Adam Thielen submits his entry for the Preposterous Statement Tournament

Former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen made a pretty unbelievable statement on Tuesday about this year's class of Carolina Panthers rookies.

Unlike Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen was not in attendance for the first day of the Minnesota Vikings mandatory minicamp on Tuesday. But Thielen's absence was already known since he is now a member of the Carolina Panthers.

Like Minnesota, however, the Panthers' first day of their mandatory minicamp also took place on Tuesday. Following their practice session, Thielen took some time to answer questions from the local media.

The former Vikings receiver was asked about how Carolina rookie quarterback Bryce Young has adjusted to the NFL just a few weeks after he was drafted. With his answer, Thielen decided to make one of the most outrageous statements he's likely ever made in his career.

Former Minnesota Vikings WR Adam Thielen makes preposterous statement about Carolina Panthers rookies

During his career with Minnesota, Thielen developed into one of the top leaders in the team's locker room, especially in his last few seasons with the organization. And as a leader, the former Vikings receiver has always tried to go out of his way to pump up the confidence levels of his teammates when speaking about them to the media.

With the Panthers, Thielen is still using the same leadership tactic to help improve the confidence of some of his younger teammates. But on Tuesday, he just went a bit overboard when he made the following statement.

"Bryce [Young] and really all of these young guys have impressed me. [It's] probably the best rookie group I've ever been around as far as just coming in here and not missing a beat."

Thielen continued to talk about how Carolina's rookies haven't had as many reps this spring as the team's veterans, but he's been impressed with how well they've still been able to adjust so far. He then put a gigantic bow on his answer by saying the following.

"In 11 years in the league, I've never seen a group [like this] that hasn't looked like rookies."

The best group of rookies you've ever been around? Did we not just witness Justin Jefferson break the NFL's single-season rookie receiving yards record in 2020? Thielen was on that team, right?

Does Thielen not remember the 2015 NFL Draft when Minnesota selected Stefon Diggs, Danielle Hunter, and Eric Kendricks? Did Dalvin Cook not explode out of the gate as a rookie for the Vikings in 2017?

It's great that Thielen is trying to boost the morale of the Panthers' rookies. But if he's going to do it, he should at least make believable statements when talking about them.

Carolina has had a few OTA practices and one mandatory minicamp practice so far this spring, and Thielen is already declaring that his new team has the best rookie class he's ever been around? C'mon, no one believes that.

Well, at the very least, the Vikings' official radio station, KFAN FM 100.3, now has a very legitimate contender to win their next Preposterous Statement Tournament.