Adam Thielen has had rave reviews for his exquisite performance during training camp with the Minnesota Vikings.
The wide receiver has been impressing during his first preseason game with the team. He has showed imprecision with three punt returns for a total of 52 yards.
But it was during last Friday game against Oakland in which Thielen solidified his spot with the Vikings after he played the protector position and sprinted down the field to slither around a blocker and tackle Raiders returner Denarius Moore for a 4-yard loss.
According to Coach Mike Zimmer "We've got a saying around here: 'The more you can do."
In which Theilen responded with "Whatever they ask. I'm going to try to give it my best ability in whatever they want me to do."
At his pro day, Thielen ran a 40 yard dash in 4.46 seconds.
After going undrafted in the 2013 NFL Draft, Thielen attended a rookie tryout and evaluation session at Winter Park with the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings liked what they saw and on the following Monday after the minicamp took place, they signed Thielen to a contract.
Zimmer described Theilen saying "He's a guy that has a lot of toughness, a lot of heart. He wants to make the football team, and he's giving his best effort to do it. You can win a lot of football games with guys like him."
Fellow wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson and friend of Theilen already has a spot with the Vikings while the latter has only been kept for special teams.
With this Patterson said "I've been trying to give him confidence, but he just feels like he's not part of this team, man. I tell him every day, 'Man, you're a part of this team,' and he's still saying, 'I'm not. I'm not, man. I've still got to go in and prove myself.' But you need that out of a guy, man, feeling like you're not a part of this team. It's just making him work harder."
That is why Theilen would still need to prove himself to secure a slot with the Vikings.
"He tried to call himself 'Mankato Flash.' He's trying to steal my name and stuff, you know. But he's a great guy, man," Patterson said. "At the end of the day, man, hats off to Adam. I know he's going to make this team."
