Kyle Rudolph-To-Patriots Hopes Dead After Tight End Gets Vikings Extension

It certainly made sense to tie Kyle Rudolph to the New England Patriots.

The Minnesota Vikings appeared to have a brewing conundrum on their hands when the tight end’s uncertain contract situation intersected with them selecting tight end Irv Smith Jr. in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft. The move, it seemed, was to trade Rudolph and go with Smith.

New England, still reeling from the loss suffered by Rob Gronkowski’s retirement, needed a tight end. If anyone was going to make a trade for Rudolph, the Patriots seemed as good of an option as any, but it wasn’t meant to be. Rudolph and the Vikings reportedly agreed to a four-year contract extension late Monday night.

ESPN’s Adam Schefter indicated last week the Patriots and Vikings discussed Rudolph, but New England ultimately didn’t want to pay Minnesota’s asking price.

“The Patriots aren’t about to give up a premium pick, and I don’t mean a first-round pick, a premium pick, for a guy going into the last year of his contract at this time,” Schefter said Friday on WEEI.

Schefter also noted that he believed Minnesota “would not be inclined to move (Rudolph),” and that apparently was the case.

Rudolph, a two-time Pro Bowl selection, is coming off another solid season for the Vikings in which the Notre Dame product caught 64 passes for 634 yards and four touchdowns.

The Patriots, meanwhile, enter the season with Matt LaCosse atop the depth chart at tight end. That’s at least until Week 5 when the Patriots get recently signed Ben Watson back from suspension.