Vikings Icons Thielen And Ham Hang Up Their Cleats

A pair of Minnesota born, fan-favorite Minnesota Vikings have announced their retirement.

Wide receiver Adam Thielen of Detroit Lakes and fullback CJ Ham of Duluth both announced that they have played their last NFL down.

TWO VIKINGS LEGENDS LEAVE THE GAME BEHIND

Ham, 32, joined the Vikings in 2017 out of Augustana University and played nine seasons in the NFL- all with the Vikings. Ham was named to two Pro Bowls with the Vikings (2019, 2023) and despite being used mainly as a blocking back finished with eight touchdowns, including one in his final game.

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"You don't play D-II ball to make it to the NFL," Ham said in an interview with the Vikings official website. "I would say the NFL wasn't on my radar so much going through my college career. … It was those last two years where I maybe thought there might be a sniff of something.

ADAM THIELEN ALSO STEPS AWAY 

Adam Thielen's journey to the NFL has been told many times but is still one of the best in Vikings history. After playing for Detroit Lakes High School he went on to play for DII powerhouse Minnesota State University-Mankato.

Thielen, 35, went undrafted after college but earned a spot on the Vikings practice squad after a 2013 invite to a tryout camp.

He would go on to play in 146 games with the Vikings, including 105 starts, in ten seasons in purple. He also spent two seasons with the Carolina Panthers and finished the 2025 season by playing in five games with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Thielen made two Pro Bowl teams (2017, 2018) and caught 64 career touchdowns.

Thielen told the Vikings website that his faith helped him to have such a long career, and credits Ham for helping to grow his faith.

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"Even though C.J. is younger than me, his faith was a lot stronger than mine — and he was really one of my greatest mentors in my faith walk," Thielen said. "I'm forever grateful for that. … We've had some amazing conversations, just life stuff we could talk about and help each other through, or maybe sometimes it's just listening.