4 teams that might trade for Kyle Rudolph in the 2021 offseason

Could Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph be on the move this offseason?

When looking back at the 2020 campaign, Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph certainly isn’t going to view the season as one of his best. Even if Rudolph believes he performed well, it was easily one of his worst years in the NFL since he entered the league in 2011.

The end of his tenure with the Vikings seemed to be written on the wall when the team used a second-round pick on former Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. in the 2019 NFL Draft. But then Minnesota made the strange decision to give Rudolph a contract extension a few weeks after the 2019 draft.

It was an odd move at the time and it is something the Vikings probably wish they didn’t do based on the lack of production he’s had during the two seasons since he signed his extension.

In the last two years, Rudolph has averaged just 34 catches and 351 yards while only scoring a total of seven touchdowns. In the four seasons before signing his extension in 2019, the Minnesota tight end averaged 63 catches, 625 yards, and six touchdowns.

So when Rudolph recently came out and said he’s “worth every dime,” of his current contract, he couldn’t be more false. He’s currently scheduled to have the fourth-highest cap hit of any tight end in the NFL for next season. At this point in his career, Rudolph is nowhere close to being the fourth-best tight end in the league.

Unless Rudolph has a change of heart and he’s willing to compromise in order to remain in the Twin Cities, the Vikings are likely going to either cut him or trade him. If Minnesota ends up attempting to trade him, who are some of the teams that might be interested in acquiring the veteran tight end this offseason?