Kyle Rudolph, MyCole Pruitt's Instant Fantasy Advice After Hall of Fame Game

The Minnesota Vikings beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 14-3 in Sunday’s Hall of Fame Game, but fantasy football owners were far more interested in the individual performances of certain players.

Minnesota tight end MyCole Pruitt turned heads with a touchdown catch, while tight end Kyle Rudolph was a steady option in the passing game with a couple of catches. Here is a look at the final stat lines for each:

	Catches	Targets	Receiving Yards	Touchdowns	Long
MyCole Pruitt
	4	4	51	1	34
Kyle Rudolph
	2	2	22	0	11

Pruitt jumps out because of the touchdown and the fact that he was a fifth-round pick out of Southern Illinois and a relatively unknown player entering the contest. The tight end earned the praises of Vikings' play-by-play voice Paul Allen of KFAN Radio in the process:

Alas, Pruitt saw many more targets Sunday than he likely will during the regular season because Minnesota was without a number of marquee weapons.

Mike Wallace saw very little action, and he figures to be the go-to receiver in the Vikings offense this season. What’s more, speed threat Cordarrelle Patterson will likely draw a couple of deep passes a game to stretch the defense, and even rookie Stefon Diggs could find the ball in his hands at times.

Diggs had the Steelers grasping at air Sunday during a 62-yard punt return, and that type of playmaking ability could earn him more time on the field.

That means Pruitt (and Rudolph by extension) has plenty of competition for targets, and that’s not even mentioning superstar running back Adrian Peterson. Peterson didn’t play Sunday, but he boasts six different seasons with at least 1,200 rushing yards and will carry the ball plenty in 2015.

Peterson will open up the field for the passing game, which could lead to some open looks for Pruitt and Rudolph, but he will also keep the clock moving and the ball away from the secondary options in the passing attack.

Pruitt also caught Sunday’s touchdown from Mike Kafka and not Teddy Bridgewater, so fantasy owners can’t even point to potential chemistry between the rookie and the starting quarterback as a sign of hope. At least Rudolph saw the field with Bridgewater last season.

Ultimately, there are too many other offensive options on the Vikings to feel great about taking Pruitt or Rudolph early in your fantasy draft. Pruitt is worth a flier in really deep leagues in case this early preseason performance was not a fluke, but it is hard to envision him putting up huge numbers during the season.

Rudolph could be a serviceable backup tight end who could fill in during bye weeks or in case of injury, but he has never topped 500 receiving yards in a single season and also must fight for targets in a crowded offense.