Loud games, quiet personas: Jordan Addison following Justin Jefferson's footsteps

“You got to know he's your yin and yang."

Sep 10, 2023; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jordan Addison (3) reacts with wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) after scoring his first career touchdown pass from quarterback Kirk Cousins (not pictured) against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports / Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

Minnesota Vikings wide receiver coach Keenan McCardell has some simple advice for the Vikings' star receiver duo of Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.

“The first thing I tell them is you have to love to play with each other,” McCardell recently told British sports outlet talkSPORT.

“You got to know he's your yin and yang,” McCardell continued. “The piece that you don't have, he brings it to the party and it makes one solid piece. I think those guys understand that.”

If anyone knows how to coexist as part of a receiving duo that features two top-end stars it’s McCardell. As a player, McCardell teamed up with Jimmy Smith in Jacksonville for six years before joining Keyshawn Johnson and the Bucs for two years. He also played in a Chargers offense that featured Antonio Gates and Vincent Jackson.

Speaking to talkSPORT as well, Addison praised Jefferson’s mentoring during his rookie season.

“Justin did a great job of working with me, making sure that I was calm, that I was ready and instilled some confidence in me, letting me know ‘I was in your shoes, too. You’ve got what it takes, so just do you,’” Addison said.

Jan 7, 2024; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jordan Addison (3) catches a pass for a touchdown and celebrates with wide receiver Justin Jefferson (18) during second half of the game against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: David Reginek-USA TODAY Sports / David Reginek-USA TODAY Sports

“As a competitor, when I look at someone like Justin, my feeling is that if he can do it, then I can go and do it too. I put that type of pressure on myself to be the best,” continued Addison.

In his rookie campaign, Addison caught 70 passes for 911 yards and 10 touchdowns. Meanwhile, Jefferson, in just 10 games, was able to top 1,000 receiving yards, bringing his career total to 5,899 yards, the most of any receiver in league history through their first four seasons.

The duo formed a dynamic that while producing loud numbers on the field, off the field they are relatively quiet, which is often not the case for star receivers. Jefferson detailed in the recent Netflix series Receiver that he has two personas: Justin and Jets.

"Justin is cool, calm and collected. I’m chill, I play video games and be to myself a majority of the time. But when I start putting these chains on, start putting the teeth in and all of the jewelry and all of that, I mean, then it starts to become Jets,” Jefferson said in the documentary. “Jets is the most confident. That’s my swagger. Not cocky, but he has the confidence in himself to go out there and perform at the highest ability. I like looking good while I go play.”

McCardell echoed those sentiments, saying, “[Justin]’s not the loud one. People don't realize that. They're like, 'JJ's really the quiet one. JJ's the quiet one,' Jordan's the super quiet one. He never says anything at all.”

“You have a tandem of guys that are really good, could be the best in the NFL, so it depends on people's opinion. How do you keep them focused and sharp?” McCardell continued. “That's the worry that I have, but it's not really a worry that I have because I know how I did it, how Jimmy (Smith) did it, how Keyshawn (Johnson) did it, how our coaches did it to make us the best. It's about competition and it's a friendly competition. I have them have a friendly competition and we talk about it. You push him, he pushes you.”

#Vikings WR Jordan Addison and WR coach Keenan McCardell supporting Justin Jefferson yesterday at the premier of ‘Receiver.’ pic.twitter.com/Z4pEx4bhGi

— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) July 10, 2024

McCardell’s final bit of advice for his star pupils is again simple and straight to the point.

“It's your job to be great, it's not your job to be average,” McCardell said. “You have the obligation to be great. That's why you're here. There's 1,600 players in this league only in the world and you're part of this fraternity."

“If you're very average, you won't be in this fraternity. The faster you understand that, the faster you'll be successful," he added.

Jefferson, fresh off inking the biggest deal for a non-QB in NFL history, has already proven he’s mastered that advice. Addison appears on the right track after a successful rookie campaign.