Catching 300 balls after practice daily exemplifies what Van Jefferson can bring as Steelers' WR2

The son of a longtime former NFL player at his position, Van Jefferson remembers plenty of what his father, Shawn, taught him about work ethic.

“He always had me doing something,” the younger Jefferson said after a recent Pittsburgh Steelers training camp practice. “Whether that’s just cutting the grass or go outside and play ball, he never let us sit in the house. He always told us to be active.”

But even “Pops” — as Van calls his father, now a longtime NFL assistant coach — didn’t go so far as to instill into Van what a newly met Steelers staffer did.

After practices at steamy Saint Vincent College, Jefferson hasn’t immediately hopped on a golf cart or headed straight into air-conditioned comfort.

Instead, he has stationed himself about 8 yards away from a JUGS machine, while a friendly cohort inserts balls into it one-by-one.

… By one, by one, by one, by one …

“Three-hundred,” Jefferson said when asked exactly how many he’ll catch, a hint of pride in his voice.

The time-consuming new routine is one Jefferson sounds committed to sticking to as he prepares for a fifth NFL season and first with the Steelers.

“I got that from one of the equipment guys,” said Jefferson, who turned 28 just days into this camp. “He said, ‘A.B. used to catch like 300 balls every day after practice.’ ”

“A.B.,” of course, is former All-Pro Steelers receiver Antonio Brown. That Brown saw fit to hone his craft via 300 balls after each practice was all Jefferson needed to hear.

“A.B. was great. One of the best to ever play in the NFL. So why not follow him and what he did?” Jefferson said. “So that’s just something I try to do. The balls I don’t get in practice I get them right there.”

This video shows just 0.67% of the balls WR Van Jefferson caught from the JUGS machine on this particular day after practice.

Catching 300 balls routine he’s done every day since he joined the Steelers pic.twitter.com/1vFmdmdrg9

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) August 5, 2024

What makes 300 balls shot in Jefferson’s direction after each practice so notable is it dwarfs the number of balls thrown his way in regular-season games over his first four years in the NFL.

Mostly with the Los Angeles Rams (in addition to 12 games last season with the Atlanta Falcons), Jefferson over 61 career games has been targeted 207 times. He has 113 catches for 1,6000 yards and 10 touchdowns.

But roughly half that production came during the 2021 season when he was the Rams’ No. 2 wide receiver during their run to winning Super Bowl XLVI.

“That’s one of the things that at the beginning of my career, I was really strong on (putting in extra repetition-style work), and then after that I kind of got away from it,” Jefferson said. “So maybe it was a mindset thing. ‘I don’t need it.’

“Then you kind of have to have a reset. ‘Hold on, wait. It worked for you back then, so why not see if it works for you now?’ ”

Van Jefferson arguably has the most accomplished resume of any receiver currently on the #Steelers' roster: 61 career NFL games, 35 starts, 113 catches, 1,600 yards, 10 touchdowns.https://t.co/hgz7Yv3bp6

— Tribune-Review Sports (@TribSports) June 5, 2024

The Steelers sure could use a career reset of sorts for the 6-foot-1, 220-pound Jefferson, who joined the team in March on a one-year deal. While fans clamor for the Steelers to trade for San Francisco 49ers star Brandon Aiyuk, Jefferson quietly has been stapled in as the team’s No. 2 wide receiver throughout camp.

If George Pickens has a strong year as the No. 1 WR, the Steelers gladly would take a replication of what Jefferson put up the last time he spent a season as the WR2: 50 catches, 802 yards, six touchdowns. Especially if that kind of production comes from the package Jefferson presents: a cerebral veteran and selfless teammate.

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You know, the kind of guy who stays after practice in the 90-degree heat to catch 300 extra balls each day.

“He’s just a steady, solid veteran,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “He knows what he’s doing, it’s obvious. He’s got a really high floor in that he is extremely consistent every day. He’s bringing some leadership skills based on his experience to the group as well, and that’s appreciated.”

With Shawn Jefferson beginning his 18th season as an NFL wide receivers coach — this year with the New York Jets — perhaps it’s unsurprising his son brings qualities akin the proverbial “coach on the field.” That’s great, but the Steelers need their outside receiver opposite of Pickens to produce.

Through the first two weeks of training camp, Jefferson was the hands-down choice as the WR2. He made his share of plays, too, often well down the field and/or during one-on-one battles with top Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr.

Jefferson is aware what he can bring to an offense.

“Just knowing the style of play of the game and knowing what to do, where to sit at in a zone, where to go, how to be in the right spot at the right time,” he said. “You see a lot of times in the league guys not being in the right spot, and it turns into an interception or an incompletion. But I think I can bring that.”