As one of the NFL's best playmaking wide receivers, the Vikings' Justin Jefferson is trying to rediscover himself. With his team sitting at 4-5, the former LSU Tiger said he wants to return to the form he displayed in 2022. In a career-defining season, he led the league with 129 receptions and 1809 yards receiving.
Speaking to the media on Thursday, he discussed some of his frustrations. According to ESPN's Kevin Seifert, he expressed his desire to return to his former form and play in what he referred to as 'savage mode'.
"Just going out there and just killing it," Jefferson said, "and not worrying about the plays, not worrying about anything else... "I want to win. I'm not really mad at the situation that I'm in or I'm not mad at the players that we have or the plays that's being called. Of course, I'm mad after an interception. You want me to be happy and go chase them down? That's not really something that I want to happen."
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"Of course, the outcome of the game is us losing, and I was the one that's getting thrown that ball, and it is getting picked off. "So a lot of emotion goes towards that. But at the end of the day, I want to win, and I'm an ultra-competitor, and a lot of people that don't play this game and don't play sports don't understand the competitive side of it. So yeah, I want to win, and emotionally things get heated sometimes, and things weren't going our way at that moment. So just wanting a better outcome."
Despite those forceful words, Minnesota hasn't shown the same type of fire recently. They have fallen to last place in the ultra-competitive NFC North and have lost three of their last four games.
So while Jefferson is at an All-Pro level in the league, a receiver is only as good as the guy passing the ball. Young quarterback JJ McCarthy has been injury-prone, but he has shown flashes of brilliance when he's on the field. Overall, however, McCarthy has completed 53.7 percent of his passes for 692 yards, five touchdowns, and six interceptions he's expected to return to action after being roughed up by the Baltimore Ravens last week
The Vikes will look to get back in the winning column as they take on their division rivals, the Chicago Bears, on Sunday.