Patriots: trading Jacob Hollister for nothing has led to troubling tight end situation

The Patriots goofed trading TE Jacob Hollister to the Seahawks last year.

The shocking retirement of Rob Gronkowski in 2019 has left the Patriots in tight end purgatory, from where there doesn’t currently seem to be a realistic escape. And no, Gronk’s equally surprising decision to return to the NFL wouldn’t have changed that. The five-time Pro Bowler seemingly wanted the chance to play in any location that wasn’t New England, but also offered him a chance to compete for a championship.

In response to their tight ends mustering zero production last year, the Patriots drafted a pair of physical freaks in Devin Asiasi (UCLA) and Dalton Keene (Virginia Tech) in the third round of the 2020 Draft. Though both players have loads of potential, you’d be hard-pressed to think that they’ll burst onto the scene as rookies.

Since New England is essentially entering training camp with burning questions at the position, it’s time to look back at the franchise’s regrettable mistake in trading  Jacob Hollister to the Seattle Seahawks for a seventh-round pick.

To be fair to the Patriots, Hollister didn’t initially seem like he was going to be a steal for Seattle. It wasn’t until starter Will Dissly suffered a season-ending injury in Week 6 that the former undrafted talent became a reliable target for quarterback Russell Wilson. In 11 games, Hollister caught 41 passes for 349 yards — both of which ranked third-most on the Seahawks — and three touchdowns. If you ask us, that’s a pretty solid return for a seventh-round pick.

That production pretty much forced Seattle’s hand in placing a second-round tender on Hollister, which guaranteed that he’d remain with the team for at least the 2020 season.

Sure, they signed veteran Greg Olsen this offseason, but the Wyoming product’s rapport with Wilson is too strong for him to be phased out of playing a significant role this year.

The Patriots would’ve been better off keeping Hollister on their roster rather than trying to flip him for future assets. Little did they know that they were unloading a legitimate, NFL-caliber starting tight end that could have helped them move past the Gronkowski era.