Report: Vikings Wanted Different WR before Thielen Trade
The Minnesota Vikings finagled a somewhat expensive trade for Adam Thielen this week, welcoming the 35-year-old back into the mix for a universally-praised reunion.
The Vikings allegedly wanted another wide receiver before pulling off the Adam Thielen trade, revealing a surprising wrinkle in Minnesota’s roster plans.
But if that trade had not materialized, Minnesota evidently considered wide receiver Kendrick Bourne as an alternative.
It’s the latest and greatest theory from NFL Network‘s Mike Garafolo.
Turns Out the Vikings May Have Wanted Kendrick Bourne if No Adam Thielen
The Vikings netted Thielen this week, but Bourne might’ve been a contingency plan.
Vikings Apparently Sought Kendrick Bourne
For starters, NFL Network‘s Tom Pelissero tweeted Wednesday, “The Patriots are releasing veteran WR Kendrick Bourne, per sources. After missing most of camp with a foot injury, Bourne is healthy and wanted a fresh start. Now, he gets it and can find a new home.”
Pelissero’s coworker, Mike Garafolo, added a few minutes later: “The 49ers seem like a logical landing spot but the Vikings had interest and a few other teams are likely to show interest now that Kendrick Bourne is a free agent. One to watch.”
It’s worth noting that Garafolo made it seem like Bourne could still be on Minnesota’s free-agent radar.
They Can Just …. Sign Him Now and Get Rich at WR
In all likelihood, the Thielen trade probably cancelled the need for Bourne, who is quite productive. He usually tabulates between 300 and 800 receiving yards per season, along with a few touchdowns. In theory, those numbers would be perfect in Minnesota as a WR3-WR4. For years, Minnesota has notoriously skimped on the WR depth chart after two big-name receivers like Justin Jefferson and Thielen, or before that, Thielen and Stefon Diggs. A player like Bourne would’ve been nice back then.
Minnesota won’t have Jordan Addison for the first three games of the regular season because of a suspension, Rondale Moore is out for all of 2025 with a knee injury, and Jalen Nailor recently had a surgical procedure on his hand.
All of those items suggested that Minnesota needed WR depth, at least out of the gate in 2025, so Thielen and Bourne entered the rumor mill. And here we are.
The Would-Be WR Room with Bourne
Pretend general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah pulled the trigger, signing Bourne to a one-year contract. Here’s what the WR corps would like:
— — Justin Jefferson
— — Jordan Addison (out until Week 4)
— — Adam Thielen
— — Kendrick Bourne
— — Jalen Nailor
— — Tai Felton
— — Myles Price
Few purple fans would complain about the unit. It would be that deep.
Adam Thielen Probably Suffices, on the Whole
In reality, Bourne was likely a fallback plan. That is — if the Panthers stuck to their guns and refused to move Thielen, Minnesota would’ve pursued Bourne via trade or explored his current free agency.
When Addison returns — Week 4 against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Ireland — Minnesota will have a relatively full house at wide receiver. Signing Bourne now might be saving him for a rainy day, operating under the assumption that Nailor or Felton, for example, will miss games in 2025.
At this juncture in free agency, Bourne won’t be too expensive.
More on the Bourne-Vikings Connection
The Viking Age‘s Brad Berreman weighed in this week on the Bourne-to-Minnesota topic: “Until they made a move, a number of wide receivers who were available or potentially available were easy to tie to the Vikings in some capacity. All of that speculation is done now, most likely, with the Thielen trade.”
“But a name that was unsurprisingly mentioned in that speculation was released by his team a bit after Minnesota’s trade with Carolina on Wednesday. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the New England Patriots released wide receiver Kendrick Bourne, with a subsequent note that the Vikings had interest in trading for him before acquiring Thielen.”
Bourne turned 30 a few weeks ago.
Berreman continued, “Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald further reported that the Patriots released Bourne, upon his request, after a trade to send him to the Vikings was not finalized. The Vikings got a close look at Bourne when the Patriots were in town for joint practices before the second preseason game for each team. When New England kept eight wide receivers on their initial 53-man roster, a move to part with someone was inevitable, and Bourne was easy to put atop that list.”
“Maybe it was used as a bit of leverage, or maybe it was a simple contingency plan in case talks with the Panthers to acquire Thielen went irretrievably awry. But the Vikings apparently made notable progress on a deal to acquire Bourne, before (presumably) pulling the plug when the trade for Thielen came together.”
Normally, a Thielen trade would rule out the necessity of a player like Bourne, but Minnesota has entered a roster era focused on intense depth — see the defensive tackle additions this offseason — so Bourne cannot be wholly ruled out as a free-agent target.
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