3 months after trade, Vikings grant Adam Thielen's request to be released

Adam Thielen was a healthy scratch for Sunday's Vikings shutout loss in Seattle. Now he's a free agent. Thielen and his representation recently asked the Vikings to release him so he could join a contending team for the final stretch of this season, and they obliged. The move was announced and made official on Monday.

“Last week, Adam’s representation approached the team and asked if we would be willing to release Adam, expressing his desire to play a bigger role in the remaining weeks of what he has indicated will be his final NFL season," Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said in a statement. "Following discussions through the weekend and out of respect for Adam, we have agreed to give him the opportunity to pursue more playing time elsewhere. Adam is one of the all-time great Vikings, and we wish him and his family continued success."

Thielen also penned a thank you note to Vikings fans on his social media.

"This is tremendously difficult for me to write and certainly not how any of us imagined this to go," he said. "As a Minnesota native, putting on this uniform over the years and representing this community both on and off the field has always meant that much more to me. This team is in my bones, it's in my heart and it's part of my DNA. I will ALWAYS be a Minnesota Viking.

"Since this past spring, I knew this was going to be my last season playing in the National Football League. Given that, the Vikings allowed me the opportunity to go compete elsewhere for the last few weeks of my career. Minnesota will always be our home and we are incredibly grateful to the Wilf family, Kwesi, KO, Rob and everyone in the Vikings organization for bringing us back in August. This organization means the world to us from the top down and this locker room is filled with true professionals. With gratitude and love and I'll be back to retire! Adam."

#Skol https://t.co/PmpGmts9lr pic.twitter.com/AAZl4B0q6j
— Adam Thielen (@athielen19) December 1, 2025

The Vikings traded a fifth-round pick and a fourth-round pick to the Carolina Panthers in late August to acquire Thielen, a fifth-round pick, and a conditional seventh-rounder. At the time, with Jalen Nailor banged up and Jordan Addison suspended for the first three games, they needed a wide receiver. But Nailor ended up being fine and the Vikings' receiver room has been very healthy all year. As a result, Thielen has caught just eight passes for 69 yards in his return to Minnesota. Now he'll look to finish up his NFL career somewhere else.

Where that might be is interesting to think about. Would the Panthers, fresh off a huge upset win over the Rams, have interest in bringing Thielen back as a veteran who knows their offense? Could the Bills or Steelers be an option? It'll be fascinating to see if there's a contending team out there willing to give a 35-year-old Thielen a significant immediate role in their offense.

From a Vikings perspective, parting with the value equivalent of a fourth-round pick for Thielen was cemented as an awful move weeks ago, so it makes sense to take a classy approach with a franchise great and let him pursue an opportunity elsewhere.

Thielen, who spent the first decade of his career with the Vikings, ranks third in team history in receiving touchdowns, fourth in receptions, and fifth in receiving yards. He'll be inducted into the Ring of Honor someday.

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