Kyle Rudolph - Pro Football Rumors

Vikings’ Mike Zimmer On Kyle Rudolph

May 13th, 2019 at 1:47pm CST by Zachary Links

It doesn’t sound like Kyle Rudolph will be with the Vikings for much longer. On Monday, head coach Mike Zimmer was asked about Rudolph’s status and hinted at a parting of ways.

“I’ve had conversations with Kyle and quite honestly I really love all my players,” Zimmer said (Twitter link via Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press). “We expect Kyle to be here but sometimes business gets in the way.”

Zimmer’s comment jibes with last week’s report that contract negotiations between the Vikings and the tight end have come to a stop. The Vikings can save upwards of $7MM by moving on from Rudolph and the arival of second-round pick Irv Smith Jr. may give the team enough confidence to drop the veteran.

Rudolph is due $7.275MM in base pay for 2019 while Smith is set to make less than $5.8MM over the life of his four-year rookie deal.

Vikings, Kyle Rudolph Halt Negotiations

May 10th, 2019 at 1:03pm CST by Zachary Links

Kyle Rudolph could be on his way out of Minnesota. Extension talks between the tight end and the Vikings broke off on Friday morning, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter).

The Vikings drafted Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. in the second round, a sign that Rudolph might not factor into the team’s future plans. By moving on from Rudolph, the Vikes can save more than $7MM. Meanwhile, Rapoport hears that there is interest in Rudolph around the NFL.

Speculatively, one has to wonder if the Patriots could be among the interested clubs. A trade to New England would give the Pats an established TE to replace Rob Gronkowski and would give Rudolph his first opportunity to play in Foxborough for the first time since September 14, 2014. In that one-sided Patriots win, Rudolph had a respectable five receptions for 53 yards.

The 29-year-old Rudolph had another productive season in 2018, hauling in 64 receptions for 634 yards and four scores.

Vikings Notes: Rudolph, Cutting, Badet, Kearse

May 4th, 2019 at 7:24pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Vikings made a splash last week in the draft, when they took Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. 50th overall. Smith was considered by many to be the third best tight end in the draft behind the Iowa standouts, and the Vikings are hoping he can turn into a consistent third option behind Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen in the future. But the move could have more immediate implications for one current member of the team, tight end Kyle Rudolph. The selection “appeared to foreshadow that Rudolph’s days in Minnesota could be numbered,” writes Courtney Cronin of ESPN.com.

Additionally, sources told Cronin that the Vikings “fielded interest” before and during the draft about a potential trade for Rudolph. We heard in March that the Vikings had asked Rudolph to take a pay cut, but his representatives then pushed back forcefully on that and denied the report. His reps also said at the time that the team had told them Rudolph would be on the roster in 2019, but that’s looking like far from a sure thing now. Last month Albert Breer of SI.com speculated that the Patriots could be interested in adding Rudolph. With New England looking thin at tight end after Rob Gronkowski’s retirement, it wouldn’t be a shocker.

Here’s more from Minnesota:

New Vikings long snapper Austin Cutting, a seventh round pick of the team, will report to rookie minicamp but has signed an “injury protection agreement” instead of his rookie contract, according to Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press (Twitter link). Cutting is an Air Force product, and he’s not signing “out of respect to letting the Air Force eventually give a final decision of if he can play in 2019,” Tomasson writes. Cutting could possibly have to leave the team for two years to fulfill his service requirements, but we won’t know for sure for a little while longer.
Receiver Jeff Badet spent last season on the Vikings’ practice squad, and he signed a reserve/futures deal with the team after the season ended. But he almost didn’t end up back with the Vikings, as he was courted by the Jets, according to Tomasson. Minnesota ended up giving the Oklahoma product a $75K bonus to stick around, which swayed him. Badet, an undrafted rookie last year, became the second player to almost defect to the Jets before coming home after Anthony Barr‘s heavily publicized free agency ordeal.
The Vikings are looking to convert safety Jayron Kearse to a weakside linebacker this offseason, sources told Tomasson. Kearse was taken by the Vikes in the seventh round back in 2016. A Clemson product, Kearse played linebacker in high school before being switched to safety in college. Kearse played around 20 percent of the Vikings’ defensive snaps last season and was a key player on special teams, so he’s got a significant role. It’ll be interesting to see how his transition turns out.

