Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen feels “fresh” as he rejoins his team in OTAs after an ankle injury that sidelined him at the end of last season.
In a sense, Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen is looking for a “fresh start” — or a “refreshed start”, for that matter.
Thielen isn’t planning on leaving his hometown team anytime soon, especially not in his 10th season with the Vikings. But Thielen is feeling “fresh” and “energetic” as he starts up again at OTAs this summer, eager to rejoin the field after being sidelined with an ankle injury last December.
Thielen fought through ankle pain to play in a Week 16 matchup against the Los Angles Rams, which led to a severe injury that required surgery. But Thielen is feeling spry as June approaches, anticipating a decade as a pillar to the Vikings offense.
“I feel fresh, I feel energetic, I think the culture that’s been created here is just a breath of fresh air,” the wide receiver said in an interview with Fox 9 Minneapolis-St. Paul. “It just makes it exciting to be here and work.”
Adam Thielen is “feeling young again” as he returns to OTAs from ankle injury
The Detroit Lakes, MN native will turn 32 before the NFL season begins, but Thielen doesn’t seem concerned about playing through his early thirties. After the ankle surgery, Thielen is “feeling young again.”
“[The ankle] is great, it feels good to be out here and feeling young again, and fresh, and not having to worry about my ankle,” Thielen said. “To not be out there, it’s tough. … I’m not taking my reps out here for granted, because who knows when I’ll be done and won’t be able to play this game anymore.”
The vaunted tight end was on track for his first 1,000-yard season since 2018 before the injury occurred, per NFL.com. Instead, Thielen played 13 games and managed 726 yards and 10 touchdowns during the 2021 season.
Thielen is also feeling rejuvenated by the fact that he’ll be working with a new playcaller this year in Kevin O’Connell, the former Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator who led the team to a Super Bowl victory.
“When you hear about the news [O’Connell being named head coach], you kind of look back at the track record and you look back at what [the Rams] did, and you’re excited, right?” Thielen said.
“But then you get in here, you start learning the system and you start getting on the field — really, when you get on the field and you start running through stuff, you’re like man, this is fun. This is exciting.”
“When I talk about a breath of fresh air and kind of rejuvenation, it’s because when you get out here, it’s like stuff makes sense and it’s exciting.”