The Green Bay Packers rivals, the Minnesota Vikings have placed wide receiver Justin Jefferson on injured reserve with a hamstring injury, which means that he will be out for the next four games. Jefferson suffered that hamstring injury in Week 5 against the Kansas City Chiefs in a 27-20 loss at home.
Minnesota is 1-4 on the season and they are going to miss on the field big time. Throughout the year, he has caught 36 passes for 571 yards receiving and three touchdowns. Justin Jefferson is averaging 15.9 yards per reception on the year.
They are going to miss him big time in the passing game and expect rookie Jordan Addison to step up in his absence along with K.J. Osborn. Jefferson is one of the best wide receivers in the NFL. He is looking for a new contract extension sooner rather than later.
Another move that the Green Bay Packers rival made was that quarterback Nick Mullens was also placed on injured reserve with a back injury that sidelined him in Week 5. He was serving as the backup quarterback to Kirk Cousins and now Jaren Hall will be the backup quarterback for the Vikings in the meantime.
He was a fifth-round selection (164th) overall selection in the 2023 NFL Draft out of BYU. Because of these roster moves with injured reserve, they signed wide receivers N’Keal Harry and Trishton Jackson to the actual 53-man roster and signed quarterback Sean Mannion, receiver Dan Chelsa, and tight end Troy Fumagalli to the practice squad.
Green Bay Packers Rival Minnesota Vikings Placing Justin Jefferson On Injured Reserve Makes It Feel Like a Kirk Cousins Trade is Almost Inevitable at this Point
The Green Bay Packers face the Minnesota Vikings in Week 8 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Minnesota appears to be tanking the season and Green Bay will be fighting for their playoff lives at that point. Justin Jefferson will not be playing in that game due to injury. One of the things Green Bay has to potentially watch for is the Vikings trade Kirk Cousins before then or after then.
His contract expires at the end of the season. Would Minnesota pull the plug on the season already? They face the Chicago Bears this Sunday. If the Vikings lose that football game, it feels like a fire sale is potentially coming. Minnesota and Green Bay would also face each other on New Year’s Eve. Would the Minnesota Vikings protect Justin Jefferson from further injury at that point?
Not having Nick Mullens around as the backup quarterback now is very interesting. If Cousins is traded and it seems like he will be, would they bring a veteran like Colt McCoy to play or would they just play the rookie quarterback Jaren Hall to see what they have him? Let’s be real, that’s the same term as tanking for Caleb Williams from USC and Drake Maye from North Carolina.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell and general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah have to be on the same page here. It remains to be seen what happens. There will be a lot of drama surrounding the Green Bay Packers rivals, the Minnesota Vikings over the next few weeks before the October 31, NFL trade deadline date.