Getty Former Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen
Adam Thielen did not mince his words when speaking on why he left the Minnesota Vikings.
“Well, they released me,” Thielen said with a chuckle in his Wednesday news conference leading up to his Carolina Panthers‘ matchup with his former team. “So I really didn’t have a choice.”
The former Vikings star went on to call Carolina a good fit as he’s already established himself in the franchise’s record books.
Former #Vikings WR Adam Thielen’s blunt message on leaving Minnesota.
Adam Thielen’s Departure From Vikings Paved Way for New Record With Panthers
Last season, Thielen saw his role in the Vikings offense diminished to the point where keeping him on the roster for $20 million in 2023 was not feasible for the team.
After averaging seven targets per game through the first 13 games of the season, Adam saw just 20 targets in the Vikings’ final five games, per Pro Football Reference. He caught three or fewer passes in that span, averaging 24.2 yards per game.
Thielen campaigned that he still has plenty left in the tank entering his age-33 season. That led him to sign a three-year, $25 million contract with the Panthers.
Last week against the Seattle Seahawks, Thielen caught 11 passes for 145 yards and a touchdown, making him the oldest Panthers player in franchise history to surpass 10 catches and 100 yards receiving in a single game.
It was the first time Thielen surpassed 100 yards receiving since Week 6 of the 2021 season. He leads Carolina with 17 receptions for 200 yards and 2 touchdowns this season.
Thielen admitted that there will be plenty of emotions running through him before the game, but once the whistle blows his focus is on helping his Panthers avoid an 0-4 start to the season — the same fate the Vikings are facing on Sunday in a matchup of winless teams.
“There’s some serious competitors on that team, as there are on this team,” Thielen said after a Week 3 loss to the Seahawks, per ESPN. “Next week kind of feels like a playoff game, to be honest, just because both teams are fighting and scratching and clawing to get that first win on the board and change momentum.”
Adam Thielen’s Next Chapter Has Him Feeling Like a Rookie
GettyAdam Thielen
A decade with the Vikings led Thielen to become an institution in the organization. But moving on to Carolina has led Thielen to reinvent himself.
“It’s been obviously a huge transition for us (the Thielen family) it’s been a lot different. For me personally, it’s kind of felt like being a rookie again, gave me the opportunity to have to go out there prove it every single day because these people don’t know,” Thielen said. “In this organization the players they don’t know what I can do they don’t know who I am as a person or a player, so every day just go out there improving which has been a good thing for me.”
Thielen has adjusted to life in Carolina, but that doesn’t mean he’ll pass down a chance to revisit the past when the Vikings arrive at U.S. Bank Stadium in Charlotte.
“Yeah, I’ve been thinking about that since the schedule came out. Was excited that I get to play against Minnesota? Yeah. But I’m just trying to treat it like another football game; I know that’s very cliche to say,” Thielen said. “I’m going to take advantage of pregame… go say what’s up to everybody you know throughout the organization. I mean shoot, I was there for 10 years so a lot of relationships that I built that are strong relationships that I’m excited to go and see those people and say hello and thank them and tell them how much I appreciate them.
“Then when that whistle blows and I get between those lines, I’m playing football like I do every week.”