5 players the Minnesota Vikings were right to move on from in 2023
By Adam Carlson
Players the Minnesota Vikings were right to move on from
Adam Thielen, wide receiver
Minnesota Vikings fans around the world all felt a little sick to their stomachs when they saw the team had released veteran wide receiver Adam Thielen. The story of his rise to fame and love for the state and the franchise is unparalleled.
Sadly, the NFL is a business and the contract Thielen signed before the arrival of the new general manager was a hefty one that made his ability to perorm at a very high level a necessity in order to reach that value.
In 2020 and 2021, Thielen achieved double-digit touchdowns in each season. That number dropped to six scores in 2022 despite Justin Jefferson being the focus of opposing defenses on a weekly basis.
Cutting Thielen cleared $6.4 million against the salary cap and paved the way for the Vikings to draft Jordan Addison in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft in an attempt to prepare for the future of Minnesota's offense.