BIOGRAPHY
Justin Jefferson was born June 16, 1999, in St. Rose, Louisiana. He is a wide receiver for the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL. 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.
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. 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. In the National Championship against Clemson, he had nine receptions for 106 yards in the 42–25 victory. On January 15, 2020, Jefferson announced that he would forgo his senior season and enter the NFL Draft.
Jefferson was selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the first round with the 22nd overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. In Week 13 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Jefferson recorded nine catches for 121 yards and a touchdown during a 27–24 overtime win in this game he broke the 1,000 receiving yard mark. In Week 15 against the Chicago Bears, Jefferson broke Randy Moss's Vikings rookie receiving record by catching eight passes, putting him at 74 receptions, surpassing the 69 catches Moss had in 1998. By the season's end, Jefferson had set the NFL record for most receiving yards (1,400) by a rookie in NFL history after surpassing Anquan Boldin's 1,377 yards in 2003. He was one of only two rookies named to the 2021 Pro Bowl, alongside Chase Young of the Washington Football Team.
On February 9, 2023, Jefferson was awarded the Associated Press Offensive player of the Year award.