Minnesota Vikings: Top 3 Fantasy Football value picks for 2017

Adam Thielen

To be honest I did not intend to write about this particular Vikings wide receiver but the more research I did the more I became convinced that Adam Thielen is criminally undervalued in the fantasy realm.

In standard scoring leagues Thielen’s current ADP is 123.7 which places him at the beginning of the 11th round in 12 team leagues. To put that into perspective Tyrell Williams, Jon Brown and Cameron Meredith are going 2 rounds ahead of him and whilst they are all solid fantasy options it demonstrates the value Thielen currently offers.

After signing a new contract at the end of last season, Thielen will be hoping to continue to build on his breakout performance in 2016. After a solid start to the season, averaging 54 yards per game and registering 1 touchdown over the first 7 games, Thielen really impressed after Norv Turner departed.

With Pat Shurmer calling the shots Theilen’s average shot up to 75 yards per game and caught 4 touchdowns over the final 8 games of the season, impressively those stats include his odd 1 catch 7, yard performance in the regular season finale against the Bears. If we extrapolate those numbers across all 16 games you get a 1200 yard, 8 touchdown season.

With the additions the Vikings made on the offensive side of the ball the general consensus is that they will improve upon their 2016 showing, which to be fair wouldn’t be difficult, with Pat Shurmer spending the entire season as offensive co-coordinator. Theilen may struggle to gain 1200 yards (good for 7th in league wide in 2016) but with that information in mind those numbers don’t seem to far-fetched for Minnesota’s unquestioned number 1 outside receiver.

The Vikings’ schedule also works in Theilen’s favour. Sure Minnesota face some good individual cornerbacks, most notably Josh Norman & Desmond Trufant, but they avoid facing any uber talented secondaries. If the rebuilt offensive line can give Bradford time to throw, Theilen should see plenty of targets making him a viable starting option most weeks.

Be warned, the opinion on Adam Thielen’s fantasy outlook is varied. The Fantasy Footballers have him ranked as their 45th wide out and NFL.com’s expert panel has him at 48th. Despite the professionals thoughts the Thielen movement has been gaining some Twitter support.

I wouldn’t go as far as to suggest relying on Thielen to be one of your top 2 fantasy receivers but he represents tremendous depth and a respectable starter in 3 wide receiver leagues or in the flex.

Recommendation: Decent value in the 9th, Great in the 10th.

Team Name: Hooked on a Thielen