Adam Thielen, Vikings Legend, Cut by the Team
The Minnesota Vikings made the decision to cut wide receiver Adam Thielen, a piece of news that has shaken the fans. The news comes after the team’s 26-0 defeat to the Seattle Seahawks, where Thielen did not participate. This decision ends Thielen’s second and final stint with the Vikings, his hometown team. Thielen ranks third in team history in touchdowns (55), fourth in receptions (542), and fifth in receiving yards (6,751). The player expressed in a statement on social media his desire to find a new team to compete. Thielen had anticipated that the 2025 season would be his last.According to Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, Thielen’s agent requested his release last week. The team had acquired Thielen on August 27, sending the Carolina Panthers a fifth-round pick in the 2026 draft and a fourth-round pick in 2027. In return, the Vikings received Thielen, a conditional seventh-round pick in 2026, and a fifth-round pick in 2027. The agreement was short-lived. Thielen, motivated to return to Minnesota, accepted a $2 million salary reduction for this season, reducing his compensation from approximately $7 million to $5 million. However, since Jordan Addison’s return in Week 5, Thielen had few targets per game. The Vikings’ top three receivers, Justin Jefferson, Jalen Nailor, and Addison, have remained healthy. In his last game with the team, in Week 12 against the Green Bay Packers, Thielen only played three plays. In 11 games this season, Thielen caught eight passes for 69 yards. In his statement, Thielen wrote that this “certainly isn’t how any of us imagined it would happen”. Adofo-Mensah commented: “Adam is one of the great Vikings of all time, and we wish him and his family continued success.” Thielen had a 1,000-yard season in 2023, with 1,014 yards on 103 receptions for the Panthers. In 12 seasons, he has 693 receptions for 8,380 yards and 64 touchdowns. Born in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, Thielen played at Minnesota State University, Mankato, and spent the first nine seasons of his professional career with the Vikings. The team released him after the 2022 season, amid the emergence of Jefferson as an All-Pro receiver and before the decision to make Addison a first-round pick in the 2023 draft. Thielen’s 542 receptions with the Vikings are more than any other player in team history except Cris Carter, Randy Moss, and Jefferson. Carter and Moss are members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.As a Minnesota native, putting on this uniform over the years and representing this community both on and off the field has always meant a lot to me. This team is in my bones. It’s in my heart and it’s part of my DNA. I will ALWAYS be a Minnesota Viking.
Adam Thielen
