Justin Jefferson’s message to his new Vikings quarterback: Trust me

This season, his passes will come from Darnold, with whom Jefferson first worked after reporting to the Vikings’ mandatory minicamp in June after his contract was finalized. He was quickly struck by Darnold’s arm strength, and the two have formed an especially strong connection in the red zone during training camp practices, with Darnold throwing a few moving darts to Jefferson for touchdowns.

“Those are the plays that make the money,” Jefferson said. “That’s an area we struggled with last year. The plays he makes (in practice) are definitely going to carry over to Sunday.”

The relationship the Vikings seem to have staked their plans on is the one Jefferson will have with McCarthy, whom Jefferson called “the franchise quarterback we’re going to talk about in the future.” Their lockers are next to each other at the Vikings’ practice facility; the two are represented by the same agency. After the Vikings selected McCarthy 10th overall, Jefferson was given the quarterback’s phone number. His congratulatory call to McCarthy contained mantras he often repeated to himself.

“I just told him, ‘This is still the beginning of your dream. Your dream hasn’t completely come true yet,’” Jefferson said. “Go in there with confidence, to go out there and be the No. 1 player, to be the best player in this league. I feel like that’s what a lot of players, especially rookies, struggle with: coming into the league with confidence, knowing that you can make an impact right away. That’s something I did myself my rookie year, so I just passed that on to him.”

O’Connell and offensive coordinator Wes Phillips say Jefferson has been more assertive as the Vikings have set up their offense, sharing what he’s learned and the details the team has added to plays over the past two years. He’s spent time with Darnold delving into the nuances of his routes.

“I might take an extra step or two, just to make a move on a corner, which other receivers wouldn’t do,” Jefferson said. “They might rush the route, or try to beat them with speed, where I use my footwork more.”