As soon as the words left his mouth, star receiver Justin Jefferson went out of his way to make sure everybody knew he wasn’t being disrespectful. He was simply stating an opinion about franchise quarterback Kirk Cousins that has more or less morphed into fact over the past couple of months.

“I think it goes to show the world the type of player Kirk is,” Jefferson said after the Vikings suffered a 30-24 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday afternoon at U.S. Bank Stadium. “This is a tough league. Not everybody is meant for this job. It’s tough not having No. 8 out there.”

Even if it wasn’t meant as a slight to career backup quarterback Nick Mullens, nobody would’ve blamed Jefferson if he wanted to be critical in that moment. After doing everything in his power to will the Vikings to a comeback win they didn’t deserve, Jefferson couldn’t overcome Mullens quite literally throwing the game away down the stretch.

Jefferson tried. He really did.

On the final drive, Jefferson raced to recover a fumble, then hurriedly hustled back to the huddle. As he listened for the play call, Jefferson implored Mullens to give him a chance. Just throw him the ball, and no matter what, he was going to make something happen.

That’s exactly what Jefferson did. He defied gravity as he skyed over a pair of defenders for a 28-yard gain to move the chains. It would’ve been more surprising had he not done the same thing last season.

A few plays later, Jefferson beat his man with a double move and put himself in position to win the game for the Vikings. If only he could’ve thrown the ball to himself.

Instead of leading Jefferson toward the end zone, Mullens tried to the put ball on him near the goal line. The pass wobbled like a wounded duck in rural Minnesota in the fall. That allowed safety Ifeatu Melifonwu to swoop in for an interception that helped the Lions unseat the Vikings as NFC North champions.

As reality started to set in, Jefferson crumbled to his knees in exhaustion, removing his helmet before slowly walking toward the sideline. He had just given every ounce of himself. What more could he have done?

Nothing. Not with who the Vikings currently have available under center.

It’s been a roller coaster ever since Cousins went down against the Packers in Week 8. You’ve either got Mullens, who makes every pass feel like a crapshoot at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, or journeyman quarterback Josh Dobbs, who makes running an offense feel like actual rocket science.

The erratic play from Mullens and Dobbs has fully highlighted how valuable Cousins is to the operation. Truthfully, if the Vikings want to give Cousins a new contract solely because of how things have played out over the past couple of months, it would be pretty hard to argue with that. He’s set to become a free agent in the spring, so the front office is going to have to make that call at some point.

Though trading up for somebody like quarterback Jayden Daniels in the 2024 NFL Draft might seem like a good option on the surface, it’s not a guarantee that he’s going to be ready to go next season. Not by a long shot.

Maybe it would be better to roll with Cousins for a little bit longer in the name of consistency at the position.

You can’t watch the heartbreaking reaction from Jefferson on the field and not think about who’s going to be throwing him the ball moving forward. You have to get this next decision right. You can’t let a generational talent be weighed down by incompetence around him.

Not again.

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