press-Gazette’s Ryan Wood. “He’s kind of aging like a dog right now in its purest form, because he’s a dog out there.”
Jefferson’s reciprocated the respect, calling Adams the league’s No. 1 wide receiver despite his ambitions to take the throne by the end of this season.
“I’ll say after this year I’ll be the best receiver in the NFL,” Jefferson told Complex in the offseason. “I definitely have to give it to Davante Adams as of now, him being so crazy and dynamic on the field. His route running is crazy, so I definitely have to give it to him right now, but I’m pretty sure after this year, it’s going to be me.”
Jefferson and Adams have built a relationship since training together in the 2021 offseason. After breaking the rookie receiving yards record in 2020, Jefferson was quickly welcomed into an elite tier of wide receiver workouts.
“The best train with the best,” Jefferson said on The Pat McAfee Show in January 2021 following the end of his rookie season. “Of course, I want to train with the top guys of the league. I’ve talked to Davante Adams, talked to Stefon Diggs. Odell [Beckham Jr]. Talking to those different guys, I definitely want to train with them and see all the information they can give to me to help my game out.”
Where Justin Jefferson Ranks 4 Weeks Into the 2022 Season
Jefferson asserted himself with a dominant season-opening performance over the Green Bay Packers, catching nine passes for 184 yards and two touchdowns.
But a pair of quiet weeks followed as the Vikings are still finding their form in a new offense left Jefferson, facing double- and triple-coverage often, underutilized. He had the least-productive game of his career in Week 3 against the Detroit Lions, catching just three passes for 14 yards; a disappointing performance after being held to six catches and 48 yards in Week 2 in a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Jefferson bounced back in Week 4, securing 10 catches for 147 yards.
He currently ranks sixth in receiving yards (393), sixth in receptions (28) and fifth in receiving touchdowns (2) entering Week 5.
Here’s a list of the top 20 receivers, per ProFootballReference.com
| Rk | Player | Tm | Age | G | Tgt | Rec | Ctch% | Yds ▼ |
Y/R | TD | Y/Tgt | R/G | Y/G |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tyreek Hill | MIA | 28 | 4 | 43 | 31 | 72.1% | 477 | 15.4 | 2 | 11.1 | 7.8 | 119.3 |
| 2 | Courtland Sutton | DEN | 27 | 5 | 46 | 29 | 63.0% | 417 | 14.4 | 1 | 9.1 | 5.8 | 83.4 |
| 3 | Stefon Diggs | BUF | 29 | 4 | 41 | 31 | 75.6% | 406 | 13.1 | 4 | 9.9 | 7.8 | 101.5 |
| 4 | A.J. Brown | PHI | 25 | 4 | 38 | 25 | 65.8% | 404 | 16.2 | 1 | 10.6 | 6.3 | 101.0 |
| 5 | Cooper Kupp | LAR | 29 | 4 | 54 | 42 | 77.8% | 402 | 9.6 | 3 | 7.4 | 10.5 | 100.5 |
| 6 | Justin Jefferson | MIN | 23 | 4 | 42 | 28 | 66.7% | 393 | 14.0 | 2 | 9.4 | 7.0 | 98.3 |
| 7 | Jaylen Waddle | MIA | 24 | 4 | 35 | 21 | 60.0% | 381 | 18.1 | 3 | 10.9 | 5.3 | 95.3 |
| 8 | Marquise Brown | ARI | 25 | 4 | 45 | 30 | 66.7% | 339 | 11.3 | 2 | 7.5 | 7.5 | 84.8 |
| 9 | Chris Olave | NOR | 22 | 4 | 36 | 21 | 58.3% | 335 | 16.0 | 1 | 9.3 | 5.3 | 83.8 |
| 10 | Christian Kirk | JAX | 26 | 4 | 36 | 20 | 55.6% | 327 | 16.4 | 3 | 9.1 | 5.0 | 81.8 |
| 11 | Travis Kelce | KAN | 33 | 4 | 34 | 26 | 76.5% | 322 | 12.4 | 3 | 9.5 | 6.5 | 80.5 |
| 12 | Tee Higgins | CIN | 23 | 4 | 28 | 20 | 71.4% | 315 | 15.8 | 2 | 11.3 | 5.0 | 78.8 |
| 13 | Tyler Lockett | SEA | 30 | 4 | 34 | 27 | 79.4% | 302 | 11.2 | 0 | 8.9 | 6.8 | 75.5 |
| 14 | Ja’Marr Chase | CIN | 22 | 4 | 41 | 25 | 61.0% | 293 | 11.7 | 2 | 7.1 | 6.3 | 73.3 |
| 15 | Davante Adams | LVR | 30 | 4 | 47 | 26 | 55.3% | 290 | 11.2 | 3 | 6.2 | 6.5 | 72.5 |
| 16 | CeeDee Lamb | DAL | 23 | 4 | 42 | 23 | 54.8% | 288 | 12.5 | 2 | 6.9 | 5.8 | 72.0 |
| 17 | D.K. Metcalf | SEA | 25 | 4 | 35 | 23 | 65.7% | 284 | 12.3 | 1 | 8.1 | 5.8 | 71.0 |
| 18 | Michael Pittman Jr. | IND | 25 | 4 | 36 | 25 | 69.4% | 283 | 11.3 | 1 | 7.9 | 6.3 | 70.8 |
| 19 | Noah Brown | DAL | 26 | 4 | 27 | 18 | 66.7% | 274 | 15.2 | 1 | 10.1 | 4.5 | 68.5 |
| 20 | Mack Hollins | LVR | 29 | 4 | 25 | 17 | 68.0% | 273 | 16.1 | 1 | 10.9 | 4.3 | 68.3 |
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Raiders WR Davante Adams Sounds Off on Vikings Star Justin Jefferson