Report: Patriots Have Talked With Minnesota About Landing Top Tight End

The New England Patriots are considered a landing spot for Pro Bowl tight end Kyle Rudolph.  The Minnesota Vikings may lose their tight end, and seeing him wear a Patriots uniform sort of makes a perfect sense. The Patriots will enter the 2019 season without tight end Rob Gronkowski, and they have a hole to fill on the depth chart.

Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer talked about the future of Rudolph, noting that the Patriots and Minnesota have talked about a possible trade.

Breer’s effort was the first on this subject. It goes higher than any speculation. Minnesota has been taking calls on their star tight during the NFL Draft, but we don’t have much details about the teams involved. Breer didn’t say anything about the deal between Minnesota and New England, but he did reveal that there was a discussion between the teams.

The Patriots brought in the likes of Ben Watson, Austin Sefarian-Jenkins and Matt LaCosse to fill the hole Gronk left behind. These players provide a nice depth to the position, but adding Rudolph is a completely different thing.

The Vikings have decided to part ways with Rudolph because of the salary cap. They still like him, and he is awesome on the field. Playing without Rudolph who will soon become free agent gives them about $7.6 million in cap space.

When media members asked Rudolph about the possibility that he takes a pay-cut, he said, “No way. I’m too young for that.”

Minnesota is about to make a big decision. They may try and trade their star tight end for money or cut bait with him, clear some cap space and give him a chance to sign with another team. In 2018, he totaled 64 catches for 634 yards and four touchdowns. In 2016, he was targeted 132 times and had 83 receptions for 840 yards and seven touchdowns.

The Patriots will also have to do some changes to trade for Rudolph. If things take a different turn, the Vikings may release Rudolph and sign him as a free agent without losing any draft capital.

This is an interesting topic to think about. Let’s see what happens next.