Vikings' Hunter, Jefferson, Cousins Among Early NFL Statistical Leaders

Danielle Hunter appears to be on pace for another big season.

Two weeks into the 2023 season, several Vikings stars rank among the NFL leaders in various statistical categories.

Justin Jefferson leads the league with 309 receiving yards. He's 43 ahead of Rams rookie Puka Nacua, who has filled in for Cooper Kupp remarkably well. Tyreek Hill, who had 215 yards in the opener but just 40 last week, figures to be Jefferson's stiffest competition in his pursuit of another receiving crown.

The face of the Vikings' franchise is somehow off to the best two-game start to a season of his career. He had 150 yards in the opener and 159 in Week 2, making him the first receiver since Steve Smith Sr. in 2011 to begin a campaign with consecutive 150-yard outings. Jefferson's 20 catches rank second behind Nacua, though he's still looking for his first touchdown of the year (T.J. Hockenson and Jordan Addison are among the 16 players tied for second with two receiving scores, trailing Hill's three).

The man throwing Jefferson the ball, Kirk Cousins, has six passing touchdowns in two games, which ties him with Jordan Love for the league lead. Cousins ranks second in passing yards (708, seven behind Tua Tagovailoa) and completions (64, two behind Mac Jones).

Defensively, Danielle Hunter's three sacks against the Eagles gave him four on the season, which is tied with T.J. Watt for the most in the league. He may have a chance to break his personal record of 14.5 sacks this season.

An interesting subplot to the hot starts by these three Vikings stars is that Cousins and Hunter are set to become free agents in the spring and Jefferson wasn't signed to a contract extension this offseason. They're all positioning themselves to get paid handsomely in the near future, especially if they keep up their hot starts.

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