Justin Jefferson Injury Update: When Will WR Return to Vikings?

One major concern with fantasy football owners this week is the pesky “questionable” tag assigned to star WR Justin Jefferson. The Vikings have been mostly mum in regard to Jefferson’s return status for Week 1 against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Monday Night Football. Below, we will dish out an injury update on Jefferson and highlight a potential date when he could be back. We will also look at Jefferson and Vikings betting odds.

🏥 When will Justin Jefferson return and be back with Vikings?

Jefferson was back at Vikings practice this week, but it is unclear on how much he was participating. The Vikings' superstar wide receiver has been dealing with a hamstring strain that he suffered in the team’s second training camp practice. 

Jefferson felt “tightness” in his left hamstring on July 24 and took himself out of practice. An MRI on the hamstring revealed a “very mild” strain. The 26-year-old did not play in any of the Vikings’ three pre-season games.

At the time, Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell said that Jefferson would be out just a week. Instead, Jefferson was sidelined for nearly a month.

All that said, there is not much fear at all that the injury will impact Jefferson’s Week 1 status. He is currently ramping up for Minnesota’s Week 1 game against the Bears on Monday Night Football odds.

“[Jefferson] is kind of through this period of time where we let him get his football legs back underneath him,” O’Connell said on Aug. 18. “We’ve got a little bit of time now to kind of work him back in, continue to build his reps up here as we go.” 

Fantasy owners should have no issue with drafting Jefferson near the top of the first round despite his “questionable” tag for Week 1 against the Bears. Jefferson is fully expected to play on Monday, Sept. 8, barring any setbacks.

Here is a look at the Vikings schedule to start the season.

• Week 1 Monday, September 8: Minnesota Vikings at Chicago Bears
• Week 2 Sunday, September 14: Atlanta Falcons at Minnesota Vikings
• Week 3 Sunday, September 21: Cincinnati Bengals at Minnesota Vikings
• Week 4 Sunday, September 28: Pittsburgh Steelers at Minnesota Vikings

⏳ How long will Justin Jefferson be out for?

Most athletes can recover from a mild hamstring strain in 1-3 weeks. Had this injury occurred during the regular season, it’s a strong possibility that Jefferson would have simply played through it.

The Vikings simply used an abundance of caution with their prized offensive possession during the pre-season. Factoring in to this delayed timeline is the fact that a right hamstring tear caused Jefferson to miss seven games in the 2023 season. 

🏈 Justin Jefferson fantasy football outlook

Jefferson is annually one of the top picks in fantasy football. This will once again be the case this year, despite this "injury concern" that probably shouldn’t even be regarded as an "injury concern."

Jefferson is going in the top 5 overall of most fantasy football drafts, and as high as No. 1 overall in some leagues. The star Vikings receiver has NFL MVP odds of +12000. His season-long receiving yards Over/Under is 1,250.5.

💰 Vikings betting odds

The Vikings are expected to be in the mix for the NFC crown. Super Bowl odds show them at +2200 to win it all. O’Connell’s club is +320 to win the highly competitive NFC North.

Minnesota is +104 to make the NFL playoffs and -132 to miss the playoffs. Their win total has been set at 8.5 victories.

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