Analysis: Justin Jefferson was one of the NFL’s easiest $35 million-a-year decisions

Justin Jefferson might have been the easiest $35 million-a-year decision an NFL team has ever made.

He’s a great wide receiver, yet he’s atypically mature, a trusted captain, a team player in a sea of selfies.

Jefferson will finish this Vikings season as the most productive receiver through six seasons in NFL history. This is the tangible part of his excellence.

There’s also some intangible leadership at work as he helps the Vikings nurture 22-year-old J.J. McCarthy through the newborn deer stage in his potential as a franchise-altering quarterback.

For example, in the past two weeks, Jefferson has …

“He just wants to win,” coach Kevin O’Connell has said about Jefferson more than a few times.

Coaches always say that. At no position does it cause more eyerolls from an old sportswriter than receiver.

Pickens is the mercurial 24-year-old who expects to be paid somewhere in Jefferson’s neighborhood once his rookie contract is up after this season. He’s got world-class talent and a universal habit of creating more headaches than he’s worth.

Kirby Smart, his coach at Georgia, called him “selfish” and “undisciplined.” Mike Tomlin, his coach with the Pittsburgh Steelers, said he needed to “grow up” and then traded him to the Cowboys when he refused to mature and prove he’s worthy of the hefty raise that comes with a second contract.

With 78 catches for 1,179 yards and eight touchdowns, Pickens is having a breakout season for a 6-6-1 Cowboys team that plays host to the Vikings (5-8) on Sunday night. But he’s also coming off another controversial game that has left many once again questioning his effort and character.

Former Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman got the ball rolling after the Cowboys’ 44-30 loss at Detroit on Thursday night. From the postgame sideline set, the Amazon Prime Video analyst and five-time All-Pro eviscerated Pickens, saying he looked “uninterested in playing football” after No. 1 receiver CeeDee Lamb left with a concussion and Ryan Flournoy stepped up and led the way in catches and yards.

Pickens caught five of nine targets for 37 yards. He gave up on a deep route late in the game and was confronted by quarterback Dak Prescott on the sideline.

Now it’s Schottenheimer’s turn to handle the headaches. He said he talked to Pickens about his effort in the Lions game and …

“In his words, he goes, ‘Hey, Schotty, I didn’t play my best game,’” Schottenheimer said. “None of us played our best game. That’s real. But I don’t worry about George and his love for football and playing this game.”

Pickens could reward Schottenheimer’s faith in the short term Sunday night. The motivation certainly is there.

First, Pickens took to social media to post a vulgar response to Sherman’s criticism. He will want to stick it to Sherman big-time.

Second, and most of all, it’s late in a breakout contract year and Pickens needs a big game pronto to overshadow his latest controversy if he wants to go from being the 95th-highest-paid receiver ($1.7 million) to Jefferson’s neighborhood near the top.