With The First Pick
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Justin Jefferson: PFF’s highest graded receiver through first 4 weeks

By Derek Mountain

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - SEPTEMBER 27: Justin Jefferson #18 of the Minnesota Vikings celebrates a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans during the third quarter of the game at U.S. Bank Stadium on September 27, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - SEPTEMBER 27: Justin Jefferson #18 of the Minnesota Vikings celebrates a touchdown against the Tennessee Titans during the third quarter of the game at U.S. Bank Stadium on September 27, 2020 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /
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Justin Jefferson
Vikings WR Justin Jefferson. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports /

Vikings rookie Justin Jefferson is the NFL’s highest graded wide receiver

An absolute stud at LSU last season, Justin Jefferson carried that momentum into the combine season and solidified himself as a first rounder in the 2020 draft running a 4.43 official 40 along with a solid performance in the vertical.

After the Vikings shipped wide receiver Stefon Diggs to the Bills, the Vikings found his predecessor at the 22nd selection in Justin Jefferson. In the stacked wide receiver class of 2020, Jefferson saw four receivers go before him in the first round.

However, after the first four weeks Jefferson is not only PFF’s highest graded rookie receiver, but the highest graded in all of football. PFF’s grading system has been highly criticized as it can be extremely volatile.

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Their grading system will never know the specifics of an assignment for that player within that team’s certain scheme. It’s nearly impossible to empirically prove that Jefferson has played like the best receiver in football through four weeks using PFF’s grading system.

Nevertheless, what we can say after four weeks is the Vikings got a baller at pick 22. Jefferson is coming off back-to-back 100 yard performances against the Titans and Texans. The Vikings have an upcoming matchup against the worst pass defense in football in the Seattle Seahawks. Don’t be surprised if it’s more of the same from Jefferson this weekend.

A lot of pundits thought the combination of Adam Thielen and Justin Jefferson could be problematic given they’re both at their best in the slot. Jefferson made his money in the slot last season at LSU where he hauled in a 111-1,540-18 statline. Jefferson isn’t the most physically imposing receiver standing at 6-foot 1 and a little over 200 pounds. At his size, he is definitely fast but also, he isn’t necessarily a burner.

Jefferson is so dynamic because of his ball skills and ability to separate:

He’s extremely well-rounded and really doesn’t have a huge flaw in his game. What makes his production so much more impressive through the beginning part of this season is he’s only a rookie. He didn’t have a preseason or normal summer regimen to master the intricacies of an NFL playbook.

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Expect more dominance from Jefferson as he continues to grow with Kirk Cousins and the Vikings offense moving forward.

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