DETROIT -- Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph pondered the question posed to him after a career-best performance two days before Christmas.

Was his ability to haul in all nine targets that came his way for 122 yards and two touchdowns a byproduct of the matchups or due to a more concerted effort to get him involved in the passing game against the Detroit Lions on Sunday?

"Today was just my time," Rudolph said. "You just prepare each and every week as best you can and we’ve got two really, really good receivers on the outside. Today when the ball came my way, I just tried to catch it. I can’t tell you why that happened today other than it’s almost Christmas, and Christmas is usually good to me. But I take a lot of pride in preparing myself each and every week so that when these opportunities do come -- because I don’t always know when they’re going to come in the passing game, I have a lot of other roles I have to do -- I can take advantage of them."

Rudolph reached the end zone for the first time since Week 3 in the Vikings' 27-9 victory over the Lions. Outside of his performance against the Green Bay Packers on Nov. 25, Rudolph’s targets had diminished since Minnesota’s bye week, a source of frustration for the veteran who over the past few seasons has grown into one of the Vikings’ top receiving options, particularly in the red zone.

Against Detroit, Rudolph posted the third 100-yard receiving game of his career, the last of which came two years ago during the final game of the 2016 season. It was his play on a Hail Mary pass from quarterback Kirk Cousins at the end of the first half that highlighted his performance just as his afternoon was truly getting underway.

One play before Cousins’ launched a 44-yard bomb to the end zone that Rudolph leapt into the air to haul in, helping to put the Vikings ahead 14-9 at the half, he caught a critical 17-yard pass to move Minnesota into Detroit territory, setting up Cousins’ final heave.

The Hail Mary, which was quickly dubbed the "Hail Rudy" by his teammates, is a play the Vikings go over routinely, a situation that’s on the walk-through script every Saturday. Drawing back on the days when he used to dominate opponents in the low post, Rudolph found his spot in traffic in the end zone and boxed out the way he had at Elder High School in suburban Cincinnati, where he totaled 689 rebounds during his high school basketball career.

"I’m the one that’s always in the middle so not necessarily the one that will always get the ball," Rudolph said. "But in that situation, I don’t know how he did it. He just threw a perfect pass where I didn’t have to move. I honestly think I caught it before they even realized that I had jumped up and caught the ball because it was just timed so perfectly."

There was little doubt to his teammates watching that Rudolph was going to come down with the ball.

"You saw how strong his hands were when he grabbed it because nobody was getting that ball," running back Dalvin Cook said. "It was big. I had a good view on it. I’m just happy Rudy made that play."

Rudolph’s usage throughout Minnesota’s win went beyond being in the right spot to catch a perfectly placed miracle throw. Getting him more involved in the passing game resulted in a red-zone touchdown in the third quarter.

Having another weapon in the passing game helps alleviate pressure off Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs, which had been a point of emphasis in recent weeks given how teams have routinely covered the receiving duo.

"It was a little bit of we thought we could get him open on some things, some of the coverages that they were running, and honestly, Kyle hasn’t run some of those routes for a long time this year," Zimmer said. "So, I think some of that helped. The play-action off the bootleg ... Rudolph on the play-action pass down the goal line. So we thought we could hit some things on him and it turned out good. It’s good to get Kyle involved, too."

Beyond what he provides as a receiving threat, Rudolph’s role as a run-blocker and in max protect in the passing game cannot be overlooked. It’s a role that likely will come into play heavily when the Vikings' playoff future is decided once and for all in Week 17 against the Chicago Bears.

But Cousins wants to continue to involve Rudolph in the passing game.

"I’m always going to go where coverage is dictating I go, so I can’t tell you before the snap who’s getting the football," Cousins said. "And it just seemed like where they played and defended that at times the safeties and the doubling was going on elsewhere, and it gave Rudy a chance to get open and make plays."