You never would have thought it would be possible five weeks ago, but the Minnesota Vikings are the hottest team in the NFL. Through injuries and roster shuffling, they’ve been able to rattle off five wins in a row after a 1-4 start, and would be a playoff team in the NFC if the season ended today. And according to reports out of their training facility, the Vikings could be getting all-world wide receiver Justin Jefferson back as early as this weekend.
Jefferson Could Be Back For Vikings This Week
Update: #Vikings WR Justin Jefferson has been running without discomfort recently, according @DWolfsonKSTP
Can you imagine Josh Dobbs, who’s already playing at a high level, getting Jefferson to help the offense?
The Vikings play the #Broncos on Week 11 on Sunday Night Football… https://t.co/3SlyWNFiHD pic.twitter.com/V3kjVunLQu
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) November 14, 2023
All looked lost when Jefferson suffered a hamstring injury in a Week 5 loss to the Chiefs, and he was placed on the injured reserve list and scheduled to miss at least four games. It was a tough blow for the Vikings, and things only got worse the following week when Kirk Cousins was lost for the year due to a non-contact ailment. The team has somehow won two in a row, but they were without their two offensive stars as they continued to attempt to dig themselves out of a hole.
Over the last two weeks, it has been the Josh Dobbs story. The quarterback has been a member of 5 different NFL franchises in the past calendar year, but he looks to have found a home for at least the rest of 2023 in Minnesota. Dobbs has helped the team win two straight under tough circumstances, and he could have perhaps the most talented target in the game coming back to help him as early as this week.
End Of 21-Day Window Inching Closer
.@AdamSchefter with the latest on how close Justin Jefferson is to returning to action. pic.twitter.com/CjaVJu1ZU0
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) November 12, 2023
As Vikings insider Darren Wolfson reported on Tuesday, Jefferson has been running without discomfort lately. It is obviously an excellent sign as the team has said that they won’t bring him back until he is at 100%, and there is a possibility that he is able to play this Sunday night against the Broncos.
The next game on the schedule for the Vikings will be the Week 12 matchup with the Bears, which would be the last game that Jefferson would be eligible to return in. Minnesota has a bye week after that, and the wide receiver’s 21-day window to return to game action would be closed by the time they take the field again on December 10th.
The Vikings are currently listed as 2.5-point underdogs for their prime-time road game this weekend.
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