DETROIT — Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson smiled when quarterback Kirk Cousins congratulated him on joining the 200-yard club in the postgame locker room. Jefferson's 11 catches for 223 yards against the Lions broke Sammy White's franchise regular-season record of 210 yards that had stood since 1976.
Justin Jefferson on setting Vikings receiving record in loss: 'This isn't an individual game'
The first 200-yard performance of his young career brought Jefferson to 1,500 yards for the season, nearing Randy Moss' single-season record.
December 12, 2022 at 1:23PM
But Jefferson's smile faded when he was asked by reporters about weighing the record against a 34-23 loss to the Lions.
"This isn't an individual game," Jefferson said. "I'm an ultra competitor. I hate losing. I hate losing in board games, so imagine losing a football game."
Jefferson said he thought he should have had more yards. He disputed an out-of-bounds ruling on a 39-yard catch in the fourth quarter.
"I felt like I didn't step out, but they called what they called," Jefferson said. "Got to move on."
Jefferson has NFL-leading 1,500 receiving yards with four games left after collecting 1,616 yards last season. Randy Moss' single-season yardage record for the Vikings is 1,632.
Anthony Carter holds the franchise's postseason record for receiving yards in a game with 227 on 10 catches against the 49ers on Jan. 9, 1988.
Here are the Vikings' 200-yard receiving games in the regular season:
223: Justin Jefferson, Dec. 11, 2022 at Detroit, 11 catches
210: Sammy White, Nov. 7, 1976 vs. Detroit, 7 catches
204: Randy Moss, Nov. 14, 1999 at Chicago, 12 catches
202: Adam Thielen, Dec. 24, 2016 at Green Bay, 12 catches
202: Paul Flatley, Oct. 24, 1965 at San Francisco, 7 catches
201: Sidney Rice, Nov. 15, 2009 vs. Detroit, 7 catches
Mike Conley was in Minneapolis, where he sounded the Gjallarhorn at the Vikings game, on Sunday during the robbery.
