Keeping Justin Jefferson is Vikings' top focus, per Dan Orlovsky

With Justin Jefferson currently on injured reserve, ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky says the Vikings’ top priority needs to be figuring out how to keep the wide receiver in Minnesota.

Jefferson is out with a hamstring injury, which will be re-evaluated in about four weeks. He sustained the injury in Minnesota’s Week 5 loss to the Chiefs. Some think that the receiver plans to shut it down for the remainder of the year, given the Vikings’ struggles.

But Jefferson shut that down pretty quickly.

“I’m tired of people saying that we’re looking into next season, or all of the trades and stuff like that,” Jefferson said, per NFL.com. “We’re focused still on this season. We have a lot more games to go and we have a lot more things to accomplish this season. We’re still focused in, and we still have the same goal as we had before the season. We just need to fix a few things, and I feel like we’ll be back on track.”

The interesting element, though, is that Jefferson’s rookie contract expires at the end of the 2024 season. That’s why Orlovsky believes the team needs to start planning for the future.

“The Vikings have one focus right now — easy for me to say, I’m not in the locker room — how do we keep Justin Jefferson?” Orlovsky said on The Dan Patrick Show. “That’s, I think, their No. 1 thing. I didn’t think they were a playoff football team with Justin. I don’t think they’re going to be one without Justin. So, now, because of the injury, because of the way the team’s playing and obviously because of where Kirk sits contract-wise, there’s a lot of question marks.

“I think organizationally, they have to ask the very hard question of, ‘How do we keep Justin Jefferson?'”

How do Vikings keep Justin Jefferson?

When it comes down to keeping Jefferson in Minnesota, the easy answer is to pay the man. But, as Orlovsky points out, every organization will be willing to meet his demands. So, how can the Vikings get an edge?

Orlovsky argued that it probably depends on the quarterback situation, and whether Jefferson believes the team can win with Kirk Cousins and the surrounding pieces. It creates and interesting scenario following the 2023 season.

Jefferson is regarded as one of the top receivers in the game right now. Already, he totaled 4,825 receiving yards and 28 touchdowns through his first three NFL seasons. Jefferson has been a Pro Bowl selection each of his first three years.

So far in 2023, the receiver has 36 catches for 571 yards and three touchdowns.