Chicago Bears TE Cole Kmet compares to this TE through two seasons

When the Chicago Bears drafted Cole Kmet there were immediately NFL comparisons to Kyle Rudolph. The two came from Notre Dame, the two were second-round picks, and they even had similar athletic measurables. It was easy to put the two together.

While some would say that Kmet has not hit his expectations so far, it would also depend on what you expected. The comparisons to Kyle Rudolph may be fair. They had similar rookie seasons and followed it up by not being far off statistically through two years. Below you can see how the two compare through two seasons.

Kmet has 137 targets, and Rudolph had 132 through two seasons. Kmet had nine more catches, and 113 more yards, but the most shocking note is two touchdowns from Kmet to 12 for Rudolph.

Will Chicago Bears get Cole Kmet more touchdowns?

You have to wonder how that could happen. The easy explanation is Jimmy Graham. Because Ryan Pace spent on Jimmy Graham, it felt as though the team had to find a role for him. Of course, we all know that if Graham had any usage during his last years, it was in the red zone. He is tall and was a jump ball receiver going back to his college basketball days.

With that in mind, Cole Kmet was used to getting them into the red zone and was the better blocker, but when they got there he lost out and was stuck blocking while the team used Graham in the red zone. Graham has 11 touchdowns over the span of Kmet’s career.

If half of those go-to Kmet, and he has seven touchdowns the comparison to Kyle Rudolph is even more apt. Either way, while fans are disappointed at 800 yards in two seasons, they have to realize that tight end takes a lot of time to adjust to.

While Rudolph is not Rob Gronkowski or anything, this is a solid, realistic, and so far a comparison that has been right on track.