Last year, the third season of Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Van Jefferson’s NFL career was marred by a knee injury.
The 2020 second-round pick had knee surgery, which caused him to miss the first six games of the 2022 season. Even after he came back, Jefferson clearly didn’t play at the level that was expected of him before the injury. It also didn’t help that starting QB Matthew Stafford missed eight games due to his own injury.
Van Jefferson Could Be Primed for the Best Season of His Career
But some with the team thought the 2022 season would be a breakout one for Jefferson due to the outstanding offseason he put together. Plus, a coaching source said he was quickly becoming the team’s best deep threat at the position before his injury.
Jefferson, the son of former NFL WR Shawn Jefferson and current Carolina Panthers wide receivers coach, will enter this season in the final year of his rookie deal, but many with the Rams still believe he’s poised again for a breakout season.
Los Angeles certainly has plenty of vacated targets up for grabs. The Rams’ Allen Robinson — who earned 52 targets in 10 games a year ago — has since been traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Jefferson, Ben Skowronek, Demarcus Robinson, Tutu Atwell, and tight end Tyler Higbee could compete to become L.A.’s second-leading receiver after Cooper Kupp.
Jefferson posted his best campaign in 2021, when he managed 50 receptions on 89 targets for 802 yards and six touchdowns for a Rams club that won the Super Bowl. That season, Jefferson finished sixth in the NFL in yards per reception, trailing only Deebo Samuel, Ja’Marr Chase, Donovan Peoples-Jones, and Bryan Edwards.
Jefferson, 27, is scheduled to reach the open market next spring. He’ll become a free agent alongside a crop of other wideouts that could include Mike Evans, Michael Pittman Jr., Marquise Brown, and Gabe Davis.