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The Jacksonville Jaguars may have drafted Josh Oliver in the third round, but they’re still lacking at tight end — with only Geoff Swaim, Ben Koyack, and James O’Shaughnessy as the other players at this position who will realistically make this team.
Should the team look to the Minnesota Vikings, who likely drafted Kyle Rudolph’s replacement in Irv Smith, Jr. as a potential trade partner?
The #Vikings had held active extension talks with veteran TE Kyle Rudolph, but those broke off this morning, sources say. With Minnesota drafting TE Irv Smith and Rudolph due $7.5M, this development could lead to a trade elsewhere. There is interest around the NFL.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 10, 2019
Last week, talks on a restructured contract reportedly broke off, and Rudolph will be an unrestricted free agent after this season. The 29-year-old caught 64 passes last year for a nearly 10.0 yards-per-reception last season. Not since the days of Mark Brunell throwing to Kyle Brady back in 2000 have the Jaguars utilized a tight end that much.
Newly hired offensive coordinator John DeFilippo has a history of getting tight ends more involved in the passing game — whose connections to coaching for several years at San Jose State likely helped him get more information about Oliver than other coaches might have gotten. Same goes for newly signed Nick Foles who he worked with during their Super Bowl run. Shift that thinking over to the Vikings who he was offensive coordinator for last season and it would make sense that DeFilippo would prefer a guy in Rudolph he has some experience working with.
Rudolph has a $7.6 million cap hit this season but he can likely be had for an early Day 3 draft pick — something in the third or fourth round.
What do you think? Should the Jaguars go all in on Rudolph and give Foles yet another weapon? Or is it better to sit tight and develop the receivers and tight ends you’ve already got? Let us know in the comments below!