Football season hasn’t even started yet, and some folks’ fantasy teams could already be in trouble. The star wide receiver of the Minnesota Vikings and the perennial WR1 of nearly every dynasty and fantasy football format is reportedly contending with a hamstring injury that ultimately resulted in him being ruled out of the team’s training camp activities for July 25th.
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The situation will certainly be one to monitor throughout the weekend, but we may not discover anything else until Jefferson has another opportunity to participate in Monday’s practice. Hamstring injuries can be rather tricky to deal with, but according to Dr. Morse of the Injury Expertz, it isn’t inherently surprising for Jefferson to endure this specific type of injury.
“The highest risk for these guys is late July, August, and in the first six weeks of the season, because that’s when the soft tissue is at highest risk because you’re transitioning from offseason to full go..”
On account of the strain being listed as a “mild” one, Dr. Morse suggests that Jefferson is now just as susceptible to the injury as his fellow wide receiver out in San Francisco, Deebo Samuel. While there’s no need to hit the panic button just yet, you may want to cross your fingers for the next two months.
“He should be good to go in about two weeks, but if this is a re-aggravation, then there is obviously an increased risk for re-injury within the first six weeks of the season… If this lingers to mid August, we’re probably going to have to worry about reinjury risk increasing… Kind of think of your Deebo Samuels, last year we had Nico Collins, Mike Evans had a bad hammy. They can linger and they’re notorious for midseason,” he said.
Dr. Morse also alluded to the fact that Jefferson rarely misses a regular season game. He’s managed to start in all 17 games in three of the last four seasons, however, his absences from the 2023 season were also the result of a hamstring issue. So while it’s certainly not encouraging to hear a player’s durability be compared to that of Deebo Samuel, who has never played a full season in his entire career, it’s important to remember that Jefferson is a different caliber of player.
The star wide receiver even went out of his way to clarify as much after making what would ultimately be his final catch of the week. “Just having a little bit of tightness,” Jefferson explained. “Of course, with the past, recent injuries and the stuff that I have gone through before, just taking precaution and understanding that it’s the second day of camp, not the 30th.”
Everyone within the Vikings’ facility seems to be suggesting that the issue is a minor one and that his availability for Week 1 of the regular season isn’t at risk at all. Given his aforementioned attendance record, it’s safe to say that fantasy managers can still trust Jefferson to anchor their WR1 spot in 2025.
