Now with Carolina Panthers, former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen recently commented on his final season in the Twin Cities.
Born and raised in the home state of the Minnesota Vikings, Adam Thielen probably thought he would never end up playing for another team in his NFL career. But that changed when the Vikings decided to release Thielen earlier this offseason after 10 years with the franchise.
Now a member of the Carolina Panthers, Thielen recently appeared on the "StribSports Daily Delivery" podcast, and he talked about his 2022 season with Minnesota, which didn't sound like it turned out the way the veteran pass-catcher had hoped.
"It was pretty clear that they had a different vision for me than maybe I had for a way that I could help the team win games. There wasn’t a wrong thing, there was no disrespect on either side, I think it was just kind of time for both sides to move on."
Will the grass be greener for former Minnesota Vikings WR Adam Thielen in 2023 with the Carolina Panthers?
Since it sounds like Thielen was unhappy with his role with the Vikings in 2022 under first-year head coach Kevin O'Connell, will he be able to get more opportunities that meet his needs with the Panthers next season?
It will certainly be interesting to watch since the former Minnesota receiver is now part of a team that only won seven games in 2022. Thielen will also be working with a quarterback in Carolina rookie Bryce Young next season, who obviously has a significantly less amount of experience than the signal-caller he was catching passes from during his last five seasons with the Vikings, Kirk Cousins.
The former Minnesota receiver is also going to have to compete for touches with other notable members of the Panthers offense in 2023, including DJ Chark, rookie Jonathan Mingo, Hayden Hurst, and Miles Sanders.
Thielen believes Carolina has the makings of a future Super Bowl contender, but just as multiple former Vikings players have recently found out after leaving the Twin Cities, the grass isn't always greener outside of Minnesota's locker room.