Adam Thielen Traded Back to Vikings, Set for Possible Final Season in Minnesota
Adam Thielen is heading home.
The Carolina Panthers have traded the veteran wideout back to the Minnesota Vikings, the team where he became a star. The deal sends Thielen and a couple of late-round picks (a 2026 conditional seventh and a 2027 fifth) to Minnesota in exchange for a 2026 fifth-rounder and a 2027 fourth.
Thielen, 35, hinted this past spring that the 2025 season might be his last. If that holds true, he’ll finish his career where it all started.
An undrafted free agent out of Minnesota State, Thielen carved out nine memorable seasons with the Vikings from 2014 to 2022, piling up two 1,200-yard campaigns and earning a pair of Pro Bowl nods. His career-high in targets (153), receptions (113), yards (1,373) and touchdowns (14) all came during his stint with Minnesota.
After being released in 2023, he signed with Carolina, but now he’s back in purple as the Vikings look to bolster their receiver room with some proven experience.
It’s a full-circle moment for the Minnesota native—and possibly the final chapter of an incredible career.
