Getty Justin Jefferson #18 of the Minnesota Vikings.
While the Minnesota Vikings facing several critical personnel decisions this offseason, one future piece of business might loom larger than all of them
Fourth-year star wideout Justin Jefferson is entering the final year of his contract. With three trips to the Pro Bowl, one All-Pro selection, and one Offensive Player of the Year award under his belt, he will command a handsome sum on his next contract, and he has intimated as much.
That could present a problem for General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.
“There could be a better chance of Jefferson, 24, getting traded than anybody’s saying,” Pioneer Press columnist Charley Walters wrote on January 13. “That’s because it doesn’t make sense to pay the NFL’s best receiver the money he wants (expected to be at least $150 million over five years) on a team that’s not expected to be seriously competitive for several more years.”
Mensah has to address quarterback with Kirk Cousins a free agent this offseason. And there is no viable passer on the future on the roster.
Joining Cousins are a slew of defenders, most notably stud pass rusher Danielle Hunter. And Minnesota is looking at roughly $39 million in cap space this offseason before making any roster moves, per Spotrac.
This could also be a critical offseason for the Vikings’ braintrust.
“A full Vikings rebuild could be shaky for GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and coach Kevin O’Connell, both of whom next year enter the third of four-year contracts,” Walters wrote, citing Adofo-Mensa’s draft record. “Even Adofo-Mensah’s predecessor, Rick Spielman, whom Washington has solicited to help in its coaching search, drafted better than has Adofo-Mensah.”
Walters also speculated on what Jefferson’s trade market could be.
Vikings Star Justin Jefferson’s Trade Market ‘More Than 2 1st-Round Picks’
GettyJustin Jefferson #18 of the Minnesota Vikings.
“The market for Jefferson would depend on where a team trading for him is picking in April’s draft,” Walters wrote. “But it would be more than two first-round picks. Trading Jefferson for high draft picks would allow the Vikings to rebuild the way the Lions and Bears have done the last two years, from the ground up.”
Minnesota won the division at 13-4 last season. But they are also openly in the midst of a competitive rebuild of their own.
Still, Detroit got a bevy of draft picks for Matthew Stafford – and T.J. Hockenson – in recent years, building up a roster that won the NFC North at 12-5 this season. Chicago turned the No. 1 pick in 2023 into a haul, including DJ Moore and the 2024 No. 1 pick.
The Bears could also flip quarterback Justin Fields to a team for draft capital this offseason.
“Don’t think Vikings owners Zygi and Mark Wilf, who have made the playoffs just seven times in 17 seasons, haven’t watched those rebuilds,” Walters wrote.
Minnesota got a package headlined by the No. 22 overall pick in the 2020 draft in the trade that sent Stefon Diggs to the Buffalo Bills. Diggs had not accomplished as much at that point in his career as Jefferson has through four seasons.
The Vikings subsequently used that pick to select Jefferson.
Kwesi Adofo-Mensah Weighs-In on Justin Jefferson’s Future
GettyGeneral Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah of the Minnesota Vikings.
Jefferson has spoken confidently about the situation. He knows that his payday is coming one way or another after putting together the resume he has.
“Of course, I will want a contract to be done. But at the end of the day, it’s all up to them and what the ownership want to do with that,” Jefferson said via the team on September 7. “That’s up to them. My focus is on playing football and doing something that I’m good at. So, I’m good at being on that field and catching the football, and that’s what I continue to do.”
Adofo-Mensah said he is eager to get into those talks.
“I had a great, actually, dialogue with his representation this morning,” Adofo-Mensah said during his season-ending media availability on January 10. “I stay in contact with all of our players’ representatives, but we had a great, great relationship, and the good part is we have a shared history now. We did a lot of the work last season.”
Jefferson first became eligible for an extension last season, and the Vikings engaged his representation on a potential extension.
Nothing came to fruition. But Adofo-Mensah is still bullish.
“I’m always optimistic about those things,” Adofo-Mensah said. “Obviously, we have to address that and a bunch of other things, but I’m looking forward to those conversations.”