NEW YORK — The Giants and Kyle Rudolph have hit a snag in trying to complete the tight end’s free-agent contract, a source confirmed Tuesday night.
The club’s medical staff believes Rudolph needs surgery on his foot after putting him through a physical.
Rudolph agreed to a two-year deal worth up to $14 million last Thursday to join the Giants, but he hadn’t signed the deal yet because it was contingent upon passing his physical, as all free-agent contracts are.
So the team and Rudolph were working together on Tuesday night to figure out how to proceed.
The deal isn’t dead, but the Giants and Rudolph are discussing next steps. The complications were first reported by NFL Network.
Rudolph, 31, missed the final four games of last season with a foot injury but is well-known for his durability, having played in 92 of the Vikings’ 96 regular-season games since the start of the 2015 season.
He has 48 career touchdown catches, great hands, and would give the Giants another red zone threat, a well-rounded veteran tight end, and a positive locker room influence.
He was signed in Minnesota through 2022, but the Vikings moved on with the salary cap shrinking, Rudolph due a $7.6 million salary in 2021, and young tight end Irv Smith Jr. factoring more into the offense.
Rudolph raved on SiriusXMNFL Radio recently about why he was excited to join the Giants. He was scheduled to count $4.75 million against New York’s 2021 cap under the terms of his new deal.
“Starting with coach Joe Judge and the culture side that he’s building there, one of the things that stuck out to me immediately in our conversation was his work ethic, his drive for the game,” Rudolph told hosts Bob Papa and Charlie Weis. “One of the lines that [Judge] said that really resonated with me was that ‘overachievers aren’t OK with mediocrity.’ And he’s like, ‘I want to surround myself with a bunch of overachievers.’
“And I’ve always looked at myself as someone that tries to work harder than the next guy and be an overachiever,” Rudolph added. “That really resonated with me, and that’s something that I want to be a part of. [Judge] said, ‘Look, we’re all about football. We’re gonna work hard. We’re gonna do things the hard way. We’re gonna build things the right way so it lasts.’ And that’s something I want to be a part of.”
It’s to be determined if Rudolph can get a reworked contract done, get the surgery and get healthy to be a part of Judge’s Giants after all. That’s the goal.
