Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson has some serious competition for the role of biggest star in Minneapolis.
Anthony Edwards led the Minnesota Timberwolves to a first-round postseason sweep of the Phoenix Suns before scoring a playoff career-high 43 points in a road win over the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets in Game 1 of the second round on May 4.
Jefferson saw the game, the only one on the NBA slate Saturday, and sent Edwards a three-word message via his Instagram account.
“You is crazyyyyy 🤯🤯,” Jefferson wrote, per the Timberwolves official X account.
“Real recognize real 🫡,” the T-Wolves captioned the post.
Along with his 43 points — which put Edwards on a two-person list with late Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant as the only players with back-to-back games of 40-plus points at age 22 or younger, per Tyler Forness of The Sporting News — Edwards added 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 blocks and a steal.
Anthony Edwards, Justin Jefferson Mirror One Another as Minnesota Superstars
GettyAnthony Edwards of the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Jefferson and Edwards actually arrived in Minnesota at the same time, as the Vikings selected Jefferson with the No. 22 pick out of LSU in the 2020 NFL draft, while the Timberwolves landed Edwards with the first overall selection that same season out of Georgia. Starring at SEC schools and playing professionally in Minneapolis aren’t the only things the two superstars have in common.
Jefferson is a three-time Pro Bowler, while Edwards is a two-time All Star. Both players are in their early 20s (Jefferson 24, Edwards 22) and just on the cusp of their professional primes.
Edwards recently inked a five-year extension worth $204.5 million, while Jefferson is extension-eligible and could approach a $200 million deal of his own when he signs it and presumably resets the market at the position. The highest total number ever given to a receiver in the NFL is $140 million to Davante Adams of the Las Vegas Raiders two summers ago, with the highest annual average salary belonging to A.J. Brown of the Philadelphia Eagles at $32 million, per Over The Cap.
If Jefferson surpasses both of those figures, which he is certain to at least attempt in negotiations, and he signs a five-year deal, that contract will be worth north of $150 million at a minimum.
Justin Jefferson, Anthony Edwards Will Keep Vikings, Timberwolves Relevant for Years to Come
GettyWide receiver Justin Jefferson of the Minnesota Vikings.
The two men are also drawing comparisons to icons of their sport just four years into their careers. Whispers of Michael Jordan are beginning to creep into player comparisons for Edwards from people like Jordan himself, per Stephen A. Smith of ESPN, as well as other prominent NBA figures. Former 6th Man of the Year and current TNT analyst Jamal Crawford made an allusion to Jordan while watching Edwards and calling the Timberwolves Game 1 contest in Denver on Saturday.
Edwards averaged 25.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 1.3 steals per game this season and has a killer instinct and pure mid-range jumper that evoke memories of Jordan in his prime with the Chicago Bulls.
Meanwhile, Jefferson broke receiving records right and left through his first three seasons in the league, leading the NFL with 128 catches and 1,809 yards during an All-Pro campaign in 2022. The only reason he isn’t a four-time Pro Bowler is due to the seven games he missed last season, during which he still tallied more than 1,000 yards receiving and scored 5 TDs, per Pro Football Reference.
Should he remain relatively healthy over the course of his career, Jefferson will have as good of a chance as just about any player to finish his career in the realm of greats like Jerry Rice, most prominently of the San Francisco 49ers, and the Vikings’ own Randy Moss.
But perhaps the most relevant similarity between Jefferson and Edwards is that they have brought with them legitimate excitement and championship-level hope to long-suffering Minnesota fans. The fact that the two superstars are fans of one another will only make the sporting landscape in Minneapolis all the more awesome for the next several years to come.
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