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Kevin Seifert, ESPN Staff Writer
In his first game back after a two-month absence, Minnesota Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson made it through two series before departing Sunday’s 3-0 victory against the Las Vegas Raiders because of a chest injury.
The injury occurred with 9:54 remaining in the second quarter. Jefferson jumped to catch a high pass from quarterback Josh Dobbs and was hit hard by Raiders safety Marcus Epps at the end of a 15-yard reception. Jefferson grabbed his lower back and immediately left the field.
Jefferson, who was taken to a local hospital for further evaluation, caught two passes on three targets for 27 yards while playing a total of 13 snaps.
He previously suffered a right hamstring injury in Week 4, forcing him to miss seven games. He did not start Sunday but jogged onto the field for the second play of the game.
The Vikings’ offense struggled without Jefferson, with Dobbs being replaced by backup quarterback Nick Mullens in the fourth quarter of a scoreless game.
Jefferson opened this season on a blazing pace, averaging an NFL-high 135.8 receiving yards per game in the first four weeks. At that rate, he would have obliterated Calvin Johnson’s record of 1,964 yards by Week 15. Instead, Jefferson had been stuck at 571 yards since suffering the hamstring injury, and he said last week that his new goal for the season was to finish with 1,000 yards.
That might be difficult after his latest injury.
“It’s been hard to adjust those goals, honestly,” Jefferson said last week. “To have missed seven games throughout the season, especially on the pace that I was going before the injury. It’s a little tough to see Tyreek [Hill] going crazy every single week, to see different people throughout the whole league doing tremendous things. It’s been tough because it’s the first season that I’ve been hurt since I’ve been into the league.”
Vikings right tackle Brian O’Neill suffered an ankle injury during Sunday’s game and was declared out as well.
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