Oct 23, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) practices before the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

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How Quarterback Play in Minnesota Is Affecting Justin Jefferson and the Vikings Offense through Week 12

Justin Jefferson's stats are at an all-time low this season

Following Sunday’s loss to the Green Bay Packers, the Minnesota Vikings have fallen to 4-7 on the season and are on the verge of missing the playoffs after last season’s heroics saw them finish 14-3.

There are multiple reasons as to why the Vikings are struggling so much this season, with the offensive line being a big concern. However, it is the quarterback play that has left Minnesota wanting more in the 2025-26 NFL season.

J.J. McCarthy’s Poor Form Costing Minnesota Dearly

During the offseason, the Minnesota Vikings decided to move on from Sam Darnold, who led the team to a 14-3 record and the Wild Card round of the playoffs. With J.J. McCarthy coming back from his meniscus injury, Minnesota seemed confident that it had its answer under center.

After 12 weeks of football, that confidence seems to be misplaced. Not only has McCarthy been extremely disappointing thus far, but his development was hindered after missing 5 games with an ankle injury.

The Minnesota Vikings had to know that J.J. McCarthy getting hurt in his rookie year and not having the opportunity to sit and learn behind veteran QBs was going to impact the version of him that you would see this year. @ChrisCanty99 pic.twitter.com/GFE3JR8DOV
— UNSPORTSMANLIKE Radio (@UnSportsESPN) November 25, 2025

In the six games that he has started this season, McCarthy has subpar stats, such as 929 passing yards and a completion percentage of just 54.1%. Moreover, McCarthy has only 6 touchdowns but 10 interceptions, and has a passer rating of just 57.9.

Surprisingly, McCarthy is struggling to perform at a higher level despite having top-quality receivers at his disposal in Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. Hailed as one of the top receivers in the league, Jefferson’s production this season has not been up to the mark, and the lack of quality quarterback play is at the heart of the problem.

Before this season, the longest Justin Jefferson had ever gone without 100 yards was 4 games in a row.

Now, he hasn't topped 80 yards in 6 straight weeks. pic.twitter.com/4Eo2fjCbMG
— Underdog (@Underdog) November 24, 2025

Justin Jefferson on Track for Career-Low Season

Entering his sixth season in the NFL, Justin Jefferson was one of the most feared receivers in the league and for good reason. Jefferson has amassed 1,000 or more receiving yards in all 5 of his previous seasons, and racked up a league-leading 1,809 yards in 2022 on his way to being named the NFL Offensive Player of the Year.

However, all of his numbers are down this year, and the impact is clearly being felt on the offensive side of the ball. The 4-time Pro Bowler has just 795 receiving yards and 2 touchdowns through Week 12 of the 2025-26 NFL season. The Vikings star is averaging a career low in yards per reception (13.3) and average yards per game (72.27).

Jefferson is as healthy as he has ever been, and it’s not only him whose numbers are at an all-time low. Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson, the next two best pass catchers for the Vikings, are also struggling due to the same reason, and that is the low level of quarterback play.

Justin Jefferson said he's "trying to be that person for [J.J. McCarthy] that he can always lean on and talk to."

Regardless how you feel about McCarthy… that's leadership 👏 (via @WillRagatz)pic.twitter.com/rAilI3slVx
— SleeperNFL (@SleeperNFL) November 22, 2025

But despite the struggles on offense, Jefferson is standing by his young signal caller, and while he stated to the media that it is frustrating to lose week after week, his support for McCarthy has not wavered.

Now, with no room for error left this season, Minnesota’s backs are against the wall, and if things continue to go south, one can’t help but think that the Vikings may go in a different direction at the quarterback position next season.

Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

J.J. McCarthy

Justin Jefferson

Minnesota Vikings

NFL

Devavrat Kulkarni

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I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!