Panthers, Adam Thielen both asked to make $1 million sacrifices to get Vikings trade done originally appeared on The Sporting News

The Carolina Panthers and Adam Thielen both need to give up a large sum of money to get a trade done with the Minnesota Vikings. The Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, native has repeatedly been linked to his former team this offseason, and the Vikings’ need for a receiver amidst injuries and Jordan Addison’s suspension makes this a natural fit.

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ESPN’s Bill Barnwell acknowledged that while sharing the staggering totals that the Panthers and Thielen would have to relinquish financially.

The Vikings would need to give up draft capital from their recent Harrison Phillips trade with the New York Jets.

“The problem is Thielen’s $6.25 million base salary. The Vikings obviously would prefer the Panthers cut the 34-year-old and pick him up for free, but Carolina already paid Thielen a $1.5 million roster bonus earlier in the offseason, suggesting it expected to have him. His salary isn’t yet guaranteed, but it will become so if he’s on the roster in Week 1, leaving the Panthers until then to make a decision. If he does get released, he isn’t likely to get anything close to $6.25 million from another team, so he also is facing some uncertainty,” Barnwell wrote.

“All sides involved probably would need to give a bit to make a mutually advantageous deal work. The Panthers would eat $1.5 million of Thielen’s contract, getting two of the three picks the Vikings got from the Jets in the Harrison Phillips trade in return. Thielen would take a $1 million pay cut in return for having the remaining $3.8 million guaranteed. The Vikings cleared out almost exactly that much when they made the Phillips trade, allowing them to absorb what’s left of Thielen’s contract as part of the deal.”

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Adam Thielen speaks of J.J. McCarthy like a teammate

When I spoke to Thielen in June, I asked him about J.J. McCarthy’s trajectory after missing the 2024 season, before any of these rumors sprouted.

Thielen believes McCarthy is built for big moments and will eventually show the world the skillset that won the Michigan Wolverines a national championship in 2023/2024.

He even said McCarthy could be the “face of the league.”

“I have high expectations for him. I’ve been able to be around a little bit through some of the time last summer… back in Minnesota, and I think he has the ability to be one of the great quarterbacks this season and the face of this league at some point. You know, I think he’s got every tool and intangible that you can have,” Thielen said.

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“Obviously, it’s a difficult league and it’s not gonna just be easy, but I think he has the ability to handle adversity to be able to be big in big moments, as you saw when he was in college. I think he’s got a great support staff around him, whether it be the coaches or the trainers.”

Thielen already sounds like McCarthy’s teammate the way he speaks about him.

Maybe he knew something we didn’t in June.