The Minnesota Vikings have signed Justin Jefferson to a four-year, $140 million contract extension that includes $110 million guaranteed, NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero reported on Monday, per sources.
Jefferson announced the news on social media, quelling any Minnesota worries by confirming he finally signed "the deal I have been waiting for since I was a little kid." The Vikings soon after announced the news.
The three-time Pro Bowler's massive extension not only resets the wide receiver market but makes Jefferson the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL.
Jefferson's new deal puts an end to an offseason saga that grew wary with rumors while several wideouts were handed big contracts up until this point, including those of Detroit's Amon-Ra St. Brown, Philadelphia's A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, Miami's Jaylen Waddle, Houston's Nico Collins, Indianapolis' Michael Pittman and Calvin Ridley, Tennessee's free-agent splash.
With a new salary of $35 million per year, Jefferson tops Brown's market-setting deal signed in April and surpasses San Francisco's Nick Bosa as the league's highest-paid non-QB in the league. Now under contract through the 2028 season, Jefferson also receives $89 million fully guaranteed at signing, Pelissero added.
Since coming into the league as a first-round pick in 2020, Jefferson has earned a reputation as one of the league's most exciting playmakers while producing historic numbers worthy of such a grand investment.
Jefferson is one of five players ever with 5,000-plus receiving yards in his first four seasons, and his 5,899 career yards are nearly 400 more than any other player in NFL history along that same measure, according to NFL Research. His 98.3 receiving yards per game also stand as the most in NFL history (minimum of 50 games), and he's improved that average on a yearly basis (87.5, 95.1, 106.4, 107.4 in 2023) the past four seasons.
Jefferson's best season came in 2022, when he led the league in receptions (128) and receiving yards (1,809) to earn the AP's Offensive Player of the Year award along with his first All-Pro honor. Adversity struck in the follow-up to Jefferson's extraordinary year due to a hamstring injury in 2023, but he still managed to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark in 10 games played.
With his payday in order, Jefferson will enter 2024 with a new quarterback following the offseason departure of Kirk Cousins, and either veteran Sam Darnold or rookie J.J. McCarthy will be the next to benefit from Jefferson's exceptional play.
Jefferson's long-awaited extension comes just in time for the Vikings to get to work as the club begins mandatory minicamp on Tuesday.
