The Giants kept their word. Kyle Rudolph is planning on doing the same for New York.
The tight end expects to be back and fully prepared for the 2021 season -- his first in the Big Apple -- Rudolph said on Wednesday. It's good news for the Giants, and a rosy outlook for a tight end who nearly had to backtrack on his own financial celebration this spring.
Rudolph agreed to a two-year, $14 million deal to leave Minnesota and join the Giants, but a standard physical examination by Giants doctors revealed a previously undiscovered foot injury that required surgery. This revelation put a brief pause on contractual matters, but eventually, the Giants honored their initial offer while Rudolph underwent surgery that forced him out of all offseason activities.
As he's said since the surgery, he doesn't plan on encountering any setbacks going forward.
"As far as football goes, I was extremely fortunate that the Giants organization and everyone involved caught it], and how they were able to handle my situation, that I won’t miss any football,” Rudolph said, [via the New York Daily News. "At this point it's about taking each day and taking that opportunity to not only get myself healthy but get myself better. It's one thing to get and be healthy, it's another to be ready to go and play in an NFL game. So I'm taking that day by day."
Rudolph didn't have an inclination he might have a problem in his foot prior to the exam with the Giants, he explained. That discovery might have saved him from missing precious snaps this season.
In order for him to make it there, Rudolph will have to stay the course and avoid pushing himself too soon. While coach Joe Judge has remained vague when responding to questions about Rudolph's timetable, the tight end appears as committed as possible to such an effort.
"I want to do everything to make sure I'm getting better every single day, and whatever that is is up to Joe (Judge), (offensive coordinator) Jason (Garrett), (director of rehabilitation) Leigh (Weiss) and everybody else involved," Rudolph said.
Timing might end up being the saving grace for the 31-year-old Rudolph, who was fortunate to undergo surgery on his foot in March, and not after on-field activities would have made the issue apparent in June or July. With more time to recover and rehabilitate, Rudolph should be able to avoid falling behind while getting acclimated with his new team.
