Adam Thielen has evolved into a go-to receiver and is about to be paid like one.
The Minnesota Vikings and Thielen agreed to a four-year extension worth $64 million and a maximum of $73 million, Thielen's agent announced Friday on Instagram. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported the deal comes with $35 million in guarantees. The team confirmed the two sides have agreed in principle on the multi-year extension.
Thielen was set to enter the final two years of his contract, which pays base salaries of $5.8 million in 2019 and $5.3 million in 2020. He now has long-term stability with a much bigger paycheck.
To say that Thielen has earned the extension is an understatement.
Since entering the league in 2013 as an undrafted free agent out of Minnesota State Mankato with the Vikings, Thielen has blossomed into one of the NFL's top wide receivers.
The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Thielen has produced two consecutive 1,000-yard receiving campaigns and was named to the Pro Bowl in each of the past two seasons. He barely missed the mark in 2016 when he totaled 967 yards receiving.
In 2018, Thielen produced 100-yard receiving efforts in eight straight games to start a season, which established an NFL record.
On his career, the 28-year-old Thielen has appeared in 80 games with 46 starts, 42 starts coming in the past three seasons. He has 293 career catches, including a career-high 113 in 2018, for 3,897 yards and 19 touchdowns.
With Thielen and Stefon Diggs, who signed a five-year extension in July 2018, locked up over the long haul, Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins won't have to worry too much about stability at the wide receiver position.