Vikings Receiving Calls On Veterans

April 27th, 2019 at 9:28am CST by Ben Levine

It could be a busy day in Minnesota. SI.com’s Albert Breer tweets that the organization has received calls on three veterans: tight end Kyle Rudolph and cornerbacks Xavier Rhodes and Trae Waynes. Breer notes that while the organization is not “actively shopping” the trio, they’d be open to trades for their expensive veterans.

Breer had mentioned earlier this week that the Vikings could be willing to talk trade. Rudolph is a natural trade candidate, as the tight end is set to earn $7.28MM in the final year of his contract. The organization also selected Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. with their second-round pick, which naturally added some competition to the position. General manager Rick Spielman said the two players can play different roles on offense, with ESPN’s Courtney Cronin suggesting the offense could replicate Philly, where Zach Ertz and Trey Burton coexisted. The 29-year-old Rudolph had another productive season in 2018, hauling in 64 receptions for 634 yards and four scores.

Waynes is also a natural trade candidate, as the cornerback will be playing on a fully-guaranteed fifth-year option salary of $9.07MM. The former first-rounded has spent his entire career in Minnesota, including a 2018 campaign where he finished with 44 tackles, eight passes defended, and one interception.

As Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com points out, trading Rhodes could be a bit more complicated. His $10.4MM salary is fully-guaranteed, and a trade would subsequently trigger a $7.2MM cap charge. At this point of the offseason, it could be difficult for an inquiring team to fit the 28-year-old into their books. On the flip side, a trade would help the Vikings financially; the team would save $6.14MM in cap space by trading the defensive back. Rhodes finished last season with 47 tackles, nine passes defended, and one interception.

Breer’s Latest: Jets, Broncos, Rudolph

April 25th, 2019 at 5:28pm CST by Ben Levine

Some assorted notes from SI.com’s Albert Breer leading up to tonight’s draft…

The Jets are beginning to gain some traction on a deal involving the third-overall pick. Breer mentions that the Redskins could be a match, with the team presumably eyeing a quarterback. Ohio State’s Dwayne Haskins could be an option, as could Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray (if he isn’t taken with the first-overall pick). Breer notes that if the Jets remain in the top-10, they could opt for Houston defensive tackle Ed Oliver, who one scout described as “the epitome of a [defensive coordinator] Gregg Williams player.”
Missouri quarterback Drew Lock is “rising continuously in draft meetings” among the Broncos front office. The team could be eyeing him with pick No. 10, or they could be preparing for a scenario where Lock falls towards the bottom of the first round.
After paying Stefon Diggs, Adam Thielen, Eric Kendricks, Anthony Barr and Danielle Hunter, the Vikings could be looking to deal one of their other pricey veterans. Tight end Kyle Rudolph could be a trade candidate, and Breer writes that he wouldn’t be shocked if the Patriots make a play for the pass-catcher. The writer mentions cornerbacks Xavier Rhodes and Trae Waynes as well as wideout Laquon Treadwell as trade candidates.
Two players who are set to play on their fifth-year option are on the block. Breer writes that Eagles receiver Nelson Agholor and 49ers defensive end Arik Armstead “have been part of trade discussions.” On the flip side, Breer believes that it’s unlikely that the 49ers trade defensive lineman Solomon Thomas.
If Mississippi State’s Montez Sweat gets past the Redskins (No. 15), Panthers (No. 16), or Seahawks (No.21), Breer is unsure how far the defensive end could end up falling. Breer points to the Rams as a potential fit at the end of the first round. Reports indicated that Sweat was diagnosed with a heart condition, although there were rumblings today that he may have been misdiagnosed.

North Notes: Rudolph, Browns, Packers

March 10th, 2019 at 6:57pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Kyle Rudolph isn’t going anywhere. We heard earlier today that the Vikings had asked Rudolph to take a pay-cut, but his management team is pushing back forcefully on those rumors. Rudolph’s agent, Brian Murphy, released a statement saying “despite rumors, Vikings are not in negotiations with Kyle Rudolph, have not asked him to take a pay reduction and have told us explicitly that Rudy will not only be on the team this year, but hopefully for years to come,” via Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link).

It’s a strong statement, and it doesn’t leave much room for doubt. Rudolph is scheduled to make $7.275MM next season and the Vikings have almost no salary cap space, but they’ll apparently have to create room somewhere else. Rudolph has spent the last eight seasons in Minnesota after the Vikings took him in the second round of the 2011 draft. He hasn’t been in the top-tier of tight ends, but he’s been a solid and consistent player, and he made the Pro Bowl in 2017. Rudolph has also been very durable recently, appearing in all 16 games in four straight years.

