Adam Thielen is a professional American footballer who plays as a wide receiver in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Minnesota Vikings of Minnesota State University, Mankato, and his professional career has seen him play mainly for the Minnesota Vikings in the NFL where he has been phenomenal plying his trade.
Here is more about him and his career, family and every other thing we have found to be of interest about this young player with lots of steam in him.
Adam Thielen’s Bio & Age
Named Adam John Thielen at birth on August 22, 1990, to parents Pete and Jayne Thielen in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, Adam like most Detroit kids, would grow up as a fan of the Vikings and Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Cris Carter. Adam got schooled at Detroit Lakes High School where he was a four-sport athlete in football, basketball, baseball, and golf. What a kid! Football stood him out exceptionally as he was named in the All-conference and All-state selection in his senior year.
He joined Minnesota State University for his college education in 2008 to study Management and as you would expect, Adam wasn’t found wanting on the Minnesota State Mavericks football program. In his second year, Adam Thielen was named as the Minnesota State’s Offensive Player of the Year in addition to being listed in the Second-Team All-NSIC South Division having led his team with 41 receptions for 686 yards and 6 touchdowns. By the end of his final season in the college, he had scored five 100-yard receiving games with a career-high 167 against the Southwest Minnesota State in 2012.
Despite his high hopes to make it into the top league, Thielen went home barren of a pick in the 2013 NFL Draft. He then went for a rookie tryout and evaluation session organized by the Minnesota Vikings at Winter Park, it was here that his childhood fave team signed him to an undrafted free agent contract following his promising performance in the tryout. He, however, didn’t make it past the roster cut but was still signed to the practice squad on September 1 having been earlier released on August 1, 2013.
The “Purple and Gold” prodigy had his first Viking action in a preseason opener against the Oakland Raiders, following his impressive performance, Adam earned himself a deserving listing in the 53-man roster for the 2014 season.
The new season saw Adam Thielen recording 8 catches of 137 yards with an average of 17.1, and a touchdown on offense. He was named to the All-Pro Special Teams Kick Return Unit and as the All-NFC North Special Team Player of the Year.
The 2015 American football season got even better for him. Adam Thielen was recognized as the Vikings Special Team Player of the Year as it was also in this year that they won the NFC North title. He remembers this season with his 12 catches for 144 yards with a long of 30.
True to his nature, Adam Thielen kept on impressing in the 2016 season and led his team with 967 receiving yards with a career-high 69 catches and five touchdowns. He was listed as one of the top five players among NFL wide receivers with a 10.0 yards per target and a catch rate of 75.0%.
In the 2017 season, he became the very first Viking receiver to surpass 1,000-yard mark which was last surpassed by Sidney Rice in 2009. He was also named to his first Pro Bowl in this season and reveled the more when his “The Purple and Gold” team won the NFC North title.
Adam has been having the time of his life with the Vikings and they wouldn’t let him go just yet. He signed a new three-year contract with the team which would see him play for “The Purple People Eaters” till 2020.
Salary
Adam Thielen who a three-year contract extension with the Minnesota Vikings in March 2017 that is worth up to $27 million with $11 million guaranteed earns a base salary of $3,850,000 in 2018, by 2019 and 2020 at which point his contract will expire, he will earn $3,850,000 and $5,350,000 as his base salary respectively.
Adam Thielen’s Family – Parents and Wife
Adam’s parents are Pete and Jayne Thielen, other than their names, not much has been written about them in the media. Nevertheless, seeing how successful their son has been playing America’s number one sport, they must be very proud of him.
Off the hustle and bustle of the pigskin sports gridiron, Adam Thielen gets all cozy with his significant other – Caitlin Graboski Thielen who he met while they were students at Minnesota State.
Caitlin played soccer at Iowa State University before she transferred to Minnesota State and continued playing for the varsity side. She holds a degree in Communication Disorders and Speech Pathology.
Following their relationship in college and being cocksure that what they felt for each other was love and nothing but absolute love, the two “Big Ideas. Real-world Thinking” alumni tied the nuptial knot in the year 2015 and are today doting parents to a son they had together.
Height
Adam Thielen like most other footballers in his class stands at a height of 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) at which he weighs 200 lb (91 kg).
