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Justin Jefferson used the nickname endearingly but in a tone fitting of a soon-to-be seventh-year veteran who took on a new level of leadership during the 2025 season.
“Young’un’” is what he called quarterback J.J. McCarthy after the Vikings’ season-ending win over the Green Bay Packers, which McCarthy exited early after aggravating an injury to his throwing hand.
“It’s definitely on to more work. On to getting my young’un right,” Jefferson said of his plans for the offseason. “Making sure we don’t have the same outcome [as] this season. I’m ready for the offseason. Ready to go back to work and prove I’m still one of the best.”
Jefferson reached the 1,000-yard mark for his sixth straight season, but it took three quarterbacks and a final push against the Packers to get him there. His 1,048 yards this season are the fewest of his career, even 26 yards shy of his 2023 total when he appeared in only 10 games because of injuries.
Jefferson finished the season with a career-low three 100-yard games in the season, none of which came solely from McCarthy’s hands.
McCarthy got Jefferson most of the way to his 101 total on Jan. 4, but it was backup Max Brosmer who bumped him to triple digits with a 16-yard pass to start the fourth quarter. Jefferson’s other two 100-yard games both came with Carson Wentz at quarterback.
Jefferson’s not been shy about discussing the frustrations of this season and has been equally straightforward about the need to build a better foundation with McCarthy this coming offseason.
He didn’t put too much stock, though, in limited time working as a pair last offseason as affecting their chemistry.
McCarthy was still rehabbing his 2024 season-ending knee injury through spring 2025, and Jefferson then missed most of training camp because of a hamstring strain..
While Jefferson did agree that missed time inherently has some effect, he said the pair still found some opportunities to connect this season. They just need it to translate more in-game.
“Just like I’ve said before, we need to get J.J. out of the little, small bad habits that he had throughout the season,” Jefferson said. “But he’s still young. He still has room to grow. He still has time to really blossom as a quarterback. This is his first real year playing.
“People need to give him a little bit more leniency, but we definitely will go back to work and still put in that work to get where we need to get.”
McCarthy‘s trio of connections with Jefferson on the Vikings’ opening drive were some of the pair’s best of the season. Jefferson amassed 39 yards on those three catches, the yardage total higher than five of his full-game totals this season.
McCarthy said in his postgame presser that he and Jefferson had been working this season on trusting each other and “trusting [Jefferson’s] gonna make the play if I put it to the spot.”
While the two’s chemistry hasn’t always manifested on the field, their rapport has been evident off it. Jefferson never wavered on his public support of McCarthy and often spoke in a mentoring way about the near 23-year-old.
The Vikings will have decisions to make at quarterback, and what improvement McCarthy makes this offseason will impact how they view any competition upon the return to organized team activities and then training camp.
Jefferson didn’t want to get into whether McCarthy would or should be the quarterback in 2026.
Said Jefferson: “J.J. is our guy right now, so my job is to connect with him during the offseason and get him to where we need to go.”
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