Justin Jefferson is eligible to come off the IR in Week 10 but there is no firm indication that the Vikings star will be ready right away.
The Minnesota Vikings are down following a season-ending injury to quarterback Kirk Cousins and prolonged absence of superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson. But they are not out. Jefferson is eligible to return from the injured reserve next week after being put on the IR with a hamstring injury.
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell didn’t offer any indication that Jefferson was sure to be ready, saying that the team will have to go through end-of-week evaluations first. The original timeline for Jefferson’s return was between four and six weeks, so it wouldn’t be too surprising if Jefferson required more time to recover. Right now, that seems to be the direction things are headed.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter provided a Jefferson update that paints an uncertain picture of when he’ll be back.
“Vikings’ Pro Bowl wide receiver Justin Jefferson is eligible to come off the injured reserve this week from a hamstring injury that was expected to sideline him four to six weeks. But Jefferson still has to meet with the doctors, the team has to decide how it wants to handle Jefferson, and there currently continues to be uncertainty about his status, per sources, despite the fact that he could be activated as early as this week,” writes Schefter.
Jefferson is still the Vikings’ leading receiver at 571 receiving yards this season and is tied for second in both catches (with standout rookie Jordan Addison) and touchdown receptions (with star tight end T.J. Hockenson). Minnesota’s blitz-happy defense has held each of its opponents to below 20 points in each of the last three weeks and forced at least one turnover in each game, giving enough room for the offense to come through. But now that Cousins is sidelined, can that winning formula continue?
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