Chiefs trade James O’Shaughnessy to Patriots to move up to 5th round

The Kansas City Chiefs have traded James O’Shaughnessy to the New England Patriots for the chance to move up a round in the 2017 NFL Draft.

The Kansas City Chiefs have traded tight end James O’Shaughnessy to the New England Patriots along with a sixth round pick in exchange for a fifth round choice. The full details can be found below via the Chiefs official Twitter feed.

O’Shaughnessy was the Chiefs fifth round choice in 2015 and came in as a small-school prospect who had the size, speed and hands to potentially be a diamond in the rough at the tight end position. The Chiefs apparently decided to move on after O’Shaughnessy kept getting passed over for snaps by other developmental options like Ross Travis and Demetrius Harris. The Chiefs also added former Dallas Cowboys tight end Gavin Escobar in the offseason.

The Chiefs now have a chance to make a better overall choice in the fifth or have that much more muscle to potentially move up into the fourth round as Day 3 begins.

O’Shaughnessy played in all 16 games last season for the Chiefs, but primarily found his value on special teams or running plays as an extra tight end. He was targeted only 3 times last season despite a reputation as a nice pass catcher.

The Patriots already have Rob Gronkowski in house as their primary tight end and recently traded for Dwayne Allen from the Indianapolis Colts. O’Shaughnessy will find value on the Pats’ special teams units and will compete with Matt Lengel and Rob Housler for any playing time.