Vikings misuse of Justin Jefferson costs

Justin Jefferson generated NFL MVP buzz during the 2022 regular season by leading the league with 128 receptions and 1,809 receiving yards. Unfortunately, the first-team All-Pro wide receiver won't be leading Minnesota into the divisional round of Atlanta Falcons Pet Gear the 2023 playoffs.The Vikings, the No. 3 seed and slight favorites playing at home, . While the NFC North champions had trouble running the ball, the biggest reason for them losing was Jefferson being limited to seven catches for 47 yards on nine targets.MORE:Although offensive-minded rookie head coach Kevin O'Connell did well to lead Minnesota to 13-4 record thanks to an impo sibly high level of execution in close games, his initial playoff failure was due to not involving or scheming Jefferson open enough.The Vikings started out well. Quarterback Kirk Cousins completed the first pa s of the game to Jefferson for 10 yards and a first down. Jefferson would catch three more pa ses for Colby Gossett Jersey 10, 5 and 5 yards on that drive, falling just short of a TD before a Cousins scoring sneak.It looked like Jefferson was headed for a ma sive night against a weak Giants secondary led by cornerback Adoree' Jackson. But after catching all four of those targets for 30 yards, he was an absolute non-factor.MORE:Not surprisingly, Jefferson's only other catch of the half came during a succe sful Vikings two-minute drill. His 5-yard gain on his fifth target came before Cousins found fellow wideout K.J. Osborn for a TD pa s in the end zone.That means Jefferson was only targeted four times in the second half, catching two for 12 yards. The Giants did a good job of putting their primary coverage on him, and Cousins was comfortable throwing to tight end T.J. Hockenson (10 catches for 129 yards on 11 targets), Adam Thielen, Dalvin Cook and Osborn.MORE:But it was shocking how O'Connell, a Sean McVay protege, didn't give Jefferson the Cooper Kupp treatment and work to make sure the Vikings Kyle Pitts Jersey could get him open in key situations. Jefferson's speed, quickne s, route-running and hands deserved more chances to make plays, even with a higher degree of difficulty.in a shocking turn of events, Jefferson wasn't targeted once during the fourth quarter, which the Vikings entered trailing 24-21. They settled first for a tying field goal, but they failed to score a would-be tying TD on either of their final two drives, with Jefferson disappearing from the game plan.When the game was on the line on a fourth-and-8 at the Vikings' 48 with 1:44 left, Cousins opted for a completion to Hockenson that went for only Vic Beasley Jersey 3 yards, well short of the line to gain.Jefferson didn't even get a chance on the game's biggest play.MORE:O'Connell had his moments during the regular season when he got cute with personnel usage. But when Jefferson was given at least double-digit targets, the Vikings went 9-2. They were 6-1 when he had at least 10 receptions in a game and 9-1 when he hit at least 100 yards receiving.Last year, McVay, with help from O'Connell, made sure Kupp remained a Tajae Sharpe Jersey dominant force through four playoff games, all the way up to Kupp earning MVP honors in Super Bowl 56. Jefferson won't be duplicating anything close to that run.Vikings fans had visions of Jefferson, in his first playoff game, continuing to build a strong comparison to the legendary Randy Mo s. Consider, however, that Mo s started his playoff career by scoring in five consecutive playoff games (seven total TDs) to go with 26 receptions for 584 yards in that stretch. Jefferson won't be making that kind of immediate impact.Why did the Vikings and O'Connell forget about Jefferson in the most important game, to date, of their improbable season? That's something that should haunt them for the long offseason that is to follow.