The Minnesota Vikings offense struggled for most of the night against the Los Angeles Chargers on “Thursday Night Football,” but superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson was as smooth as ever. During the first half of the contest, Minnesota announced that Jefferson had eclipsed the 8,000-yard mark for his career.
Jefferson reached the milestone by tallying six catches for 72 yards receiving in the first two quarters in Los Angeles, needing just 40 yards on the night to hit the mark. “8k for J. J.,” the team posted to X, tagging Jefferson’s account in the caption.
Heading into the Vikings’ seventh game of the season, Jefferson had amassed 529 receptions for 7,960 receiving yards and 41 touchdowns in 83 total games (80 starts).
### Justin Jefferson Moving Quickly Up the NFL’s All-Time Receiving Yards List
Before Thursday night’s game, Jefferson was ranked 121st all-time in NFL receiving yards. Adding 74 yards on seven catches during the game elevated him to 116th on the list.
The current league leader in this category is Jerry Rice, who amassed 22,895 yards—more than 5,400 yards ahead of Larry Fitzgerald in second place and almost 7,000 yards more than Terrell Owens in third.
At just 26 years old and playing in only his sixth professional season, Jefferson could presumably continue performing at an elite level for another decade or more. For context, Rice played 20 NFL seasons, finishing his career at the age of 42. Rice also had the benefit of playing much of his career with future Hall of Fame quarterbacks, including Joe Montana and Steve Young, while Jefferson’s best QB companion so far has been four-time Pro Bowler Kirk Cousins.
### Vikings’ QB Outlook and Jefferson’s Future Potential
Vikings second-year quarterback J. J. McCarthy is likely to return to the starting lineup in Week 9 against the Detroit Lions after being sidelined for six games with a high ankle sprain suffered in Week 2. McCarthy, just 22 years old and the No. 10 overall pick in the 2024 draft, has an uncertain NFL future. However, if he develops into a top-level signal-caller, McCarthy could become a key part of the QB-WR tandem that helps Jefferson rise into the upper echelon of NFL receivers all-time.
### The Road Ahead: Jefferson Aiming to Match Jerry Rice’s Longevity
Jefferson is a four-time Pro Bowler and four-time All-Pro (including two first-team and two second-team selections). The only year he didn’t earn these honors was 2023, when a hamstring strain caused him to miss seven regular-season games. Despite the injury, he finished the campaign with 68 catches for 1,074 receiving yards and five touchdowns.
One critical factor for Jefferson’s long-term success will be remaining healthy—a challenging feat in the NFL. Jerry Rice played in 303 career games (284 starts), meaning Jefferson will need to make 219 more starts beyond Thursday night to match Rice’s output. This equates to almost 13 more full seasons of 17 games each, one more contest per year than Rice managed during his career.
Through six games in the 2025 season, heading into the Vikings’ Week 8 matchup with the Chargers, Jefferson had tallied 34 receptions for 528 yards, though just one touchdown.
With the talent, work ethic, and potential QB support, Justin Jefferson is well-positioned to continue climbing the all-time receiving ranks for years to come.
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