Inside The Vikings

Justin Jefferson hits a milestone, has one game left to reach 1K yards

Jefferson had a quiet game on Thursday along with the rest of the offense, but 1,000 yards is well within reach heading into the season finale.
Will Ragatz|
Dec 25, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) looks on during warmups before the game against the Detroit Lions at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Dec 25, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) looks on during warmups before the game against the Detroit Lions at U.S. Bank Stadium. | Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

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Justin Jefferson had a quiet game along with the rest of the Vikings' offense in Thursday's win over the Lions, but he did set his annual NFL record. And with one game to play in Minnesota's season, 1,000 yards is well within reach for the superstar receiver.

Jefferson caught four passes for 30 yards from Max Brosmer, including a 10-yard pickup to essentially seal the victory late in the fourth quarter. That got him to 8,379 receiving yards in his career, which broke Randy Moss's NFL record (8,375) for yards in a player's first six seasons.

Previously, Jefferson has set the NFL records for receiving yards in a player's first two seasons, a player's first three seasons, a player's first four seasons, and a player's first five seasons. If he stays healthy, he'll almost certainly surpass Torry Holt at some point next season for the most yards in a player's first seven seasons (9,487). It's an annual tradition for Jefferson.

The 30 yards on Thursday got Jefferson to 947 in the 2025 season, which has been a unique one for him. The Vikings have gotten some of the worst quarterback play in the league from the combination of J.J. McCarthy, Carson Wentz, and Max Brosmer. Jefferson isn't blameless; he's had a down season by his standards in terms of drops and contested catch success. Where he's been most impressive is in his attitude and leadership throughout a difficult year for him and the team.

That means Jefferson needs 53 yards two Sundays from now, in the regular season finale against the Packers, in order to get to 1,000. That's obviously a round number that looks good on a player's Pro Football Reference page, but there's more on the line for Jefferson than that. If he gets to 1K, he'd join Randy Moss and Mike Evans as the only players in NFL history to do so in each of their first six seasons. Evans holds the record at 11 straight to begin a career, which ended this year. Jerry Rice has the overall record for 1,000-yard seasons, with 14 of them.

The Vikings will go into their Week 18 game against the Packers with several goals. They'd like to beat their border rivals and end the season on a five-game winning streak, with a winning record at 9-8. If J.J. McCarthy (hand) plays, they'd like to see continued momentum from him. And they'll certainly go into it knowing exactly how many yards Jefferson needs to get to the all-important 1K mark.

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI, who also covers the Twins, Timberwolves, Gophers, and other Minnesota teams. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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