Thielen Retires
Adam Thielen has announced his retirement from the NFL 💜💛 pic.twitter.com/qHBvXsnnkp
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 14, 2026
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
greediron wrote:
Well done AT. Stuck around a bit too long. Great story, but the ending just kind of trails off.
Ham and Harry next???
I think so...
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
Wish he'd done this a year ago.
He said he wouldn't have come back for another season if he'd known he'd be a backup. It's called age, Adam. It happens to the best of us. After watching all the respect and adoration rained down upon Ham and Harry last week, it's a shame Thielen wasn't able to share in that. His career ended with a clunk.
MaroonBells wrote:
He said he wouldn't have come back for another season if he'd known he'd be a backup. It's called age, Adam. It happens to the best of us. After watching all the respect and adoration rained down upon Ham and Harry last week, it's a shame Thielen wasn't able to share in that. His career ended with a clunk.
He and Harry are worthy of being in the Ring imo.
But yah, he had a chance to end it on a higher note this year at home.
OTOH, he got into the post-season one more time, so maybe that was a payoff for him professionally.
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
I have enormous respect and gratitude for AT, but leaving us to catch passes from A-a-ron really puts a stink on the situation.
KOC, JJM, Flores...make a good plan, or you'll be following Kwesi....
Get over it. He was great for the Vikings and accomplished a hell of a lot coming from nowhere. He deserves respect and gratitude, not shade.
Zanary wrote:
I have enormous respect and gratitude for AT, but leaving us to catch passes from A-a-ron really puts a stink on the situation.
The Vikings waived Thielen...Steelers were the ones to claim him off waivers. Not sure how you can be angry at AT for ending up with Pittsburgh and Rodgers.
badgervike wrote:
The Vikings waived Thielen...Steelers were the ones to claim him off waivers. Not sure how you can be angry at AT for ending up with Pittsburgh and Rodgers.
To be fair, Thielen requested his release.
Im already frustrated with KAM but trading for Theilen then not utilizing him then releasing him while wasting more draft just grinds my gears.
Eh, Vikings did him dirty and stole his final season in the NFL. He had more snaps and better production from the Steelers in 5 games than he did with the Vikings in 11. I’m not saying he was a top receiver in the league or anything, but they basically made this big stink to get him and bring him home and then shoved him in a closet all season.
Would it have been better if he was here in the last game, so he could watch the team feed the ball to JJ so he can keep his 1000 yard streak alive and then maybe give Ham’s TD to him?
Not everyone wants to just collect a paycheck. I don’t understand why everyone wants loyalty from the player to the team, but not the team to the player.
medaille wrote:
Eh, Vikings did him dirty and stole his final season in the NFL. He had more snaps and better production from the Steelers in 5 games than he did with the Vikings in 11. I’m not saying he was a top receiver in the league or anything, but they basically made this big stink to get him and bring him home and then shoved him in a closet all season.Would it have been better if he was here in the last game, so he could watch the team feed the ball to JJ so he can keep his 1000 yard streak alive and then maybe give Ham’s TD to him?
Not everyone wants to just collect a paycheck. I don’t understand why everyone wants loyalty from the player to the team, but not the team to the player.
I don’t begrudge Thielen one bit for wanting to play— wherever that may be, just play. And I’m not upset the team didn’t have a washed up Thielen playing ahead of better players in 2025.
Not a storybook ending but a great career nonetheless. Thank you Thielen!
Panthers also went to the playoffs ? ? ?
medaille wrote:
Eh, Vikings did him dirty and stole his final season in the NFL. He had more snaps and better production from the Steelers in 5 games than he did with the Vikings in 11. I’m not saying he was a top receiver in the league or anything, but they basically made this big stink to get him and bring him home and then shoved him in a closet all season.Would it have been better if he was here in the last game, so he could watch the team feed the ball to JJ so he can keep his 1000 yard streak alive and then maybe give Ham’s TD to him?
Not everyone wants to just collect a paycheck. I don’t understand why everyone wants loyalty from the player to the team, but not the team to the player.
He had his opportunities, the door was wide open for him the first 4 games to assert himself into the offense with Addison out, we needed him to step up. Instead he could not get himself open, he looked lost on the field, was not the vocal leader we thought he would be and he consistently dropped passes including some that crushed potential scoring drives. In 6 games with Pitt he had 13 catches, so do not see how things improved much there.
The Vikings gave up draft picks and cash to bring him here, definitely overpaying for him. They gave him what he was looking for and they were the ones who got burned in the deal.
JR44 wrote:
He had his opportunities, the door was wide open for him the first 4 games to assert himself into the offense with Addison out, we needed him to step up. Instead he could not get himself open, he looked lost on the field, was not the vocal leader we thought he would be and he consistently dropped passes including some that crushed potential scoring drives. In 6 games with Pitt he had 13 catches, so do not see how things improved much there.
The Vikings gave up draft picks and cash to bring him here, definitely overpaying for him. They gave him what he was looking for and they were the ones who got burned in the deal.
He could have been better, but we saw the same from Jets, I think his lack of production had more to do with JJM not being on time or accurate with his passes and not understanding what NFL open is. AT wasnt going to be the #2 guy, but I think our QB situation and play calling had more to do with his lack of production.
I agrer that his acquisition is another blemish on KAMs already bruised resume. It was once again a waste of draft picks, but its not like he was going to use them wisely in the draft either....so fuck it, water under the bridge at this point.
Why isn't Chuck Foreman in the Hall of Fame?
Still Hurtn wrote:
Im already frustrated with KAM but trading for Theilen then not utilizing him then releasing him while wasting more draft just grinds my gears.
Not utilizing? Adam couldn't crack the lineup. Yes, they gave up way too much for a feel-good story, but Thielen's tape from last year was impressive. Many thought, myself included, that he'd be able to slide in to WR3 pretty easily. But Nailor decided to have a career year. An even stupider move would be to bench Nailor in a contract year in favor of Thielen only because you spent draft capital to get him.
MaroonBells wrote:
Not utilizing? Adam couldn't crack the lineup. Yes, they gave up way too much for a feel-good story, but Thielen's tape from last year was impressive. Many thought, myself included, that he'd be able to slide in to WR3 pretty easily. But Nailor decided to have a career year. An even stupider move would be to bench Nailor in a contract year in favor of Thielen only because you spent draft capital to get him.
Again thats on KAM for not properly evaluating the player and compensation given for such player. So KAM is the common denominator
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