DETROIT – A Vikings official pointed to a spot near the Vikings' locker room where he wanted Justin Jefferson to conduct his postgame news conference.
"Over there," the official said. "In front of the trash."
Jefferson's painful and impressive 2023 season ended with that bit of symbolism — the Vikings' one true superstar adjacent to that which is expendable.
In the Vikings' 30-20 loss to the Lions at Ford Field on Sunday, Jefferson caught 12 passes for 192 yards and a touchdown. The loss left the Vikings out of the playoffs with a 7-10 record, the first time they've reached double-digit losses since 2013.
Jefferson was not only brilliant when he played, he was also brilliant when financial advisers might have been telling him not to play at all.
Negotiations on a lucrative, long-term contract with the Vikings fell through last summer. Jefferson didn't hold out. He didn't "hold in" — which means showing up to work but not practicing or risking injury, which is the way T.J. Hockensen handled his contract negotiations.
Jefferson didn't shut down, either, after injuring his hamstring when the Vikings looked like a lost cause. Jefferson returned and played with the same passion and daring he displayed when the Vikings were winning 13 games last year.
"I can't say enough about him," Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said. "It means a lot to him to be a captain of our team. He sets a standard of competing at a world-class level. There's a lot we can follow, as far as the example he sets.''