The Pros and Cons of a Trade for Adam Thielen
Lately, there has been a bit of online chatter about making a move for Adam Thielen.
The veteran receiver was let go going into 2023 due to a bloated cap charge and some modest production. He ventured down to Carolina where things have gone poorly, to say the least. The Panthers were the worst team in football in 2023 and could reasonably reclaim that title in 2024.
Of course, the most recent discussion has focused on re-adding Cam Akers. The running back has been brought in from Houston to solidify some running back depth that appears shaky after the Aaron Jones hip injury and Ty Chandler’s failure to produce.
One does wonder, though, if Mr. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah will content himself with just the single trade. After all, the Vikings are sitting atop the NFL with a 5-0 record. Any chance the GM surveys his roster and concludes that making one (or two) more addition(s) would be enough to give this team a slightly better shot at climbing Mount Lombardi?
An Adam Thielen Trade: The Pros and Cons
Start off with the basic theory and rationale.
Carolina is going nowhere fast. At 1-5, they’re far closer to the No. 1 pick than they are the Super Bowl. Selling off veteran players (Thielen is 34) thus makes some sense insofar as they’re at least a couple of seasons away from true contention. Stockpiling assets for young players while developing the current youthful options should be the goal.
Dustin Baker picked up on the Thielen possibility, recently espousing the merits of welcoming him back to the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
“Thielen has a hamstring issue at the moment,” Baker begins, “but he should conveniently heal by the trade deadline. And by that time, the Panthers could be in full seller’s mode, accumulating draft capital for 2025 and beyond.”
Bakes goes on: “The beloved ex-Viking is 34, so his NFL days are numbered. While Jalen Nailor has played well through five games, Thielen is as sure-handed as they come, and it just feels like justice to bring him home for a playoff or Super Bowl push. He can be acquired via trade for [a] late-round pick, perhaps even as low as a 7th-Rounder.”
Elsewhere, Baker included Mr. Thielen among the “realistic trade candidates for the Vikings.” The veteran pass catcher snags a mention in a Q&A and there’s a response to a theory about Thielen getting sent over to the Steelers.
In a lot of ways, adding Adam Thielen makes sense.
The veteran still has excellent hands and will have a great understanding of the Kevin O’Connell offense (though he will need to spend time studying how it has evolved). Instead of being leaned on to be the WR2, Thielen would likely become the WR4 and be someone who can exploit zone coverage by moving the chains. He could even be a red zone target, too.
The downside is that he’s 34 and battling an injury. Minnesota is already quite deep at receiver — Jalen Nailor is a good WR3 and Brandon Powell is a good WR4, which is to say nothing of blocking specialist Trent Sherfield at WR5 — so the fit is at least a bit clunky. Plus, there isn’t a ton of draft capital to work with right now.
Finally, there’s the contract. With close to $11 million in 2024 and north of $76 million in 2025, the Vikings can afford the veteran. However, should they want to afford him? Cap space is precious and Adofo-Mensah has done a lot to get the finances back into a good spot. Mr. Thielen’s deal runs into 2025.
Currently, Adam Thielen is sitting on 8 receptions for 109 yards and a score. He did this damage across three games. Last year, Thielen played in all seventeen games, piling up 103 catches, 1,014 yards, and 4 touchdowns.
The NFL trade deadline is November 5th.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
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K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter, as a co-host for Notes from the North, and as the proprietor at The Vikings Gazette, a humble Vikings Substack.