Panthers wide receiver Adam Thielen says he wanted to spend his entire career with the Minnesota Vikings, but he'll instead continue in Carolina.

"I think there are like two sides of it," Thielen told the "Daily Delivery" podcast this week when discussing his release. "It was a bummer. I didn't want to leave Minnesota. I wanted to end my career there. Obviously, that would be the perfect fairy-tale way to do it, right? But that's not reality. I'm so thankful for that organization, (general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah), and (head coach Kevin O'Connell) and the staff. The way they handled this throughout the process was first-class."

The 32-year-old wideout has spent much of his life in Minnesota, being a native of Detroit Lakes, Minnesota, and playing his college football at Minnesota State (formerly Mankato State).