Kyle Rudolph remaining in Minnesota seems less and less likely.
The Vikings tight end reportedly was left unsettled and wanted "clarity" from the team after it selected tight end Irv Smith in the second round of this year's draft.
The situation worsened Friday, when negotiations between Rudolph and the Vikings were broken off that morning, per NFL Media.
When asked about the situation during his golf outing Monday, coach Mike Zimmer expressed that he wanted Rudolph to stay, but that's not always the nature of the NFL.
"I've had conversations with Kyle and quite honestly I really love all my players," Zimmer said, via the St. Paul Pioneer Press. "We expect Kyle to be here but sometimes business gets in the way.''
Rudolph is in the last year of his contract and is expected to earn $7.275 million in base salary. For comparison, Smith is slated to earn 5.798 million over four years.
Should the Vikings decide to deal Rudolph, that base will save a decent amount of cap space for the team.
Rudolph also addressed the rumors of his status Monday, telling reporters he knows the team is working to figure something out for everyone involved.
“We’re in a tough situation as a team,” Rudolph said. “Can’t keep everybody, can’t pay everybody. Those guys, I know, are working really hard to figure out something.”
#Vikings TE Kyle Rudolph on uncertainty while on trading block: “It’s not what we’re rooting for... This is home.” But hoping for a resolution sooner than later. pic.twitter.com/Wb5KMxkVrw
— Andrew Krammer (@Andrew_Krammer) May 13, 2019
NFL Media noted there is interest around the league for Rudolph should the Vikings decide to part ways with him.