The Minnesota Vikings’ home-grown, self-made star receiver is getting a well-deserved raise:
https://twitter.com/Vikings/status/1116811598058770432
Adam Thielen and the Vikings have come to an agreement on a multi-year deal, the team announced on Friday. Thielen has come a long way from being an undrafted free agent from Minnesota State who signed with the team in 2013.
Dave Campbell of the Associated Press reports the deal is a four-year pact worth $64 million. Thielen’s deal could be worth up to $73 million if he hits potential incentives that will make a rich deal that much sweeter. It’s a hefty raise for a guy who was entering the third year of a four-year extension he signed in 2017 worth a little more than $19 million.
Whether or not Thielen hits the incentives that bump up that deal another level, an annual average value of $16 million per season puts him among the 10 highest-paid receivers and has him rubbing elbows with the likes of Odell Beckham Jr., Antonio Brown, and DeAndre Hopkins in the upper echelon of well-paid pass-catchers. That’s pretty good company for Thielen to keep and well-earned, might I add.
Thielen has gone to the Pro Bowl in each of the last two seasons after putting up huge numbers in the Vikings offense. Over the last two years, Thielen has racked up 204 catches, 2,649 receiving yards, and 13 touchdowns. That comes out to an average of 102 catches, 1,324 yards, and six touchdowns.
The Bears did a surprisingly good job at containing Thielen last season. He was limited to just 3 catches and 38 yards in Week 17 when Minnesota’s season was on the line. Those aren’t the numbers we’ve grown accustomed to seeing from Thielen put up when he plays other teams, but the Bears’ talented secondary will need more performances like that now that Thielen is sticking around for a while.