Should the Vikings rescue Kyle Rudolph from the Buccaneers?

Former Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph has barely been used out on the field by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers so far this season.

After some wondered if his time in the NFL was over, former Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph wound up signing a one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers right before the start of training camp this past summer.

Rudolph was excited about his new opportunity with the Bucs, and why wouldn’t he be? He believed he was heading into a season where he’d get to catch passes from Tom Brady and help Tampa Bay compete for a championship.

But things haven’t really gone as Rudolph had hoped heading into the regular season. So far this year, the former Vikings tight end has only appeared in three games, and he has just two catches for 20 yards.

Should the Minnesota Vikings attempt to acquire Kyle Rudolph from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers?

Rudolph is obviously no longer the Pro Bowl tight end who caught more than 55 passes in every season from 2016 to 2018, but it’s still surprising that he’s only been on the field for 26 of the Bucs’ offensive snaps this year.

It seems like Tampa Bay really doesn’t have any use for the Minnesota tight end, and he’s basically just taking up space on their roster.

Well, instead of barely involving Rudolph, perhaps the Bucs should just send him back to the Vikings before this season’s trade deadline on November 1st.

Minnesota could use the depth at tight end, Rudolph is still a solid option in the red zone, and he can provide more veteran leadership inside the team’s locker room.

Given his lack of production this season, it likely wouldn’t take much for the Vikings to acquire Rudolph in a trade. So should Minnesota give Tampa Bay a call within the next few days to make a deal for the former Vikings draft pick?