When the Vikings selected Jordan Addison in the first round of the 2023 draft, days like Sunday are exactly what they were envisioning. At the time, they had no idea that it would be Sam Darnold throwing the football, but the goal was always to add a dangerous long-term running mate for superstar Justin Jefferson at the wide receiver position. Having another dynamic playmaker at that position would take some pressure off of Jefferson (and T.J. Hockenson, who they traded for the year prior) while making life easier for whoever’s playing quarterback. They viewed Addison as that guy.

“This thing just got real, real serious for a lot of people,” Kevin O’Connell told Addison on the phone that night 20 months ago. “You and Justin Jefferson breaking the huddle at the same time is a problem. This is huge for us.”

As it turns out, O’Connell and GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah nailed that pick. Addison had a great rookie season (911 yards, 10 touchdowns) and has now found his stride after a slow start to his second year.

Darnold and his five passing touchdowns were the big story of the Vikings’ 42-21 win over the Falcons, but the players who caught them were equally impressive. Addison put together his second massive performance in the last three weeks, racking up 133 yards and three touchdowns on eight receptions. Jefferson was right there with him, going for 132 yards and two scores on seven catches. Both guys got open and made play after play for their QB. It was the type of performance that states their case as the NFL’s best wide receiver duo.

“We’ve kinda been saying that we’re the best duo in the league, and I think today showed (it) for sure,” Jefferson said. “Whenever we get the ball in our hands, we’re gonna make something work.”

“I told them at the draft it’s gonna be the best duo,” Addison said.

There’s some stiff competition for the title of No. 1 WR duo in the league. Cincinnati’s Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, LA’s Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp, and Philadelphia’s A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith come to mind, among others. But Jefferson and Addison might just be at the top. After Sunday’s huge game, they’ve combined for 1,878 receiving yards and 15 total touchdowns this year, with four weeks left in the regular season to add to those totals.

Against the Falcons, Jefferson and Addison were the first players in Vikings history to go for 100+ receiving yards and 2+ touchdowns receptions in the game game. With a franchise that once employed Randy Moss and Cris Carter at the same time, that’s an impressive feat.

Jefferson has been a superstar since the third game of his rookie season, so a performance like this is no surprise for him. He finally snapped a six-game drought without a touchdown on a day where he became the first player ever to hit 7,000 career yards in just five seasons.

It’s the emergence of Addison that really unlocks a different kind of ceiling for the Vikings’ offense, provided Darnold keeps playing like this. 11 weeks into the season, the second-year wideout had just 24 catches for 359 yards across eight games, having missed a couple due to injury. He hadn’t put up more than 72 receiving yards in a game and had more than three receptions only once. Then he went for 8-162-1 in Chicago and followed it up with Sunday’s incredible 8-133-3 day. All of a sudden, he’s got 708 yards and can get to the 1K mark with a strong four-game finish.

“JA is playing a very high level of football right now,” Darnold said. “Early on in the season, just keeping his head down and continuing to work, I think that was the biggest thing for him. And obviously, if teams want to try to push a little bit of coverage over to Jets (Jefferson), we’ve got another guy to be able to make them pay.”

Addison caught passes of 49 and 42 yards on Sunday, also drawing a 47-yard pass interference penalty on a ball he nearly caught through heavy contact. His six receptions of 40+ yards this year are one behind Chase for the NFL lead. As an elite deep threat who can also run the entire route tree and separate from man coverage, Addison is basically the perfect complement to the best receiver in the league. Teams have to pick their poison when they decide how much coverage they’re going to focus on Jefferson.

Like O’Connell predicted on draft night, those two receivers breaking the huddle at the same time is proving to be a major problem for opposing defenses.

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