John Shipley: Does Justin Jefferson have to do everything for Vikings?

Dec. 27—The Vikings absorbed another in a series of near-fatal blows on Sunday, losing at home to the Los Angeles Rams to abdicate the right to control their own playoff destiny. They remain alive for an NFC wild-card berth, but it never really felt like it at U.S. Bank Stadium — before, during and after.

The crowd was late-arriving, and while it did its best to get behind a team that trailed from stem to stern, it had clearly run out of energy by the time the Vikings got down 30-20 with 2 minutes, 3 seconds remaining.

The Vikings weren't going to win, and the fans weren't going to bust a lung trying to will them over .500 for the first time since the end of the 2018 season. Maybe fans, like the Vikings, have little left in the tank. Whatever the case, head coach Mike Zimmer joined the players' pregame huddle to try to generate some juice, linebacker Anthony Barr said.

"It felt like it was a little dead inside here today. It's usually got a nice buzz, and for some reason, it wasn't like that," said Barr, who intercepted two Matt Stafford passes inside the red zone on Sunday. "I'm not saying that's why we lost, I'm just saying that I think that's why he came in there and was letting us know we had to play with a little more energy and find our own energy today."

Whatever Zimmer saw, Justin Jefferson saw, too. Only, the second-year receiver didn't attribute it to the U.S. Bank Stadium crowd.

"I felt it as soon as I came into the locker room," he said. "I was trying to pick up the guys and everything, but (we) still came out slow, still didn't come out with that energy that we needed, especially with this type of team."

Considering that the Vikings trailed 13-3 at halftime, despite Barr's interception at the Rams' 14-yard line with 4:11 left in the second quarter, Zimmer and Jefferson appeared to have good reason for their apprehension.

Zimmer explained in big strokes why the Vikings lost — the Rams were better in the run game, his team was bad in the red zone, etc. — but only Jefferson was willing to criticize the performance of a team that has hovered near .500 all season without getting over that hump.

After wondering aloud why his team didn't seem pumped to play on Sunday, Jefferson was asked about why the team managed only two touchdowns after getting to the Rams' 8-yard line or closer five times (the first trip ended with an interception in the end zone, two others with field goals).

"I think we should be more aggressive when we get down there, as soon as we get down there," Jefferson said. "But I'm not the one calling the plays. I'm just here to do my job and do what's told to me. But we can't get down to the red zone that many times and come out with three points."

Quarterback Kirk Cousins' answer? "There were so many plays it's hard to see any one thing. We didn't string enough together," he said.

Yawn.

Who knows how Jefferson's candor will play inside TCO Performance Center, but the Vikings haven't really had a player, in a long time, come out after a loss and tell it like it is, a player who might use the media to send a message to teammates without fear of getting sideways of teammates or the organization. Maybe Jefferson is stepping forward to be that guy.

There is definitely a void there, publicly anyway. High-end veterans like Barr, Cousins, Harrison Smith and Eric Kendricks have yet to take those reins. Jefferson, an amiable young man who always seems to be having the time of his life — and why wouldn't he be? — seems an unlikely fit. But he certainly has the juice.

A Pro Bowl selection in his two NFL seasons, Jefferson broke Randy Moss' franchise rookie receiving yards record last year. With eight catches for 116 yards on Sunday, he set the NFL record for receiving yards in a player's first two seasons (2,851), passing the Rams' Odell Beckham Jr. (2,755).

The Vikings have two more games to make something of the season, starting next Sunday night at Green Bay. Asked how the Vikings can succeed at Lambeau, Jefferson said, "Well, don't come out with a lack of energy."

Whether that candor is calculated or simply ingenuous, it'll do.