Report: Adam Thielen deal worth $25 million over three years

Former Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen will be taking his talents to the south next season. According to NFL insider Tom Pelissero, the Carolina Panthers will be signing Thielen to a three-year, $25 million deal that will be worth $10 million in his first year.

Thielen, 32-year-old, will be entering his tenth NFL season and his first with a team other than the Vikings. He was released by Minnesota on March 10, saving $6.4 million against the salary cap after signing a four-year, $64 million contract extension with the Vikings in 2019.

He was the Vikings wide receiver two last season behind Justin Jefferson, ending the year with 70 receptions for 716 yards and six touchdown grabs. The Panthers sent their wide receiver one from a season ago DJ Moore to the Chicago Bears in a trade that got Panthers the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.

Thielen could not only provide veteran leadership for Carolina, but a proven WR1 option for a potential new quarterback in their first season under center for the Panthers.

More on the 2023 NFL offseason, free agency

The NFL 2023 calendar year is set to begin at 4 p.m. ET on March 15 when contracts running through 2022 will officially run out, making those players free agents. Prior to the beginning of free agency, teams will have a chance to designate one franchise or transition tag player, starting on Feb. 21 at 4 p.m. ET and ending on March 7. Beginning March 13 through March 15 teams will be allowed a legal negotiation with players who are set to become unrestricted free agents.

In addition to NFL free agency, the new year also marks the beginning of all trades being made official by the league office. April 21 marks the deadline to sign restricted free agents to offer sheets while April 26 marks the deadline for teams to match restricted free agent offers sheets. 722 players are slated to become free agents in 2023.

More on restricted, exclusive rights free agents

Players with only three years of accredited NFL experience become restricted free agents. Their original team will have the option to apply first-round, second-round, original-round, and right-of-fight-of-first-refusal tenders on players at escalating price tags. The higher the round, the more expensive the tender amount; however, if a separate team does offer a contract and the original team does not match that round pick will be conveyed from the new team to the original team. Right of first refusal only gives a team the option to match or not. If they don’t match, they get nothing in return. An original-round tender would send a draft pick from whatever round the player was drafted back to the original team if they chose not to match. The original team will have five days to match once a player signs an offer sheet from a new team.