Former Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph took a lot of joy in silencing the New Orleans crowd in the 2019 wild card game.
In an ‘Ask Me Anything’ on the NFL subreddit, Rudolph answered a wide variety of questions from NFL fans. Asked by Reddit user Brendinooo for his favorite crowd response, Rudolph answered: “New Orleans Wild Card playoff game.”
“I caught the game winning TD in OT and 73,000 people went from the loudest crowd I ever played in front of to SILENT,” said Rudolph.
Rudolph’s game-winning grab came on the opening drive of overtime in New Orleans in a 26-20 win, with commentator Joe Buck remarking in the aftermath: “Absolute stunned silence here in New Orleans.”
(“But he pushed off!” says wailing Saints fans. Bountygate, baby.)
Vikings Play of the Day # 17:
January 5, 2020
QB Kirk Cousins hits TE Kyle Rudolph in the corner of the end zone for a game winning overtime TD to beat the Saints in New Orleans. Saints fans thought Rudolph “pushed off” but the officiating crew rightfully called it as fair… https://t.co/RKFaFTrGQN pic.twitter.com/E8lwBZgXrw
— Jason Harmon (@_jason_777) June 3, 2023
One of his other answers related to quarterback Sam Bradford’s short time in Minnesota, with Rudolph saying: “Sam was one of the smartest and most accurate QBs I played with.”
“He always knew exactly where to go with the football and could make all the throws,” Rudolph continued. “To this day I say if he was healthy in 2017, we win SB52.”
Bradford started the season opener in 2017, dicing the Saints defense for 346 yards and three touchdowns in a statement 29-19 win.
But the former first-overall pick was hampered by injuries after the win, leading to Case Keenum taking over for the 13-3 Vikings, culminating in the Minneapolis Miracle and the subsequent NFC Championship game loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
