Justin Jefferson
![]() Jefferson with the LSU Tigers | |||||||||
No. 18 – Minnesota Vikings | |||||||||
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Position: | Wide receiver | ||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||
Born: | St. Rose, Louisiana | June 16, 1999||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||||
Weight: | 202 lb (92 kg) | ||||||||
Career information | |||||||||
High school: | Destrehan (Destrehan, Louisiana) | ||||||||
College: | LSU | ||||||||
NFL draft: | 2020 / Round: 1 / Pick: 22 | ||||||||
Career history | |||||||||
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Roster status: | Active | ||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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Career NFL statistics as of Week 6, 2020 | |||||||||
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Justin Joshua Jefferson (born June 16, 1999) is an American football wide receiver for the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU and was drafted by the Vikings in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
Early years
Jefferson attended Destrehan High School in Destrehan, Louisiana.[1] He committed to Louisiana State University (LSU) to play college football.[2]
College career
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/GA_VS_LSU_E101318_78.jpg/150px-GA_VS_LSU_E101318_78.jpg)
After appearing in two games and not recording a catch his first year at LSU in 2017, Jefferson was their leading receiver in 2018 with 54 catches for 875 yards and six touchdowns.[3][4][5]
As a junior in 2019, Jefferson led the country with 111 receptions. His 18 receiving touchdowns ranked second in the country—behind only teammate Ja'Marr Chase—and his 1,540 receiving yards were third most.[6] He had a historic performance in the Peach Bowl, catching 14 passes for 227 yards and four touchdowns against the Oklahoma Sooners. All four touchdowns came in the first half, and set a College Football Playoff game record and tied the record for any bowl game.[7] In the National Championship against Clemson, he had nine receptions for 106 yards in the 42–25 victory.[8] On January 15, 2020, Jefferson announced that he would forgo his senior season and enter the NFl Draft.[9]
Collegiate statistics
Season | Team | Receiving | Rushing | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rec | Yards | Avg | Lng | TD | ATT | YDS | AVG | LNG | ||
2017 | LSU | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 4.0 | 4 |
2018 | LSU | 54 | 875 | 16.2 | 65 | 6 | 5 | 26 | 5.2 | 19 |
2019 | LSU | 111 | 1,540 | 13.9 | 71 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 |
Source:[10]
Professional career
Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | Vertical jump | Broad jump | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
6 ft 1+1⁄4 in (1.86 m) |
202 lb (92 kg) |
33 in (0.84 m) |
9+1⁄8 in (0.23 m) |
4.43 s | 37.5 in (0.95 m) |
10 ft 6 in (3.20 m) | ||||||
All values from NFL Combine[11] |
Jefferson was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round with the 22nd overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.[12] The Vikings previously obtained the 22nd selection as part of the trade that sent wide receiver Stefon Diggs to the Buffalo Bills. Jefferson signed a four-year $13.12 million contract with the team, with a $7.1 million signing bonus. On July 27, 2020, the Vikings placed Jefferson on the reserve/COVID-19 list,[13] and activated him from the list eight days later.[14]
On September 13, 2020, Jefferson made his NFL debut against the Green Bay Packers, recording two receptions for 26 yards in the 34–43 loss.[15] During Week 3 against the Tennessee Titans, Jefferson had his first big breakthrough by finishing with 175 receiving yards and a touchdown on seven receptions, but the Vikings lost 30–31.[16] He followed up that performance the next week with four receptions for 103 yards in a 31–23 win over the Houston Texans. In doing so, he became just the fifth rookie wide receiver in Vikings history to have back to back games with at least 100 yards receiving. [17] During Week 6 against the Atlanta Falcons, Jefferson finished with 166 receiving yards and two touchdowns as the Vikings lost 23–40.[18]
NFL statistics
Year | Team | Games | Receiving | Rushing | Fumbles | ||||||||||
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GP | GS | Rec | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Att | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Fum | Lost | ||
2020 | MIN | 6 | 4 | 28 | 537 | 19.1 | 71T | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Career | 6 | 4 | 28 | 537 | 19.1 | 71 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Personal life
His brothers, Jordan and Ricky, also played college football at LSU. [19]
References
- ^ Gillen, Garland. "Another Jefferson stars for Destrehan football". fox8live.com. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
- ^ Times-Picayune, Andrew Lopez, NOLA com | The. "Destrehan's Justin Jefferson added to LSU football team". NOLA.com.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Justin Jefferson 2017 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ "Justin Jefferson 2018 Game Log". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
- ^ Guilbeau, Glenn. "LSU's Justin Jefferson will transition from Mr. Outside to Mr. Inside at receiver in 2019". The Advertiser.
- ^ "Justin Jefferson College Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ West, Jenna (December 29, 2019). "Five Things to Know About Justin Jefferson, LSU's Breakout Receiver". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- ^ "College Football Championship – Clemson vs LSU Box Score, January 13, 2020". College Football at Sports-Reference.com. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
- ^ Conway, Tyler. "LSU WR Justin Jefferson Declares for 2020 NFL Draft". Bleacher Report. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
- ^ "Justin Jefferson Stats". ESPN. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
- ^ "Justin Jefferson Combine Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
- ^ White, R.J. (April 23, 2020). "2020 NFL Draft grades: Vikings get an 'A' for selecting Justin Jefferson at No. 22 overall". CBS Sports. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- ^ "Vikings Announce Roster Moves". Vikings.com. July 27, 2020. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
- ^ "Vikings Announce Roster Moves; Justin Jefferson Activated". Vikings.com. August 4, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2020.
- ^ "Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings – September 13th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 20, 2020.
- ^ "Tennessee Titans at Minnesota Vikings – September 27th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved September 29, 2020.
- ^ "Minnesota Vikings at Houston Texans – October 4th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 6, 2020.
- ^ "Atlanta Falcons at Minnesota Vikings – October 18th, 2020". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 22, 2020.
- ^ Kubena, Brooks (September 20, 2018). "LSU family legacy continues through Justin Jefferson: 'It's like he was destined to do it'". The Advocate. Retrieved October 9, 2020.
External links