Vikings superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson joined Sports Illustrated at Radio Row ahead of Super Bowl 58. Jefferson expressed how much he appreciates the competitive relationship he has with Ja'Marr Chase.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 It's two receivers here, but the guy to my left is the best receiver in the league.
00:04 We got Justin Jefferson. What's up, dawg? How we feeling?
00:07 Hey, man. I can't complain. Very blessed. Very grateful to be in the situation that I'm in.
00:12 Hey, it's a journey, man. It's a journey.
00:16 So I was kind of saying this on the backside here. Patrick, me and Patrick go way back. '08,
00:22 came out the same class. When we were in Arizona, before you got in the league,
00:25 he was saying like, "Hey, my dawg Jordan got a little brother that's gonna take over."
00:29 So before you started killing at LSU, did you ever see yourself sitting in this position like,
00:36 "I'm the top dog in the league"? No. I mean, of course, you have the dreams.
00:42 Of course, you have the vision of being out there on that field as a little kid,
00:48 being a superstar, being the top athlete. But there's millions and millions of kids that have
00:55 that same exact dream. So having the ability to see Pat, meet Pat, to experience being at LSU with
01:04 my brothers, seeing Odell, seeing Jarvis, seeing all of these different people at eight, nine,
01:11 10 years old, all of that played a part in my process of being where I am now.
01:18 Because I definitely was watching everything Pat do. I watch everything Odell do. I go to
01:23 practices and see the one hands that they do. So all of that played a part in my mind.
01:28 And then whenever it was that opportunity for me to step foot and do what I need to do,
01:32 I worked very, very hard at it. I wanted to be on this type of platform ever since I had the
01:38 ability and I had the confidence that I could do it. So, hey man, it's been crazy to be in the
01:48 spots that I have been with the different people that has been entering my life. But Pat P has
01:53 definitely one of my favorite people to experience his whole career from college all the way until
01:59 the NFL. And for him and my brother to be best friends and for him to even come to the Vikings
02:05 and to play on the same team. It's crazy, man. It's crazy.
02:10 Okay. So you talked about Odell, you talked about Jarvis. Jarvis, my dog.
02:21 So obviously you were around Baton Rouge a lot, looking at a lot of receivers.
02:26 Were you primarily watching those guys and picking up some skills that you got? Obviously,
02:32 the roster is crazy. You catch them all with your hands. So obviously, Odell and them,
02:35 they were doing that a lot. Were you looking at NFL guys as well or were you modeling yourself
02:40 out of the guys that you saw in LSU? Yeah. I definitely modeled myself after
02:44 the guys in the NFL. As soon as Devoncie Adams got into the league and really started
02:51 killing it, started watching his releases, watching his ability to run routes and get open.
02:56 Of course, Keenan Allen always have been a favorite of mine.
03:01 His ability to run routes and get open and not being the fastest on the field is insane to me.
03:09 And of course, being close to Odell and Jarvis, their movements and how Odell moves,
03:16 I pick pieces of everybody. I implement a whole bunch of different styles into my game.
03:22 I feel like that's what makes it very unique because I have a whole bunch of different
03:28 abilities, different ways to run my routes and get open and catch the ball.
03:33 You can't compare me to anyone else. Right, right. Okay. So obviously,
03:41 the future is very bright in the NFL when it comes to receivers. You got you, you got Jamar
03:45 Chase. Y'all were teammates in Baton Rouge. Right. Obviously, we have the commercials. We're going to
03:50 talk about that in a minute. But how is that friendly level of competition between you two?
03:56 Is it like he got a game first? I see what he did. Okay. I'm going to one up you. Talk to me about
04:02 that, man. Talk to me about that. It's crazy because when you talk about LSU, you think about
04:08 Odell and Jamar. I mean, the Jarvis. It was just like me and Jamar. We came in together. We were
04:16 just like brothers playing with each other, had that competitive spirit, want to beat each other,
04:20 but also have the respect for each other. I feel like that goes a long way for us. But it's just
04:28 like you said, it's always a competitive thing between us. Just like if I catch one hand,
04:33 he's trying to outdo that one hander. If I get a 200 yard game, he's trying to get 210.
