NFL Trade Rumors
The Panthers traded veteran WR Adam Thielen to the Vikings this week. Carolina HC Dave Canales explained they are comfortable with their younger receivers on the roster and wanted to create more opportunities for them to contribute.
“So we added TMac ( Tetairoa McMillan ), so there’s another guy that we want to get the ball to, and he’s going to have his specific role, and I think it really just comes down to who’s going to make the plays,” Canales said. “Adam makes plays. He consistently did that for his career, and certainly last year, at the end of the season, when he came back to us, he made plays. And so this is just an opportunity for guys to be there, and to be available for Bryce, whether it’s on a critical third down or whether it’s to win the game, you know, these are incredible opportunities for them.”
Panthers QB Bryce Young said Thielen was a great influence in their locker room on and off the field.
“Someone who obviously has meant so much to us over these last couple of years on the field, but even more off the field,” Young said. “You guys get to see the Sundays, but what he’s meant to the team, just in the locker room, where he’s been, all that stuff. It’s part of the business. We’re always going to be, always going to be close. I’m always going to be rooting for him on his success.”
Canales praised Thielen for helping instill the team culture he was looking to create when becoming Carolina’s head coach in 2024.
“The competitive spirit, the toughness, and really just the energy he brought every day, professionalism, and how it really impacted and affected a really young group of wideouts and a young coach,” Canales said. “It’s something that I’ll take with me forever, just to kind of see what it means to him to go out there, every day and to get after it.”
On his way out the door from Carolina to Minnesota, veteran WR Adam Thielen made sure to praise QB Bryce Young and tout the bright future he believes the young passer has.
“I will say this about Bryce. Because he deserves the respect,” Thielen said via the Athletic’s Alec Lewis. *“He’s a great man. He’s a great leader. And he’s a great quarterback. You saw that at the end of last year. Just the stuff he had to go through, the adversity through his first two years in the league. You don’t wish that upon anybody. For him to handle that, and to where he’s at right now, it says a lot about his character, and who he his and what kind of player he’s going to be in this league. So much respect for him. Because I guarantee you I’m not here today without him, him trust me, him giving me opportunities and believing in me to be able to still continue to play...
