Kyle Rudolph open to signing with the New England Patriots
Former Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph will be a name to watch for this offseason to join Bill Belichick in Foxborough.
It came as a little surprise when the news broke on Tuesday. The Minnesota Vikings need to fix their defense and any salary-cap casualty needed to be taken care of immediately.
Still, it didn’t make the departure of Kyle Rudolph any less sad.
The Vikings and Rudolph parted ways after 10 seasons this week. Cutting the tight end will Minnesota $5.1 million in the salary cap for 2021. Rudolph, 31, now will become a free agent for the first time since being drafted in the second-round of Notre Dame.
The list of teams for a proven tight end will be at an all-time high this offseason. One team though will stand out among the rest.
The New England Patriots. Does the fit make sense overall?
According to NESN’s Doug Kyed, Rudolph would be interested in joining Bill Belichick for the 2021 season. This should come as no surprise since Belichick tried to add the former Vikings’ pass-catcher two seasons ago via trade.
Is Kyle Rudolph going to sign with the Patriots?
Rudolph still had three years remaining on the contract signed back in June 2019. The Vikings asked him to restructure his deal via an extension. Rudolph was not interested, ultimately leading to his release.
In 2020, Rudolph led Vikings tight ends in snaps, but finished with a career-low one touchdown and had only 28 catches. He also missed four games due to injury. With the emergence of second-year tight end Irv Smith Jr., the passing of the torch has finally come.
New England spent a decade watching Tom Brady connect with Rob Gronkowski. It led to a trio of titles and immense success in the AFC East. The two recently paired up in Tampa Bay to win Brady’s seventh Super Bowl title over the Kansas City Chiefs, 31-9.
Belichick’s offense is designed to work with tight ends as a focal point. Over the past two years, Brady and Cam Newton were limited as passers due to the lack of receivers both on the outside and at the tight end role.
Could Rudolph fix the problem?
Rudolph is expected to be a hot commodity among rosters, including the Seattle Seahawks, Buffalo Bills, Las Vegas Raiders, Carolina Panthers and Cleveland Browns. New England might need to act fast if there’s mutual interest before another franchise swoops him up for good.