Panthers just made life harder for Bryce Young with Adam Thielen trade

Minnesota Vikings receive: WR Adam Thielen, a conditional 2026 seventh-round pick, and a 2027th fifth-round pick.

Carolina Panthers receive: 2026 fifth-round selection and a 2027 fourth-round pick.

What does this mean for Bryce Young?

Pressure. Big-time pressure, that is.

It feels odd to say trading a 35-year-old receiver away could greatly impact a young quarterback's development, especially when said team has drafted a receiver in the first round in each of the last two drafts, but that's how I see it.

Thielen became Bryce Young's security blanket over the last two seasons, especially once Young was reinserted into the starting role. The two connected 50 times over the last seven games of the season, for 506 yards and four touchdowns. Young completed 142 passes over the stretch, meaning 35% of the time, he hooked up with No. 19.

That's a ton of production that Carolina is going to have to make up, largely with a trio of players in the first two years of their career — Xavier Legette, Jalen Coker, and the rookie, Tetairoa McMillan.

Why Carolina should have held on to Thielen

Dan Morgan and Dave Canales may feel good about McMillan, Legette, and Coker, but they're still, for the most part, unproven talents. This is a massive year for Bryce, and that can't be overstated. While he appeared to have turned the corner last season, there's still some uncertainty as to whether that was fool's gold or if this is the new Bryce Young who has things figured out.

Either way, it would have been ideal to have the security blanket that Thielen is on the roster to give Young the best chance to ride that momentum in 2025 and build on it. Banking on three youngsters to step up and become reliable, consistent targets is quite the ask.