The video went viral on social media shortly after veteran receiver Adam Thielen learned that the Vikings had acquired him in a trade with the Carolina Panthers. That meant the local boy from Detroit Lakes was heading back to the Minnesota.
As he celebrated the moment of euphoria with his family, his wife Caitlin immediately took to Instagram, posting a clip of Thielen jumping up and down with their 4-year-old daughter Cora, shouting, “We’re going home! We’re going home! We’re going home!”
The heartwarming exchange has been shared countless times over the past 24 hours.
“That was pretty cool,” Thielen said on Thursday afternoon while standing at a podium and talking to reporters in the Twin Cities. “A memory that I’ll never forget.”
Not long after Thielen was done celebrating with his family, he hopped on a plane, shifting his mindset from getting ready for practice with the Panthers in North Carolina to preparing for a reunion with the Vikings in Minnesota.
As answered questions about the homecoming, smiling form ear to ear, Thielen admitted that he wasn’t sure it was going to happen. He’s pretty active on social media, so he had seen the rumors of the potential move, as well as the reports that negotiations between the Vikings and the Panthers had stalled out.
“I was focusing on what I could control,” Thielen said. “I knew that there was a very realistic possibility that it would not happen.”
The compensation was the sticking point for both sides. How much were the Vikings willing to give up? How much did the Panthers need to make it worth their while?
Eventually, the Vikings came to the table with an offer the Panthers couldn’t refuse, agreeing to a deal that more or less amounted to a pair of picks swaps. It wasn’t worth splitting hairs any longer considering the impact Thielen would make on and off the field.
“I couldn’t be more excited,” Thielen said. “You guys know without me even saying it how much this place means to me.”
As he wandered the familiar hallways at TCO Performance Center, Thielen spotted superstar receiver Justin Jefferson, likening it to how a couple of friends going away to college and reunite back in their hometown like no time had passed.
“That’s how I felt with Justin,” Thielen said. “It was like we’ve never been on a different team.”
As much as Thielen appreciated his time with the Panthers, he couldn’t contain his feelings of joy to be back with the Vikings.
“I’m going to make sure this emotion doesn’t fade away,” Thielen said. “It’s going to be hopefully something that lasts my entire time here.”
The uniqueness of the situation isn’t lost on him. He joked that he didn’t think he’d be standing at a podium and talking to reporters in the Twin Cities until he was announcing his retirement from the NFL.
“This is pretty surreal,” Thielen said. “I’m going to take advantage of every second I’m going to be back in this building.”
Not to mention every second he and his family are back in Minnesota where they belong.
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