Adam Thielen cashes in on big 2017 season with the Minnesota Vikings
By Adam Carlson
During the 2017 NFL season, Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen drew the attention of national media and capitalized on a contract escalator.
By now, every Minnesota Vikings fan should know the story of Adam Thielen’s rise from a small school in Minnesota to becoming an undrafted free agent and working his way up to being a starting wide receiver in the NFL.
Even though that story has become a bit cliché to keep mentioning, it has become a huge part of who he is. his hard work and determination earned him a significant contract before the 2017 season, inking a 4-year deal worth $19,246,000 with $9,646,000 guaranteed via Spotrac.
But that contract has escalators as well. Coming into week 17 against the Chicago Bears, Thielen had already earned $750,000 in escalators based on his number of catches in 2017 and hit another mark during the game according to Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling on Twitter:
Thielen ended the game with 91 catches on the season for a total of 1,276 yards and 4 touchdowns. The number of catches for the season is significant because it puts him in some elite company when it comes to the best pass catchers in franchise history.
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The Vikings receiver moves into 7th on the list of most catches in a season for a Minnesota receiver, behind only Minnesota legends Cris Carter and Randy Moss, who account for the other 6 seasons on the list from Craig Peters of Vikings.com.
At only 27 years old, Thielen has many seasons ahead of him with Minnesota and is under contract for the next three years. The combination of him and fellow receiver Stefon Diggs (only 24 years old) has become one of the most dangerous and explosive duos in the NFL.
It’s always great to see players bet on themselves and win. Adam Thielen joins Jarius Wright and other players who have enjoyed incentive-based contracts from the team that found them cashing in based on their play.
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Congratulations go out to Adam Thielen and the Minnesota Vikings on an amazing 2017 regular season. Hopefully, the excellent play will continue into the postseason and many future years to come.