Drafting Garrett Bradbury in 2019
Following the massive decline in performance by Pat Elflein in 2018, the Vikings and Rick Spielman clearly felt the need to upgrade at center during the 2019 NFL Draft when they used their first-round pick on former North Carolina State center Garrett Bradbury.
Bradbury had some struggles during his rookie campaign with Minnesota, but most just attributed it to him being a rookie. However, his struggles never disappeared after his rookie season.
Bradbury has performed at a below-average level during his entire time with the Vikings and it reached a critical point during the 2021 season when the team decided to roll with Mason Cole as their starting center over their former first-round draft pick.
Extending Kyle Rudolph in 2019
Kyle Rudolph will always be remembered as one of the best tight ends to ever suit up for Minnesota. But his time with the Vikings probably lasted a couple of seasons more than it should have thanks to the decision of Spielman to give the veteran tight end a contract extension in the 2019 offseason.
Rudolph happily agreed to a four-year extension worth $36 million and he thanked Minnesota by going out and accumulating an underwhelming 39 catches for 367 yards and six touchdowns during the 2019 season. The veteran tight end’s numbers were even worse in 2020 and it resulted in the Vikings showing Rudolph the door in 2021.