Packers defense must be (a lot) better against Justin Jefferson in rematch
The last time the Green Bay Packers faced the Minnesota Vikings, the defense had one of its worst performances of the season. Mainly because Joe Barry’s group had no answer for Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson.
Jefferson had 100 yards on the day before the first quarter was over. By the end of the game, he had snagged eight receptions for 169 yards and two touchdowns. It was his 11th career game with at least 100 yards, tying him with Randy Moss and Juju Smith-Schuster for the second-most in a player’s first two seasons since the 1970 merger.
Since then, Jefferson has broken that record previously set by Odell Beckham Jr. On Sunday, the Los Angeles Rams wide receiver watched from the sideline as Jefferson set a new milestone of 2,851 receiving yards in his first two seasons. However, Beckham Jr. would get the last laugh as Los Angeles beat Minnesota 30-23. The loss moved the Vikings to 7-8 on the season and put added pressure on their postseason hopes.
If the playoffs started today, the Vikings wouldn’t be in. The bad news is they must win their last two games, including when they travel to Lambeau Field on Sunday night. Getting the ball to Jefferson as much as possible probably gives them their best chance.
Green Bay will be expecting that. Adam Thielen had season-ending surgery on his injured ankle this week, giving the Packers one less star receiver to worry about. However, that could also mean more targets for Jefferson.
In their last matchup, Jefferson did most of his damage against rookie corner Eric Stokes. According to Pro Football Focus, Stokes surrendered two catches totaling 79 yards against Jefferson, including a third-down touchdown to put the Vikings up by a seven with a little over two minutes remaining. Stokes received his lowest coverage grade of the season for his performance.
Last month, we dug into the breakdowns in coverage against Jefferson from the first meeting. In some instances, good offense just beat good defense, including from Stokes.
Luckily, Green Bay’s first-round pick has been resilient in 2021, but that doesn’t mean he should exclusively line up across from Jefferson this week. The Packers may ask Rasul Douglas, whose confidence is sky-high at the moment, to try his hand against one of the top wide receivers in the league. Douglas came up huge again last week when he intercepted Baker Mayfield twice, including the game-winner with less than a minute left.
Green Bay’s All-Pro corner Jaire Alexander was activated to the 53-man roster on Wednesday. It is still too early to tell when he might be back on the field, but a return against Jefferson would be a great test. Perhaps, too great.
The Packers will likely ease Alexander back into the lineup, which may mean another week of rest.
If not Alexander, then whoever is playing opposite of Jefferson better bring their A-game. Otherwise, he could have another huge day, and Minnesota could sweep the regular-season series against Green Bay for the first time since 2017.
