With eight catches against the Packers on Sunday, Adam Thielen passed Kyle Rudolph for fifth in Vikings history in receptions. He's now at 455 and could wind up as high as third on the all-time leaderboard by the time this season is over.
Next up, in fourth place, is Anthony Carter, who caught 478 passes in a Vikings uniform between 1985 and 1993. Thielen is averaging 5.8 catches per game this season, and with seven games left to play, he'll almost certainly pass Carter at some point in December if he stays healthy.
Getting to Steve Jordan is also within reach. The most productive tight end in Vikings history caught 498 passes in his career, meaning Thielen would need 44 catches over the final seven games — an average of 6.3 per game — to pass him this season. He's averaging 6.4 catches per game over the past five contests, so it's entirely possible he could pass Jordan and potentially become the third Viking to ever reach the 500-catch mark.
If and when he does that — whether it's this season or early next season — Thielen would only trail the two greatest receivers in franchise history: Randy Moss (587 catches as a Viking) and Cris Carter (1004). For a guy who grew up watching Moss and Carter play as a kid in Detroit Lakes, MN, that would be pretty special.
"I love to play football, and I love to have the ball in my hands," Thielen said. "As a receiver, you’ve got to love having the ball in your hands. It’s been fun. It will be interesting for me. Right now, I’m just so focused on the next week and not worried about stats and things like that, but I think it will be cool to look back at some day when I’m retired and all washed up at my house."
Thielen also ranks sixth in Vikings history in receiving touchdowns — he has 47 — and is one away from tying Rudolph for fifth place. He's six away from surpassing Sammy White and Carter and moving into third in that category. When it comes to receiving yardage, Thielen is seventh and could potentially pass Jordan, White, and Reed later this year if he finishes strong.
It'll be fun to track the continued ascent up franchise receiving leaderboards for the former undrafted free agent out of Minnesota State. He's just 31 years old and under contract for three more seasons after this one, so Thielen's got plenty of time to keep adding to his totals.
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