2025 was a lost year for the Minnesota Vikings, and their star wide receiver Justin Jefferson.After making the decision to not re-sign Sam Darnold, instead opting for the inexperienced J.J. McCarthy, the Vikings season never got going.Minnesota limped to an 9-8 record in 2025GettyWhile Darnold was winning Super Bowl LX with the Seattle Seahawks, Minnesota struggled under center, and stumbled to a 9-8 record and missed the playoffs.Jefferson posted career-lows in receiving yards (1048), touchdowns (2), first-downs (47) and success percentage (46.1%).Jefferson gets disrespectful ranking by CBS sports’CBS’ Pete Prisco’s Top 100 players list had Jefferson ranked at No.8, which 10-year NFL veteran Leger Douzable believes is too high.“Obviously, J.J. McCarthy really struggled at quarterback, but when I look over the last two seasons, and you look at the receivers who are No. 1 and No. 2 in receiving yards, you have Ja’Marr Chase and Jaxon Smith-Njigba,” Douzable said on CBS Sports HQ.“Ja’Marr Chase didn’t have Joe Burrow for nine games and still finished in the top four in receiving yards. “Now, J.J. is still a really good player. I just don’t think he’s a top-two receiver in football anymore, I think No. 8 is a little bit too high on this list.”“When you look at it, Jaxon Smith-Njigba played with Geno Smith last year, and then he played with Sam Darnold this year, so there’s not a lot of continuity there going into the season.“Ja’Marr Chase didn’t have Joe Burrow for nine games and still finished in the top four in receiving yards. Vikings QB battle result will determine Jefferson’s 2026 successMinnesota have an intriguing decision to make this offseason as to who starts under center in 2026.The role will either fall into the hands of McCarthy or Kyler Murray, whom they signed following his release from the Arizona Cardinals.His down 2025 left some claiming he is not a top-two WR in the league anymoreGettyWith no stability at quarterback, Jefferson posted career-lows in several categoriesGettyMcCarthy missed his entire rookie season through injury, and was unimpressive through 10 starts in 2025.Despite being described as ‘salty’ at OTA’s, McCarthy’s former QB coach has urged KOC not to give up on him, and O’Connell has given no indication as to who is in the lead to start.Many expect the former Cardinals hurler to win the role, with some thinking McCarthy could even be demoted to No.3 on the depth chart.SKOR’s Thor Nystrom believes stability at quarterback is the exact thing Jefferson needs to get back to his normal rates of producton.“We’re definitely going to get a bounce back from Jefferson, and from the passing game, I believe, I do think the run game will be better, too,” Nystrom said.Kevin O’Connell has a big decision on his hands. But, the primary objective of the 2026 offense must be to feed No. 18.Many expect Murray to win the QB battleGettyAll 32 NFL teams will begin training camp in July and the Vikings quarterback competition is expected to dominate headlines this summer.McCarthy is the more likely of the two to see preseason action, but all eyes are on who will be the Week 1 starter when Minnesota play the Green Bay Packers.However it’s ultimate success might be measured by how quickly it propels Jefferson back to the top – the former LSU star said earlier this summer he believes he is still the best wideout in the league.“How am I not?” he responded when asked by FS1.“A lot of people base it off the QB play, if I don’t have an elite QB throwing me the ball the entire year then it’s difficult to be in the conversations.“Having a young QB that’s still learning the game and his potential, you have those difficult seasons which I had this past year – I still think I’m number one.”Stay up to date with the NFL across all our talkSPORT platforms – subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest news, opinion, exclusive interviews and our daily unfiltered, unscripted show ‘The S* Word, from 8am ET