The Panthers traded wide receiver Adam Thielen to the Vikings this week, returning him to Minnesota after he spent the past two seasons with Carolina.

Thielen's time with the Panthers was largely centered around the development of quarterback Bryce Young, who they drafted a month after signing Thielen. In Thielen, Young had a veteran receiver he could both throw to and learn from as he endured a rocky start to his career.

Young struggled greatly during his rookie year and was then benched two games into his sophomore season. Despite a tough beginning to his career, Thielen believes the growth and promising play Young showed at the end of last season is more characteristic of the quarterback he is.

“I will say this about Bryce because he deserves the respect. He’s a great man. He’s a great leader. And he’s a great quarterback," Thielen told reporters in Minnesota on Thursday. "You saw that at the end of last year. Just the stuff he had to go through, the adversity through his first two years in the league. You don’t wish that upon anybody. For him to handle that, and to be where he’s at right now, it says a lot about his character, and who he is, and the kind of player he’s going to be in this league. So much respect for him. Because I guarantee you I’m not here today without him. Him trusting me. Him giving me opportunities. And believing in me to be able to still continue to play this game that I love.”

Thielen clearly holds both Young and the Panthers organization in high regard, and believes a bright future is ahead of them, which was also evident in his parting words to Carolina.

Now that Thielen is back in Minnesota, where he spent the first 10 years of his career, his attention will turn to helping out another young quarterback in J.J. McCarthy. Thielen has previously worked out with McCarthy before, but didn't think they'd actually get to play together until this week.

"At the time, just had so much respect for him, for how he approaches the game, even in the summer months when you don't really have to do those things," Thielen said of McCarthy. "His work ethic, his mindset, his communication of how he's doing things. ... I think what's cool about him is he approached it from a 'This is what I'm thinking. This is the route and this is why we have this in our system.' It's cool to see that approach, especially from a young guy."

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Adam Thielen Had Powerful Parting Words on Bryce Young After Trade to Vikings.