A two-time Pro Bowl tight end has announced his retirement just days ahead of the 2023 NFL season.
Kyle Rudolph, who spent his last pro season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, has reportedly told NBC reporter Peter King he’s officially hanging it up.
Rudolph was a second-round pick by the Minnesota Vikings in 2011 and played 10 seasons for the team, spending his final two campaigns with the New York Giants and the Bucs. He made the Pro Bowl twice in his career, in 2012 and 2017, and ranks sixth in Vikings history when it comes to touchdown receptions, with 48. He’s also sixth all-time in appearances for the team with 140 outings.
The 33-year-old, who ranks 11th in receiving yards with 4,488, was a huge presence on the field for Minnesota but also played a significant role off it as well, having launched the “Kyle Rudolph’s End Zone” at the Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital in 2018.
This was undertaken as a means of helping children and teenagers engage in play, relaxation, and socialization while undergoing healing therapy.
He was nominated for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award that year.
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Rudolph moved to NY after he was released by the team in 2021, joining the Bucs the following year. He’s now set to work as a media analyst.
