Minnesota Vikings: 5 Possible cuts to make in 2020 offseason

3. Kyle Rudolph

Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph completed his ninth season in the NFL and with the Vikings during the 2019 campaign, but the veteran tight end could possibly be on the search for a new home before the start of the 2020 year.

During this past season, Rudolph had somewhat of an average year within the offense in Minnesota while providing quarterback Kirk Cousins with a nice target throughout the field and in the red zone during the regular season.

During the year, Rudolph appeared and started in all 16 games for the Vikings, tallying 367 yards receiving and six touchdowns for Minnesota.

With fellow tight end Irv Smith Jr. likely gaining a larger role next year and in the upcoming seasons, the Vikings might look to move on from Rudolph while officially handing the bulk of the tight end duties over to the 2019 draft pick Smith in 2020.

Prior to the start of the 2019 season, Rudolph and Minnesota did work out a contract renegotiation to keep the veteran tight end in purple and gold for his ninth season in the league. With his contract set to run through the 2024 year, Rudolph is set to make around $9 million a year on average over the course of the remainder of the contract.

If Smith is able to continue to improve throughout the offseason and if he showed the Vikings enough during thew 2019 campaign to convince them to hand him the keys to the tight end group, Minnesota could ultimately cut Rudolph this offseason and allow the veteran tight end to find a new home elsewhere in 2020 for the first time in his professional career.