Adam

Thielen

Thielen, 35, was clear about his intent to hang it up after the 2025 season. He was picked up off waivers after asking the Vikings to release him in early December when it became clear the team was not going to make the playoffs. An undrafted wideout out of Minnesota, he was signed by the home team Vikings in 2014 and went on to record 704 receptions for 8,497 yards and 64 touchdowns, establishing himself as an all-time Vikings great. Thielen’s career peaked in 2018, when he had more than 1,300 receiving yards and nine touchdowns. He was among the NFL scoring leaders with 24 receiving touchdowns over the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

Thielen’s majestic comeback story with the Vikings lasted into November before his release allowed him to sign with the Steelers, finishing his 12th professional season as a role player for an offense in desperate need of consistent production through the air. His weekly snap rate was hardly consistent in Arthur Smith’s tight end-heavy offense. Now entering his age-36 season, chances are the former Pro Bowl and second team All-Pro receiver has played his final snap at the NFL level. If so, his outstanding career ends with 8,497 yards and 64 touchdowns on 704 receptions.

The Steelers were getting nothing done offensively until Aaron Rodgers turned back the clock and threw a seed to Thielen for a long gain that set up their first touchdown. The 35-year-old has shown a decent rapport with Aaron Rodgers, and it’d be a surprise if he didn’t see a handful of targets again versus the Texans next week in the Wild Card Round.

With DK Metcalf also suspended for this one, the Steelers will need to lean heavily on their tight ends in the pass-catching game, while Adam Thielen and Marquez Valdes-Scantling could also see an uptick in targets. Watt was ruled out before the weekend but was able to practice in a limited capacity this week. Watt should have a good shot at returning in Week 18 against the Ravens.

Austin left Week 16’s game with the hamstring injury. He went down in the second half and was listed as questionable to return but never did. A DNP today stacks the odds against him to suit up on Sunday. With DK Metcalf suspended for the remainder of the regular season, Adam Thielen is seemingly the team’s top wideout for Week 17. Aaron Rodgers will also lean heavily on his tight ends versus the Browns, putting Darnell Washington and Pat Freiermuth in the TE2 mix.

Thielen finished second on the team in catches and yards. He came up with a few big catches just before and after halftime. On the final drive before the break, Thielen converted a pair of long third downs with catches of 12 and 13 yards. He moved the chains on third-and-long again just after halftime with a 17-yard snag. Thielen is one of many moving parts on the Steelers offense, but he at least knows how to find the holes in defenses and has already developed a connection with Aaron Rodgers. With Calvin Austin banged up and DK Metcalf likely facing a suspension for throwing a punch at a fan, Thielen could stumble in the No. 1 receiver role in Pittsburgh for Week 17.

It was Thielen’s first game as a Steeler after parting ways with the Vikings last week. He started the game for Pittsburgh — with Roman Wilson a healthy scratch — but ran just 12 pass routes on 36 Aaron Rodgers drop backs against Baltimore. Marques Valdes-Scantling and Calvin Austin ran ahead of Thielen. Though Mike Tomlin has made some noise about involving Thielen in the Steelers offense, there’s little chance the fading veteran will see much usage in the coming weeks. He should remain on waiver wires.

That was quick. Five days after signing the former Vikings wideout, the Steelers will have him active in the biggest game of the season. It would be a surprise if Thielen was used as anything more than a rotational slot receiver for now. He appears to have surpassed Roman Wilson on the Pittsburgh depth chart. Steelers declared WR Roman Wilson, DT Derrick Harmon, SS Kyle Dugger, OT Calvin Anderson, DT Brodric Martin, WR Ke’Shawn Williams, and QB Will Howard inactive for Week 14.

Huge news for the 2022 Steelers. The 2025 Steelers? Well, it’s not like Calvin Austin was necessarily killing it as their No. 2 receiver, but Thielen had fallen well behind Jalen Nailor on the Vikings depth chart and Pittsburgh’s passing offense has major trouble completing anything further than 10 yards downfield. Unless Thielen is going to reinvent himself as a major tackle-breaking threat, he’s probably of no immediate fantasy football use.

Thielen was a healthy scratch in Week 13. In a statement released by the team, the decision to release Thielen was “out of respect for Adam,” who hopes to secure a bigger role elsewhere in what he has said will be his final NFL season. The Vikings traded a 2026 fifth-round pick and a 2027 fourth-round pick for Thielen in hopes of bolstering their receiving corps while Jordan Addison served a three-game suspension. We’ll see where things go from here, but 35-year-old receivers are seldom in high demand at this point in the season, and Thielen only caught eight passes for 69 scoreless yards in 11 games with the Vikings this season. It’s possible he finds a role on a contender in the coming days, but we wouldn’t expect Thielen to be much more than added depth wherever he lands next.