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Irv Smith Jr. 2019 Player Outlook: Rudolph Re-Signing Blocks Path
5 years agoSmith Jr. was taken in the second round of April’s NFL draft by the Minnesota Vikings, which made the fantasy football public believe that incumbent tight end Kyle Rudolph was going to be traded or released due to salary cap constraints. But that turned out to be false as Rudolph signed a four-year contract extension this offseason, so now Smith Jr.’s role in Minnesota’s offense comes into question. Smith Jr. averaged 16.1 yards per catch in his final collegiate season, so he can stretch the field and will be hard to cover with a linebacker in the NFL. He has tremendous upside since he still has lots to learn and could really turn out to be a premium pick in dynasty leagues, but the problem is that Rudolph is blocking him from blossoming into a big-time player now Rudolph re-signed. It is difficult for two tight ends to both prosper stats-wise in an offense. Look no further than Tampa Bay’s situation with O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate. Smith Jr. will likely need a year of seasoning before he breaks out and become a fantasy force of any kind, so let him learn from Rudolph for a season and then seriously zone in on him in 2020.
