Vikings make Jefferson best-paid WR with 4-year, $140 million deal

The Minnesota Vikings have reached agreement over a four-year, $140 million contract extension with their wide receiver Justin Jefferson, ESPN reported on Monday. The deal included $110 million of guaranteed money and made him the best-paid non-quarterback (non-QB) player in NFL history.

"The time has finally come. The deal I've been waiting for since I was a little kid," Jefferson said in video posted on Instagram. "Being doubted my whole career. Not being highly recruited. Not being the first receiver off the draft board. This whole journey wasn't easy for me. ... To be given a gift to play football at the highest level, it's a blessing. It's an honor."

Having been drafted by the Vikings with the 22nd pick in 2020, Jefferson was selected into Pro Bowl three times and the Second-team All-Pro in both of his first two seasons in the league. He reached the first summit of his career during the 2022 campaign as the NFL Offensive Player of the Year, a First-team All-Pro member, the NFL receptions leader and the NFL receiving yards leader of that season.

Though a hamstring injury cost Jefferson seven games in the 2023 season, he still managed to post 1,074 yards and five touchdowns with 68 catches for the Vikings.

"From the moment I arrived in Minnesota, Justin has consistently proven to be one of the best players in the NFL on and off the field and we are excited about having him as a cornerstone of our team for a long time to come," the Vikings' general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said. "He is the living embodiment of our culture with his joyful dedication to process and our goals. We couldn't be more excited for Justin and his family."

The Vikings finished the 2023 regular season with only seven wins and failed to make the playoffs. They replaced their starting QB Kirk Cousins with Sam Darnold and this year's NFL Draft No. 10 selection J.J. McCarthy.