3 thoughts on what Justin Jefferson's hamstring injury means for Vikings

Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell announced on Friday that superstar receiver Justin Jefferson will miss some practice time during training camp with a mild left hamstring strain. Exactly how much time he'll miss is unclear, but O'Connell expressed no concern about Jefferson's availability for the regular season opener in Chicago on Sept. 8. He'll be re-evaluated next week.

Although Jefferson avoided a serious injury, there are still some short-term ramifications to this news. Let's go over three thoughts that jump out.

This isn't ideal for J.J. McCarthy

The person this news hurts most isn't necessarily Jefferson, who isn't expected to be out long. Frankly, he doesn't need any practice reps to go out and play at an extremely high level. The greater impact might be on J.J. McCarthy, who will miss out on some valuable practice reps with his No. 1 receiver. Each practice Jefferson misses is a lost chance for those two to build upon the chemistry and rapport they've been forming since the spring.

With that said, as long as Jefferson is able to return within the next couple weeks, they should have plenty of time to develop their connection prior to Week 1. And Jefferson knows some patience will be required when it comes to McCarthy's first season as a starter.

"I have no worries about this having an overall impact or effect on that dynamic or anything with our offense," O'Connell said.

Other receivers have a chance to step up

In the short term, Jefferson's absence means every other Vikings wide receiver slides up one spot on the estimated depth chart. Jordan Addison will get a lot of work as McCarthy's No. 1 target, as was the case after Jefferson left Thursday's practice. Jalen Nailor, who could be in line for a big season in a contract year, is now an every-down player as the No. 2 receiver.

After that is where it gets interesting. Several guys could be in the mix for that third spot without Jefferson, which means reps with the first-team offense in 11 personnel. One of those is Rondale Moore, a free agent acquisition who worked hard this offseason to rehab a torn ACL and get himself ready to go for training camp.

"You see the explosion," offensive coordinator Wes Phillips said of Moore, a former second-round pick who is a dynamic athlete at just 5'7". "He's obviously not a tall guy, but he's very explosive, very strong, and you see some of that quickness on his releases already. The thing for Rondale is, he was very attentive in the spring, but these are really some of his first reps. So just getting used to some of the splits, some of the little details of the plays when you're actually in there doing it, it's a little different from the meeting room."

Veteran Tim Jones and third-round rookie Tai Felton are a couple others who could be in the mix for first-team reps. The same can be said of a few practice-squad type players who have been around for multiple seasons. With no Jefferson, there will be more opportunities for everyone on the depth chart to stand out.

"I wanna see those other wideouts compete," Phillips said. "We got a lot of talented guys in the room. Young guys, guys who have been here maybe a few years, guys like Lucky Jackson and Thayer (Thomas), Jeshaun (Jones) in his second year. And then you've got Tai (Felton), you've got some other rookie free agents that we brought in who have shown some really good things, Dontae (Fleming) and Myles (Price). I just want to see those guys compete. Continue to grow in the system, understand the details. These guys have ability. It's really the details of the system and being sure to get to depths (on routes). Silas (Bolden) is another guy who's shown a lot of speed."

This could've been a lot worse

When the Vikings announced that O'Connell was going to provide an update on Jefferson's status prior to Friday's practice, it was easy to fear the worst. Jefferson said his exit from Thursday's practice was just due to some minor tightness in his legs, sure, but did something bad actually happen? Did an MRI reveal a significant injury?

Thankfully, that's not the case. It's not a knee injury or a calf strain or something substantial. Obviously, an injury of any sort to the Vikings' best player isn't a good thing, but O'Connell was pretty insistent that this is a short-term issue the team isn't concerned about. That's great news, all things considered. There's a case to be made that no one on the roster is more important than Jefferson — not even the quarterback.