Kyle Rudolph believes he is entering the prime of his career

The veteran tight end is entering the final year of his current contract with the Minnesota Vikings and he thinks he still has a lot of football left to play.

Over the past few years, the Minnesota Vikings have seen a fair share of offensive coordinators walk in and out of their doors. With each of them, there has always seemed to be a belief that their offensive system will be the one that vaults Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph into a superstar.

However, Rudolph has yet to deliver a season that would insert him into the discussion about who the best tight ends in the NFL currently are.

He has certainly been a solid contributor to Minnesota’s offense since the team drafted him in 2011. But as Rudolph is approaching his 30th birthday and entering the final year of his contract with the Vikings, it’s hard for some to believe that the end of the road isn’t nearing for the tight end.

According to Rudolph, however, the best years of his time in the league are still ahead of him. The Minnesota tight end sent a message to his doubters on Tuesday when speaking to the local Twin Cities media.

"“I’ve played a lot of football in this league and when you’ve played a lot of football in this league and your name has been around for a long time, everyone just assumes you’re in your mid-30s and on your way out. That’s not the case with me. I feel like I’m just now starting to get into the prime of my career. I was at the Masters this weekend so I’ll use a golf analogy. I feel like I haven’t hit the back nine yet.”"

Heading into a season with yet another new offensive scheme being installed, Rudolph thinks that this may finally be the year that forces people to regard him as one of the best tight ends in the NFL. On Tuesday, he mentioned that he is, “looking forward to a big spike in production and usage,” in 2019

There are some who believe that the Vikings could use one of their early-round draft picks this year to find a replacement for Rudolph. If Minnesota does actually end up doing this, it certainly wouldn’t seem like a good sign for the veteran tight end’s future with the team.

At the same time, it also wouldn’t be a surprise if the Vikings and Rudolph ended up agreeing to a contract extension later this offseason.

Either way, the Minnesota tight end is preparing for a very important year in his football career. It sounds like Rudolph currently has a bit of a chip on his shoulder and perhaps this could result in him having one of his most productive seasons ever in a Vikings uniform.