Kyle Rudolph’s chances of staying with the Vikings just got better

The Minnesota Vikings tight end will likely remain with the team for the 2019 season after a certain transaction was made by another NFL squad on Thursday.

Among all of the rumors associated with the Minnesota Vikings this offseason, there has been one player whose name has shown up more often than not and that would be tight end Kyle Rudolph.

Rudolph is currently in the final year of his contract, he will celebrate his 30th birthday in November, and his cap hit in 2019 is over $7.5 million. With the Vikings trying to find ways to create more cap space this offseason, trading their veteran tight end has been an option that many have thrown around as a possibility.

One team that has been continuously suggested as a potential landing spot for Rudolph this year is the New England Patriots. With the retirement of Rob Gronkowski earlier this offseason, many figured that the Patriots would be interested in trying to land the Minnesota tight end in a trade.

However, New England recently made a move that will likely eliminate them as a potential trade destination for Rudolph this year. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Thursday, the Patriots have agreed to a contract with free agent tight end Ben Watson.

Watson, who was actually drafted by New England in 2004, spent last season with the New Orleans Saints. He’s a solid football player who will now join Austin Seferian-Jenkins in a group of Patriots tight ends that will look to make up for Gronkowski’s loss in 2019.

Yes, Rudolph may have been a more talented option for New England to go after. But it would have also cost the Patriots more to acquire him.

With Watson, New England is only going to pay him $3 million next season and it didn’t require the team to give up any of their draft picks. Which is likely something the Patriots would have needed to do in order to land Rudolph.

Sure, Week 1 of the 2019 regular season is still a long ways away and a lot can happen before then. But after Thursday’s move by New England, Rudolph should feel more confident about remaining with the Vikings for the rest of the year.