Receiver Adam Thielen restructures contract to give Vikings salary cap relief

Receiver Adam Thielen agreed to restructure his contract with the Vikings, buying the team some needed salary cap relief and giving the veteran receiver additional security through guaranteed money. Thielen's agency announced the deal on Friday.

The move is expected to create about $5 million to $6 million in salary cap space with accounting measures that spread charges over the life of the contract that now includes a void year added in 2025, according to a league source.

Full terms of the restructure were not immediately available, but the agency — the Minneapolis-based Institute For Athletes — announced Thielen will get $18 million guaranteed. Half of that will be paid out in a $9 million signing bonus, a source said.

"I guess you can't get rid of me yet," Thielen said through his agency. "Super excited to be back in purple to ultimately try to bring a championship to this city that so much deserves it. So excited about the leadership and everything that's being put in place by this organization. Can't wait to get back to work and to really build on something special."

It's the latest move by Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah to generate spending power after the team also cleared nearly $14 million with a one-year extension for quarterback Kirk Cousins, $6 million in a salary conversion for safety Harrison Smith and another $6 million by releasing nose tackle Michael Pierce.

The Vikings still walk a financial tightrope after approaching the 2022 league year at roughly $15 million over the cap. They've since signed two defensive starters in nose tackle Harrison Phillips ($3.8 million cap hit) and linebacker Jordan Hicks ($3.5 million), and re-signed punter Jordan Berry to a one-year deal. Kicker Greg Joseph, a restricted free agent, was given a low-level tender worth $2.433 million for next season.

Finalizing deals with Johnny Mundt, the former Rams No. 2 tight end, and ex-Broncos offensive lineman Austin Schlottmann also account for some cap room. Mundt, who is recovering from a torn ACL suffered in October, passed his physical on Friday before officially signing his two-year, $2.4 million contract. Schlottmann also inked a one-year, minimum salary deal on Friday.

While Thielen remains under contract through the 2024 season, his new deal and guaranteed money reinforce his chances of staying in Minnesota through at least 2023 — in lockstep with Cousins' new contract. Thielen didn't have any guaranteed money left on his old deal, but previous signing bonus prorations would've left about $11 million in dead money if he were released, giving the two-time Pro Bowler leverage.

Thielen was set to account for $16.8 million against this year's cap — a figure raised by a 2021 restructure that converted some of his salary into a signing bonus to spread out the cap charges. Those conversions can be done without the player's consent. Thielen needed to agree to redo his deal this time for cap relief, and he did.

Only two NFL receivers, the Raiders' Davante Adams and the Buccaneers' Mike Evans, have more touchdown catches than Thielen's 24 in the past two seasons. Thielen, who turns 32 in August, had his last season end with December surgery to repair a high-ankle sprain.

Star Tribune staff writer Ben Goessling contributed reporting to this story.