The New York Giants released tight end Kyle Rudolph and running back Devontae Booker on Wednesday, the first offseason moves under new general manager Joe Schoen.
Both veterans joined the team as free agents in 2021.
Rudolph was scheduled to count $7.4 million against the salary cap this year, and the Giants will save $5 million. By releasing Booker, the Giants will recognize $2.1 million in cap savings and be left with $1 million in dead money.
Schoen told reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday that the team faced imminent personnel decisions.
“The reality of the situation is we have to get under the (salary) cap,” he said. “We’re over the cap right now. … There’s some conversations that need to be had, I’ll say that. We’ve got a detailed plan when we come here and over the next 24 hours, we’ll start moving based on conversations.”
Rudolph thanked the Giants for the opportunity to play for them in 2021.
“(Giants) Fans thanks for taking me and my family in this past year! Certainly not the year any of us expected, but a year we will never forget,” Rudolph wrote on Twitter. “We’re appreciative of the Mara and Tisch Families for giving us the opportunity to be a Giant.”
Rudolph had foot surgery after team doctors discovered the injury in a routine physical before he signed his two-year, $12 million contract.
Rudolph, 32, recorded just 26 catches for 257 yards and one touchdown in 16 games (13 starts) last season.
He played his first 10 seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, earning two Pro Bowl selections and catching 453 passes for 4,488 yards and 48 touchdowns in 140 games (132 starts).
Booker, 29, spent four seasons with the Denver Broncos before signing a one-year deal with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2020. The Giants signed him to a two-year, $5.5 million contract before the 2021 season.
Last season, he appeared in 16 games (four starts) and ran for 593 yards on 145 carries with two touchdowns. He added 268 receiving yards on 40 catches, one of them a touchdown.