04:38 So it's always that competitive spirit with us. And I love that. I love having a person that I can
04:44 really connect to on that side of things to call a brother of mine. We can always call each other
04:51 and talk about anything. And I feel like you have to have that type of connection with someone,
04:55 especially in the league, that has that same type of status as you, that is doing great in the league
05:01 as you, to surround yourself with those type of people. It's great. That's for sure. Okay.
05:08 So we got the glasses, you got the swag. Talk to me a little bit about that. Feel good. You know,
05:15 feel good. Play good. Play good. Pay good. Are you a guy where it's like, I'm piecing together my fit
05:21 and depending on the fit that I'm walking through the tunnel, I know what type of game I'm going to
05:26 have today. Talk to me about that. Talk to me about the swag. I definitely agree. You feel good.
05:30 You look good. You play good. I definitely agree with that. But just like you said, having the
05:36 shades on, having the jewelry on, you know, having the swag, you know, having the nickname Jets,
05:43 you know, just all of that plays a part into, you know, having that confidence out there on that
05:47 field. And then it also goes into, you know, it's all showtime, you know, at the end of the day,
05:54 you know, the camera's on you, the kids are watching you. That's what it's all about. You
05:59 know, just being there for the kids, having been that role model for the kids. Of course, they're
06:03 watching every move that you make. So, you know, just always having that type of attitude. And of
06:09 course, it keeps me having that confidence. You know, when I'm out there with that type of swag
06:15 and that type of confidence, I feel like no one can guard me. So when I'm out there on that field,
06:20 it's like, hey, I'm going out here making somebody embarrassed.
06:24 All right. So let's talk about the team for a minute. You know,
06:30 obviously the year prior, y'all were one of the top teams. This year, we had some injuries. You
06:34 missed some games. Kirk missed some games. What do you think you guys have to do to get back up
06:39 into being one of the top teams in the league next year? Yeah. Well, one, we can't hurt ourselves
06:43 with the turnovers. I feel like we were one of the worst teams in the turnovers this year,
06:47 especially from the first five, six games of the season. So that's what the tough part about it is.
06:53 You know, especially if you look at the games that I had, the first four games, five games of the
06:58 season, I had 140 plus in four of them. So, you know, and still losing, still not, you know,
07:05 not getting up. That's the worst. That's the worst. You know, as a receiver, that's the worst,
07:10 having a great game, wanting to be that spark of the game and be like, you're one of the main
07:15 reasons why you won the game and then not coming out with the victory, you know, having one of the
07:21 best career days. So it's tough to deal with that. But just like you said, we had all of the different
07:26 injuries, all of the different things that happened throughout the whole season to really
07:30 hurt us and to really make it harder for us to overcome. And that's a tough thing. And, you know,
07:36 it's football, just like, you know, you know, it happens and some stuff you really can't control.
07:41 But, you know, it's an off season is a long, long process. You know, definitely looking for ways to,
07:48 to, you know, better myself, of course, as a receiver, but my body as well. Of course, I want
07:54 to last the whole season. I don't want to miss any single games. I don't want to be the reason
08:00 why we saying, oh, Justin was out and we didn't have our number one receiver and we didn't have
08:05 our number one weapon. So, of course, I'm having that in the back of my mind this whole off season
08:10 and, you know, having a different process towards things. All right. So you can't, I think you came
08:14 over here with a pillow. Come on, man. You came over with something. Come on, man. Okay. So talk
08:19 to us about your partnership with Sleep Number, dawg. Well, first of all, the partnership with
08:23 Sleep Number has definitely been outstanding. Of course, you know, the whole NFL is pretty much
08:29 using the bed. 80% of the NFL players are using the Sleep Number smart bed. So that's the number
08:34 one thing, especially with the whole process of coming back on the field, the recovery.
08:40 Sleep is the number one thing. So, of course, Sleep Number did a phenomenal job by getting me
08:46 the bed that I needed, the tools that I needed to have me back on the field as fast as possible.
08:52 And, of course, I'm on a and now if you buy a pillow, you get a free one and that is going to
08:59 the American Cancer Society. So make sure you buy a pillow and you get a free one and it goes
09:06 towards the American Cancer Society. So this one is for you, my brother. Oh, this one is for you,
09:14 my brother. Bring it. Be good. Hey, Jefferson, I'm going home now.
09:22 I need a nap. I need a nap. Hey, you need a nap. You're going to be well rejuvenated.
09:28 Appreciate you, man. Appreciate you having me. Of course. Of course. Much love, my brother.