Here’s more from around the league’s northern divisions:

Greg Robinson signed a one-year deal to return to the Browns a couple of weeks ago, and now we have the details on the contract. Interestingly, his new pact includes $500K in weigh-in bonuses, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN.com (Twitter link). Robinson will have weigh-ins around once a month starting in April all the way through the regular season, which suggests Cleveland wasn’t too happy with the weight he played at last year. Robinson’s deal has a base salary of $5.5MM with a $500K signing bonus, $400K in per-game roster bonuses, and a $100K workout bonus. He could face competition from a rookie, but right now the former second overall pick projects as the team’s starting left tackle.
Speaking of the Browns, the status of receiver Breshad Perriman is still up in the air. The former first round pick and draft bust with the Ravens revitalized his career in Cleveland last year, but is now set to be an unrestricted free agent. The “two sides aren’t close” on a deal, but Perriman “wants to be back, and realizes that Baker Mayfield helped him resuscitate his career,” according to Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. Kay Cabot writes that Perriman’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, “wants to let the market” set the price for the 25-year-old receiver. After joining the Browns mid-season, Perriman had 233 yards and two touchdowns the final four weeks of the year.
The Packers have reportedly expressed interest in Chiefs pass-rusher Dee Ford. But trading for Ford, who has been franchise-tagged by Kansas City, may prove difficult for Green Bay. Any team that trades for Ford is likely to try and sign him to a longterm deal, but the Packers don’t usually like longterm deals with a ton of guaranteed money and prefer to structure deals with large signing bonuses instead, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network (Twitter link). That could be a problem because as Rapoport points out, Ford has the same agent as Le’Veon Bell, and the agent takes a very strong stance on the need for more guaranteed money in deals. None of this means the Packers won’t be able to trade for Ford, but it’s an interesting note nonetheless, and it could force them to turn their focus elsewhere as they look for pass-rushing help.

Vikings Ask Kyle Rudolph To Take Pay Cut?

March 10th, 2019 at 10:26am CST by Rory Parks

The Vikings have virtually no salary cap space at the moment, with Ben Goessling of the Star Tribune reporting that the club is expected to have just $5.24MM in room when free agency opens on Wednesday. Goessling takes a position-by-position look at some of the difficult decisions Minnesota will have to make in order to free up some cash, and one of the most notable names involved in his piece is tight end Kyle Rudolph.

Per Goessling, it is believed that the Vikings are in talks with Rudolph about taking a pay cut in 2019, the final year of his current contract. Rudolph is due a $7.275MM salary, and roster/workout bonuses would increase the club’s cash outlay and corresponding cap hit to $7.625MM. The Vikings could shed that entire figure from its books by cutting Rudolph and would absorb no dead money by doing so, but there is not much by way of proven talent behind Rudolph on the depth chart.

Rudolph has started all 16 regular season games for the Vikings in each of the past four seasons, but he will turn 30 in November and had offseason ankle surgery last year. He earned Pro Bowl nods in 2012 and 2017, and he has been a solid contributor and redzone threat throughout his career, but his raw statistics have never been particularly eye-popping (though he did have 840 receiving yards in 2016, from 132 targets). Nonetheless, his overall body of work and his recent run of durability suggest he could at least match his 2019 pay if he were to hit the open market — especially since blocking tight end Nick Boyle just earned a three-year pact paying him $6MM per year from the Ravens — so he may choose to refuse a pay cut. Either way, the Vikings will be in the market for a pass-catching tight end, either in free agency or the draft.

Goessling’s entire piece is worth a read, as it includes his thoughts on the Minnesota futures of other notables like Everson Griffen, Mike Remmers, and Laquon Treadwell.

Vikings Notes: Robison, Hughes, Carlson

June 5th, 2018 at 8:49pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

Last month, it was announced that Vikings defensive end Brian Robison was taking a pay cut to stay with the team in the final year of his contract. The longtime Viking was scheduled to make $3.5MM initially, but his pay cut reduced his base salary to $1.015MM plus a $90K workout bonus.

Now Robison, who has been with the Vikings since being drafted by the team in the fourth round back in 2007, appears ready to hang up his cleats. He recently told Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press that he’ll “more than likely” retire after the 2018 season.

If the 2018 season is indeed Robison’s last in the NFL, it will be the end to an unusually long run with a single team for a role player. Normally only a star player would wind up playing for the same team for 12 seasons, but Robison has carved out a similar situational pass-rushing role with the Vikings year after year through multiple coaching staffs and front offices. He has 60 sacks, 19 passes defended, and 13 forced fumbles throughout his career, only missing three of a possible 176 games since entering the league.

