Where will Adam Thielen end up after the Minnesota Vikings release?

One of the best stories in the NFL, Adam Thielen’s unlikely run with his hometown Minnesota Vikings ended this morning as The team released him. At 32, Thielen proved he still had fuel in his tank in 2022, hauling in 70 receptions for 716 yards and six touchdowns. Accordingly reportsthe Vikings will save $6.41 million in cap space by cutting Thielen, and although both parties have considered restructuring agree to keep him in the Gopher State — where Thielen was born and went to college — the WR reportedly wanted an opportunity to fight for a Super Bowl in an offense that would benefit him more.

Thielen is the second Viking star to be released this week Eric Kendricks was cut Monday. Thielen will test unrestricted freedom of decision in his for the first time Career. He has the third most receiving (534) and touchdowns received (55) — behind Cris Carter and Randy Moss — and fourth most receiving yards (6,682) in team history.

BAs his season begins at the age of 33, can Thielen still offer value for a team looking to contend for a Super Bowl? And if not, how bad is it to leave a team that Thielen had as WR2 if Thielen really wants to stay relevant?

Thielen is clearly not the recipient he once was. Though Thielen played in more games last season than any other year, he couldn’t top his 2021 season in yards, touchdowns or receptions. So, if Thielen really wants to play for a team that will use him more than the Vikings, which team will be chasing the soon-to-be 33-year-old receiver whose numbers are rapidly declining? Why would anyone?

Some people might look at Thielen’s advanced metrics, such as: B. average separation, and be optimistic about Thielen’s production capability. In 2022 Thielen cut off 1.77 meters distance per reception, which is the best grade of his career. That’s still not a lot of room, however, and ranks outside of the top-45 in the NFL. AAnd to make matters worse, Thielen’s competitive catch rate continues to fall. It has fallen from 48 percent in 2020 to 40.7 percent in 2021 to just 22.2 percent in 2022. When a receiver can’t outrun his man, he needs to be able to catch in traffic, but Thielen just can’t provide those skills anymore.

What else does he bring to the table?

However, Thielen still has some value. For one thing, he’s very good at spotting gaps in zone coverage. When a single player is assigned Thielen, the vastness can fight to get away. BBut if you give Thielen a space to stand in, he’s a lot better at finding the ball. He averaged nearly a full yard more against the zone than against men in 2022 – 1.43 yards against man versus 2.33 yards against zone). In principle, any crime that attempts to a Traditional passing attacks (that don’t rely on fast screens, half-field reads, etc.) could use Thielen in niche situations.

But Thielen didn’t want that. He wants to be used more than the Vikings used him and I’m not sure if that’s still on the table. The wide receiver position has gotten so deep in the NFL these days, and with post-catch attacks getting much shorter and yardage dependent, open receivers scheming, and defense taking the lead, Thielen doesn’t really fit into many attacks anymore. Regardless, I’m sure a team will be chasing the two-time Pro Bowler.

Thielen is perhaps best served to join a team like the Kansas City Chiefs, although I’m not sure they would be willing to do the same. They are said to be very interested Signing of JuJu Smith-Schuster, who acts with the same skills as Thielen but does it a little better – which was to be expected given Smith-Schuster’s age. Now, that doesn’t mean the Chiefs wouldn’t like an additional threat for Mahomes, but with rumors surrounding Mecole Hardman’s future at KC, chances are the Chiefs will be looking to fill the role Hardman left with someone , who is like him . After all, they just won the Super Bowl. If they lose key contributors, it would be in their best interest to keep their team as close as possible. Hardman is a very different receiver than Thielen.

Does he have anything else? And who dares?

To be honest, the market for a low-agility veteran receiver is pretty thin. Shocking I know! Other teams that may be interested are the Denver Broncos as trade rumours regarding receivers Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton heat up. The New Orleans Saints have a very inexperienced receiving corps and Jarvis Landry is a free agent. Unless Michael Thomas stays on the field with a bruised toenail or a new injury, Thielen could step into the No. 2 role behind Chris Olave with new quarterback Derek Carr. The Arizona Cardinals are said to be there Shopping DeAndre Hopkins, and while the team has multiple receivers built for deep shots and YAC, new head coach Jonathan Gannon might be interested in adding a smart vet with different skills or building a different type of offense than Kliff Kingsbury. But that’s not a sure thing. Plus, if Adam Thielen also wants to fight for a championship, the Saints and Cardinals don’t fit the bill.

For Thielen, this is a real “Hit your cake and eat it too” situation. I highly doubt he’ll get everything he wants. Nevertheless, Thielen can be a valuable asset for several teams. He probably won’t get the use or money he wants.