Vikings' Justin Jefferson Has 'Mild' Hamstring Injury, Will be Held Out of Practice

Superstar Minnesota Vikings wideout Justin Jefferson was held out of training camp practice on Friday with a mild hamstring strain, per head coach Kevin O'Connell, who provided more information to reporters.

Jefferson, 25, was a Pro Bowler in each of his first three seasons and a first-team All-Pro and the Offensive Player of the Year award winner in the 2022 campaign. A right hamstring injury cost him seven games in 2023, however, leading to his most muted season as a pro.

It was still a fantastic year, as he caught 68 passes for 1,074 yards and five touchdowns. For the average receiver in the NFL, that's a career year. For Jefferson, it was his worst season as a pro.

And it led him to taking precautions in his preparations for the 2024 season.

"I'm so scared for it to happen again that I've been overly cautious about it, just trying to take care of my body in the right way, just trying to find new things that I can implement in my day-to-day life that can better help me throughout the season," he told reporters in August. "I've definitely been working on my hamstrings a little bit more, making sure that I'm injury-proof."

That mindful approach was shared by the Vikings.

"We want to make sure his training camp progression is the right kind of progression coming off a first time for him having the type of injury he had," head coach Kevin O'Connell said at the time. "It's more a matter of the dialogue that he has with [vice president of player health and performance Tyler Williams] and myself and making sure that our plan for him as we progress forward through the month of August has him, in his prime, optimal, physical football shape and ready to roll while also still tactically getting him prepared."

It appeared to work during the 2024 regular season, as Jefferson registered 103 catches for 1,533 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Without Jefferson, the Vikings' top two wideouts are Jordan Addison and Jalen Nailor, who would each take on a bigger role in the passing game if the four-time Pro Bowler was ever sidelined.

This latest injury will obviously be a concern, but at this point, there isn't any indication that Jefferson will miss regular season time.

Thankfully, there's plenty of time for Jefferson to recover with Minnesota's season beginning on Sept. 8 at the Chicago Bears.