Here’s more on the Vikings:

Vikings first-round cornerback Mike Hughes is “pretty close” to signing his rookie deal, Hughes told Tomasson. Hughes, the only Vikings draft pick yet to sign, was taken with the 30th overall pick in April’s draft out of Central Florida.
Tomasson reports that rookie kicker Daniel Carlson “has looked better than Kai Forbath in the battle to be Minnesota’s kicker.” Since the Vikings used a fifth-rounder on Carlson, they likely have every intention of having him be their kicker. Forbath, the incumbent, was underwhelming last year and appears likely to be cut.
Pro Bowl tight end Kyle Rudolph is working his way back from offseason ankle surgery, and recently returned to the field. Tomasson notes that Rudolph is ahead of schedule in his recovery and wasn’t supposed to get back to work for a few more weeks.

Extra Points: Houston, Thomas, Vikings, Jaguars

July 18th, 2015 at 8:32pm CST by Rob DiRe

Justin Houston signed the richest contract in the history of the Chiefs organization, and his teammates are just as excited for the star pass rusher than he is for himself, writes Chris Bumbaca of the Kansas City Star. Receiver Junior Hemingway and safety Sanders Commings both had great things to say about their teammate’s new deal.

“To have Justin back, man, it’s a good move for us. We can keep pushing, keep doing what we’re doing as a team, keep building, keep grinding, and get going — and try and get this ring,” said Hemingway. “In my eyes, he’s the best. His work ethic, just the person who he is, just being around him, you can feed off of that.”

“That guy deserves every penny. He’s one of the hardest workers on the team — most vocal leader, also leads by example,” said Commings. “He makes it easy on the rest of the defense. He can make a play before it even gets started, getting to their quarterback so fast.”

Another AFC West star with a new deal added more headlines at a Broncos press conference, where Demaryius Thomas boldly claimed he will be chasing 2,000 receiving yards, write Troy Renck of the Denver Post. He will take over for Andre Johnson and Steve Smith as the number one option in the Gary Kubiak offense.
Kyle Rudolph should return to his place at the top of the Vikings depth chart after missing significant time with injury last season, but the roster behind him is up in the air. Rhett Ellison, Chase Ford, fifth-round pick MyCole Pruitt, and the onside kick pariah Brandon Bostick will all battle for spots on the roster. Master Tesfatsion of the Star Tribune posits that Pruitt is a lock to make the team, meaning last year’s blocking specialist Ellison and receiving specialist Ford will have to fight each other out for what is likely the third and final spot on the roster. Tesfatsion notes that Bostwick would need a strong showing to be in position for that last spot in the team.
The Jaguars haven’t been good in what seems like forever, but general manager Dave Caldwell is rebuilding the team from the trenches out. Ryan O’Halloran of Jacksonville.com points out that the team has devoted 20.6% of the salary cap to the offensive line, and 27.7% to the defensive line. (There is also an excellent story about wide receivers coach Jerry Sullivan and his relationship to legendary defensive coordinator Bill Arnsparger, who passed away on Friday).

Extra Points: Bironas, Harrison, Rudolph

September 24th, 2014 at 10:38pm CST by Zachary Links

Rob Bironas was planning to continue his NFL career before his unexpected death earlier this week, according to Titans punter Brett Kern. “I talked to him on Friday, because he had the workout with the Lions, and he was so excited that it went well. I told him I was proud of him,’ and that’s the last thing I told him,” Kern told reporters, including Jim Wyatt of The Tennesseean. “He was really looking forward to signing with another team.” More from around the NFL..

James Harrison‘s deal with the Steelers is for the veteran’s minimum, minus the three games already played, tweets Ed Bouchette of the Post-Gazette. Including his $65K bonus, he’ll collect just over $851K for this season.
There’s a chance Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph could be placed on the IR-DTR list, but “probably not,” head coach Mike Zimmer told reporters, including Matt Vensel of the Star Tribune (on Twitter).
Free agent cornerback Champ Bailey feels healthy and tells Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter) that he is willing to play nickel or safety if that’s what it takes to land a job somewhere.
Teammate Tyvon Branch is headed to the IR, but the Raiders got some good news on teammate Rod Streater. His agent tells Bill Williamson of ESPN.com (on Twitter) that Streater only requires minor surgery and hopes to return in 4-5 weeks.