New Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson led the team with 9 receptions Sunday in his 1st game since the trade. He caught all 9 of his targets (2nd on the team) for 70 yards. Only WR Justin Jefferson drew more looks, catching 7 of 13 for 115 yards and a TD. WR Adam Thielen garnered 7 targets and tallied 3 receptions for 67 yards. QB Kirk Cousins totaled 265 yards on a lackluster 22-of-40 (55%) passing. Minnesota heads to Buffalo next Sunday for 1 of the league's toughest passing matchups.
The Lions are trading TE T.J. Hockenson to the Vikings, along with a 2023 4th-round pick and a 2024 conditional 4th-round pick, in exchange for a 2023 2nd-round pick and 2024 3rd-round pick, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports. It's surprising for a few reasons, most notably because it's an intra-division trade and involves a former 1st-round pick still on his rookie deal. Hockenson counts just $6.5 million against this year's salary cap and has a $9.3 million 5th-year option for 2023. He's been slightly underwhelming through 3+ NFL seasons considering he was the 8th overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft. But Hockenson's 44.0 receiving yards per game since 2019 rank 10th among TEs. He's averaged a career-best 56.4 yards per game so far this year and ranks 7th among 31 qualifying TEs in Pro Football Focus' 2022 receiving grades. Minnesota is an OK spot for Hockenson's rest-of-season fantasy value. He'll obviously be behind WR Justin Jefferson in the pecking order but could challenge WR Adam Thielen for the #2 spot. And the Vikings have been a pass-leaning offense this year, ranking 7th at 38.0 pass attempts per game. (The Lions rank 15th at 35.7.). Hockenson will face negative fantasy-scoring matchups the next 2 weeks vs. Washington and Buffalo, but the schedule looks nice after that. Detroit, meanwhile, is left with TEs Brock Wright and James Mitchell. Wright is the preferred add but is probably only worth a look in TE-premium leagues like the FFPC. RB D'Andre Swift and WR Amon-Ra St. Brown should pick up more targets with Hockenson gone.
Vikings TE Irv Smith suffered a high-ankle sprain in Sunday's win over the Cardinals, insider Chris Tomasson reports. Smith is getting an MRI on Monday to get a better look at the damage, but he figures to miss multiple games. He's droppable in standard-sized fantasy leagues. Smith's absence leaves lead TE duties to Johnny Mundt, who owns just 22 career catches, with 12 of them coming this season. We should see more volume funneled to WRs Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen and K.J. Osborn with Smith out.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen found the end zone in a Week 6 win over Miami. While his 36 yards underwhelmed, he tied Justin Jefferson for the team-lead in targets (8). Thielen’s score — his 2nd of the season — came from 2 yards out when he shook free from CB Xavien Howard. Through 6 games, Thielen’s up to 29 catches, 284 yards and 2 TDs. He draws a nice matchup with Arizona following a Week 7 bye.
Vikings WR Justin Jefferson enjoyed another big game in Sunday's win over the Bears. He racked up a 12-154 receiving line on 13 targets. No other Viking drew more than 7 looks or caught more than 5 passes. WR Adam Thielen checked in 2nd with 7 targets but caught just 4 for 27 yards. K.J. Osborn caught all 5 of his targets (for 41 yards) to finish 2nd on the team in receptions.
After a pair of down weeks, Vikings WR Justin Jefferson racked up 10 catches for 147 yards in Sunday's win over the Saints in London. He added a 3-yard rushing score as well. Jefferson's 13 targets stood 4 ahead of Adam Thielen and 9 ahead of #3 Irv Smith. Thielen caught 8 balls for 72 yards. Smith contributed 23 yards on 3 catches. Dalvin Cook was the only other Viking with more than 1 reception.
Vikings WR Justin Jefferson drew 12 targets in Monday night's loss to the Eagles -- 4 more than his nearest teammate -- but caught just 6 of them for 48 yards. Jefferson had no gain of more than 11 yards, on a night where Eagles CB Darius Slay locked him up. WR Adam Thielen added 4-52 receiving on 7 targets, while WR K.J. Osborn drew just 2 looks.
It's been a quiet training camp for Vikings WR Adam Thielen. (Quiet is good for a 31-year-old veteran.). But The Athletic's Arif Hasan writes that Thielen "looks more like his previous self" after missing the end of last season and undergoing ankle surgery in December. "His play is reminiscent of his most productive stretch from 2016 to 2018," Hasan adds. "After some injury-shortened seasons and limited production when healthy, this might be big news." Thielen was sitting 8th among WRs in half-PPR points per game through Week 12 last year and is a nice value at his current 6th-round price tag.
The Vikings have fired HC Mike Zimmer and GM Rick Spielman, NFL Network reports. It ends an 8-year run for Zimmer and a 16-year run for Spielman in Minnesota. Zimmer's tenure brought just 3 seasons of double-digit wins and 2 playoff victories. We'll see who the Vikings hire to run the show going forward.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen will miss at least the rest of the regular season after undergoing ankle surgery on Tuesday, according to The Athletic's Chad Graff. NFL Network's Tom Pelissero adds that Thielen is expected to be sidelined for about a month, so Minnesota would need to make a deep playoff run if Thielen is going to play again before the 2022 season. K.J. Osborn will step in as the Vikings' #2 WR -- and WR Justin Jefferson will dominate targets -- for as long as Thielen is out.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen left in the 1st half of Sunday's game against the Rams with a left-ankle injury. The team calls him questionable to return. Thielen missed the past 2 games with a high left ankle sprain, and his reaction to today's injury sure made it look like an aggravation of the existing issue. We'll see whether he can make it back -- and then see about his availability for Week 17.
Update: Thielen returned for the start of the 2nd half. We'll see how that ankle holds up.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen (ankle) is active for today’s game vs. the Rams. He’s 3 weeks removed from a high-ankle sprain and was limited in practice all week. Thielen’s fantasy floor is lower than usual today.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen (ankle) is expected to play vs. the Rams today, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Thielen was left off the final injury report on the Vikings' website, but he's evidently actually listed as questionable. Regardless, it sounds like he'll be available for Week 16 fantasy lineups. Thielen was limited in practice all week coming off the December 5 high-ankle sprain, so he brings a lower floor than usual.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen (ankle) was limited in practice all week but isn’t listed on the final injury report. He’ll return for Sunday’s game vs. the Rams after missing the past 2. Thielen carries elevated risk in his 1st game back from a high-ankle sprain, but there’s plenty of upside here in a potential shootout.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen (ankle) remained limited in Thursday's practice. We'll see what he does tomorrow and how he's listed on the final injury report for Sunday's game vs. the Rams.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen (ankle) put in a limited practice on Wednesday. He reportedly had a chance to play vs. the Bears on Monday night, so we're tentatively expecting Thielen back for this weekend's game vs. the Rams.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen is inactive for tonight's game against the Bears. He was reportedly hoping to play, but the veteran didn't practice at all this week. We'll see about his chances for the Week 16 game against the Rams.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen (ankle) is listed as questionable for Monday night's game vs. the Bears. He didn't practice all week, though, so we'd be surprised if he played. Thielen should still be on fantasy benches right now. We'll let you know if we hear that he has a real chance to play on Monday.
Vikings WR Adam Thielen (ankle) missed practice again on Friday. He looks like a long shot to play vs. the Bears on Monday night, but we’ll get another update on his status on Saturday afternoon.
Search
