The Kansas City Chiefs were able to repeat as Super Bowl champions despite their lack of talent at wide receiver. Rookie Rashee Rice was Patrick Mahomes' clear-cut No. 1 target out wide, but apart from him, Kansas City's wideouts didn't do much. In fact, Mahomes averaged a career-low 7.7 yards per attempt when targeting his wide receivers, which ranked 20th in the NFL in 2023.
As one would imagine, joining the best team in the NFL to play with the best quarterback in the world is an attractive idea, but the Chiefs apparently denied a veteran pass-catcher who wanted to offer his services last year. Recently, Adam Thielen told Starcade Media that the Chiefs didn't want him prior to the 2023 season.
"Well I was trying to go there and they didn't want me so I'll have to try to show them what I got," Thielen said with a smile.
#Panthers WR Adam Thielen tells us he wanted to go to Kansas City last offseason but that the #Chiefs didn't want him pic.twitter.com/Jm2J5weCBC
— Starcade Media (@StarcadeMediaKC) July 12, 2024
After nine impressive seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, a 32-year-old Thielen hit free agency. Once he was denied by the Chiefs, he signed a three-year deal with the Carolina Panthers, who ended up being the worst team in the league. Despite that fact, and rookie quarterback Bryce Young's struggles, Thielen recorded his second career 100-catch season, catching 103 passes for 1,014 yards and four touchdowns.
While Thielen isn't a home-run hitter, he's a reliable slot weapon that holds an NFL record with Calvin Johnson for most consecutive 100-yard games with eight. Even at 33, he's still expected to be a huge contributor for Carolina's offense.
