Grade: 2
The Vikings have an outstanding Tight End in Kyle Rudolph who was selected to his first ever Pro Bowl last season. The Vikings also gave ex Seattle Seahawks TE John Carlson a 5 year $25 million deal last offseason. They also have a guy by the name of Rhett Ellison who is more of a run blocker.
The Vikings have an outstanding Tight End in Kyle Rudolph who was selected to his first ever Pro Bowl last season. The Vikings also gave ex Seattle Seahawks TE John Carlson a 5 year $25 million deal last offseason. They also have a guy by the name of Rhett Ellison who is more of a run blocker.
Congratulations to Kyle Rudolph and the year he had last year with 53 catches, 493 yards and 9 touchdowns. He is a big target at 6-6 and 253 lbs, who can create havoc for defenses. Kyle really emerged last season and we should see him develop into an elite tight end in this league. He has great hands who can catch the ball in traffic and also make sideline catches, but where he really exploits defenses is up the middle of the field with his speed and route running ability. We should see his yards production increase next year and be a big key to the Vikings offensive success.
John Carlson can’t stay healthy and this is a major concern. He has all the tools to be a good tight end in the NFL, but his production is low because he is always trying to come back after an injury. Injuries will kill a career in football and hopefully we can see a healthy Carlson in 2013. He could be a huge piece to our success with two tight end sets and really create matchup problems for defenses. Look for a bounce back year from John Carlson next year and see a nice 1-2 combo.
Who is Rhett Ellison? This guy had a nice rookie season as a run blocking tight end and even caught a few passes for decent gains. He isn’t flashy, but reminds me a lot of someone name Jimmy Kleinsasser and even wears #40. Rhett isn’t going to get you a handful of catches each game but defenses aren’t expecting him to get the ball and can create some key first downs.
Overall look for the Vikings to create matchup problems with all of their tight ends next season and get them all involved in what they are trying to do with this offense. Successful tight end play can help the Vikings running game by not allowing them to put 8-9 guys in the box and create either big plays down the field or bigger holes for Adrian Peterson.
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