Did Kyle Rudolph take another shot at the Vikings?
Kyle Rudolph is now a New York Giant, but it sure seems like he took another shot at the Vikings this week
Facing the likelihood he’d be asked to take a pay cut or he’d be released by the Minnesota Vikings this offseason, Kyle Rudolph drew a line in the sand regarding a continued reduced role when he went on former Viking linebacker Ben Leber’s podcast.
“I think I’m worth every dime of my contract,” Rudolph said on the Unrestricted with Ben Leber podcast.
Asked if he’d take a pay cut to avoid being cut, the answer was clear.
“It wouldn’t happen,” he said. “You only get to play this game for so many years, and I feel like I have a lot of good football left.”
The Vikings predictably cut Rudolph in early March. He ultimately agreed to a two-year deal with the New York Giants. Then this week, an issue surfaced.
A foot injury cost Rudolph the final four games of last season. He was still announced as a Giant on Wednesday, with no adjustment to his $12 million deal. But the announcement did not come without what seemed like another shot at the Vikings.
Via Paul Schwartz of the New York Post:
This is 100 percent what happened during the season that caused me to miss the last four games of the season,” Rudolph said Wednesday after signing his contract. “Everyone expected it to heal on its own and it didn’t. It needs to be fixed. I’m extremely grateful for the Giants’ medical staff … and I’m excited to get it fixed and move past it.
“Everyone expected it to heal on its own, but it didn’t….” “Everyone” is an implication on the Vikings’ medical staff, who apparently thought Rudolph’s foot injury would heal without surgery. A postseason exit interview and physical could have shown concerns with the foot, but it took the physical with the Giants to reveal surgery might be a good idea. This is where it’s worth acknowledging, right or wrong and good or bad, the differences in medical staffs across sports and within each league.
Rudolph’s one outstanding skill is catching most everything within his ample catch radius. He lacks force as a blocker, with patented ability to fall down right after catching the ball. Upon his signing with the Giants, as I surely would have said no matter where he signed, I said “they can have him.” With Rudolph gone, the door is open for Irv Smith Jr. to have a breakout season for the Vikings in 2021.