Of all the wide receivers to wear a Minnesota Vikings uniform since the 2000 season, which five have been the absolute best?
Despite there being a high number of quarterbacks starting for the Minnesota Vikings since 2000, a good amount of wide receivers still managed to find a way to produce at a high level for the team in that same time period.
During the 21st century the Vikings have sent seven receivers to the Pro Bowl, two have been First-Team All-Pro selections, and five have finished with 1,000 or more receiving yards in a single season. Two of Minnesota’s pass-catchers to play for the team in the last 18 years have also been voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Obviously, the Vikings have also had some stretches of poor play from their receivers too since 2000. But Minnesota currently has a pair of pass-catchers that are beginning to remind fans of a certain receiving duo from the early part of the century.
So of all the wide receivers to play for the Vikings since the 2000 season, which five have out-performed the others and stood out as the absolute best?
5. Adam Thielen (2013 – Now)
Being that he was born and raised in the state of Minnesota, it has not been hard for Vikings fans to root for Thielen. Oh, and it helps that he is really good too.
Thielen worked his way up the ladder to get where he is today. He began his NFL career on Minnesota’s practice squad. Thielen was then able to eventually become a solid contributor for the Vikings on special teams.
Fast forward to now and he’s coming off a 2017 season where he finished with 91 catches for 1,276 yards and four touchdowns.
Not only did Thielen become the first Minnesota receiver to go over 1,000 yards since 2009 last year, but his yardage total is the team’s fifth-highest single-season amount of the 21st century.
Despite only being a starter for about a year and half, Thielen’s career numbers with the Vikings are what got him onto this list over other potential candidates like Sidney Rice, Nate Burleson, and Bernard Berrian.
4. Stefon Diggs (2015 – Now)
While Adam Thielen may have more career receiving yards in less starts, Diggs was able to rank higher on this list due to his knack for finding the end zone in his time with the Vikings. The receiver’s 15 touchdown catches are more than any other Vikings player in his position group over the last three seasons.
In addition to his time spent in the end zone, no Minnesota player in their first 40 games in the NFL has caught more passes than Diggs (200).
Looking at what he has accomplished in such a short amount of time with the Vikings makes it even more surprising that the receiver lasted all the way until the fifth round of the 2015 NFL Draft.
Diggs’ consistency is also why he belongs on this list. He is one of only three Minnesota receivers in the 21st century to have at least three seasons with 50 or more catches.
Being that he has not even reached his full potential yet, Diggs could easily end up as the best Vikings receiver of the entire century when it eventually comes to a close.
3. Cris Carter (1990 – 2001)
Carter is arguably the Vikings’ best receiver of all-time. But he only played in Minnesota for two seasons of the 21st century, so his standing on this list is based on his production from just those two years.
Despite that, Carter was still better than the majority of the receivers who have played for the Vikings since 2000.
At the age of 35, the Hall of Fame pass-catcher hauled in 96 passes for 1,274 yards and nine touchdowns during the 2000 season. Carter’s catch and yardage totals for that year are still the most by any receiver in NFL history aged 35 and older.
In 2001, he saw his production take a bit of a dip (73 catches, 871 yards, six touchdowns). But his numbers that year are still better than most single-season totals by Minnesota receivers in the 21st century.
If this were a list of the best Vikings receivers of all-time, Carter would be a good choice to put at the top. But since it’s only looking at Minnesota’s best pass-catchers since 2000, he sits at third.
2. Percy Harvin (2009 – 2012)
Aside from the 2009 season, Harvin was basically the reason why the Vikings had any sort of success throwing the ball during his time in the Twin Cities.
In his four-year stint with Minnesota, he was not only a weapon in the Vikings’ passing game, but in their backfield as well. Harvin’s 683 rushing yards are actually the most of any Minnesota receiver in the team’s history.
Oh yeah, he was a beast as a kickoff returner for the Vikings too. During each of his four seasons with Minnesota, he returned at least one kick for a touchdown.
Harvin’s 35.88 yards per kick return in 2012 is easily enough to be the Vikings’ all-time single-season record. His average in 2011 is also second on Minnesota’s all-time list.
But since this is a list featuring receivers, Harvin’s numbers as a pass-catcher should mentioned because he was no slouch in this area either.
He finished with least 60 catches for 600 yards and three touchdowns in every one of the four seasons he spent with the Vikings. Harvin and the guy who comes in at number one on this list are the only two Minnesota receivers to accomplish this feat more than twice since 2000.
It’s a shame the Vikings were unable to find a reliable quarterback during Harvin’s time with the team. His numbers could have been even better.
1. Randy Moss (1998 – 2004, 2010)
Was there really any other option than Moss for the top of this list? Of course not. His time with the Vikings certainly played a big part in why he will be getting inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in August.
By the beginning of the 21st century, Moss was already in the midst of terrorizing opposing defenses.
From 2000 to 2004, he finished with at least 75 catches, 1,200 receiving yards, and seven touchdowns during a season on four different occasions. In this same time period, Moss earned three trips to the Pro Bowl and and two First-Team All-Pro selections.
Of every receiver to ever play in a game for Minnesota in the 21st century, Moss accumulated more total catches (438), receiving yards (6,590), and touchdowns (64) than all of them.
His impact on the Vikings was more than just monster statistics too. With Moss on the field generating a ton of attention from opposing defenses, Minnesota finished with a top 10 scoring offense four times from 2000 to 2004.
After the Vikings traded him in 2005, Moss returned to the Twin Cities in 2010 for a brief four-game stint. Despite his short stay that season, he still managed to haul in two touchdown passes.
Next: 5 best Vikings running backs since 2000
Moss may have only spent about five years of the 21st century in a Minnesota uniform. But his imprint on the Vikings organization is something that will be remembered forever.