Justin Jefferson with helmet on. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
A surprise AFC team has emerged as one of the favorites to land Minnesota Vikings star wide receiver Justin Jefferson.

The Vikings aren’t outright shopping the league’s best wide receiver, but many wonder if the front office will ultimately commence a full-scale rebuild after losing starting quarterback Kirk Cousins to the Atlanta Falcons in free agency.

Jefferson and the Vikings were unable to reach an agreement on a long-term extension ahead of the 2023 season. The 24-year-old Jefferson currently has one year remaining on his rookie contract.

According to Minnesota Bets, the New England Patriots have the fourth-highest odds of landing Jefferson at +7000. The Cincinnati Bengals are listed as the +2000 favorites, but a Jefferson trade is a massive longshot there with Ja’Marr Chase in need of a new deal.

The Arizona Cardinals and New York Giants share the next-best odds of landing Jefferson at +5000. Arizona also feels unlikely given that they can take one of the top WR prospects with the No. 4 pick in next month’s draft.

But the Patriots certainly make sense as a landing spot for Jefferson. They hold the No. 3 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft and desperately need wide receiver help. With Bill Belichick long gone, New England may be motivated to make a giant splash to re-energize an impatient fanbase.

Justin Jefferson Would Change Everything In New England

The stat simply says it all: The Patriots haven’t had a 1,000-yard pass-catcher since Julian Edelman, who fit the feat in his final season with Tom Brady back in 2019.

As much flak as Mac Jones got, very few QBs would have been able to produce with the set of weapons Belichick gave him in 2022 and 2023. New England needs a home run threat, and a complete game-changer like Jefferson would immediately make this offense that much better.

So if there’s one team that should especially be motivated to trade for Jefferson, it’s none other than the Jerod Mayo-led Patriots.