Examining the roster ties between Patriots, Jaguars ahead of Week 17

When the Jacksonville Jaguars visit the New England Patriots on Sunday, it will mark a revisit for some.

Four players currently in Jacksonville’s fold were once in New England’s. And between the current 53-man rosters, practice squads and reserve lists, four Patriots were once Jaguars.

Here’s a glance through those on-field connections ahead of the 1 p.m. ET kickoff at Gillette Stadium.

JACKSONVILLE

Jacob Hollister, tight end — Entering the NFL as part of the 2017 Patriots undrafted class alongside twin brother Cody Hollister, the Wyoming product garnered a $10,000 signing bonus and $80,000 in guaranteed base salary. A total of 22 appearances followed. They brought two starts at tight end as well as eight receptions for 94 yards and a Super Bowl LIII ring. New England traded the hour-and-a-half-older Hollister to the Seattle Seahawks in exchange for a seventh-round pick in the 2020 draft. A stint with the Buffalo Bills came this spring and summer before his agreement with Jacksonville. The 28-year-old, added to the Covid-19 reserve list on Tuesday, stands with six catches for 41 yards and a touchdown through six contests this season.

James O’Shaughnessy, tight end — The Patriots acquired O’Shaughnessy from the Kansas City Chiefs in a swap of fifth-rounders and sixth-rounders during the 2017 draft, two springs after he landed at No. 173 overall. The tight end out of Illinois State would be waived by the Patriots at the league’s roster deadline that Labor Day weekend. The following day, he was awarded to the Jaguars. The 29-year-old O’Shaughnessy has made 34 starts over the course of 57 games since arriving in Jacksonville. He’s totaled 104 receptions for 1,022 yards and three touchdowns along the way. An ankle injury sent O’Shaughnessy to injured reserve from September into November.

Kahale Warring, tight end — Jacksonville signed Warring to the 53-man roster off the Buffalo practice squad on Tuesday. The 24-year-old tight end out of San Diego State had spent three days of training camp with New England in August after being claimed off waivers from the Houston Texans. He was then claimed off waivers by the Indianapolis Colts before returning to the league wire and making his way to Orchard Park. Selected No. 86 overall in the 2019 NFL draft, Warring has caught three passes for 35 yards through eight career games. His most recent appearance came as a standard elevation for the Bills on Halloween.

Malcom Brown, defensive tackle — The junior All-American from the Texas Longhorns landed in Foxborough at No. 32 overall back in 2015. Brown went on to earn All-Rookie honors from the Pro Football Writers of America and was part of New England’s Super Bowl LI and Super Bowl LIII teams. The defensive tackle started 51 of his 60 games for the organization that drafted him, accruing 186 tackles, 8.5 sacks, one forced fumble and three fumble recoveries. The New Orleans Saints then signed Brown to a three-year, $15 million pact in 2019. And in March, the 27-year-old was traded to the Jaguars. Brown has since started 15 contests to log 54 tackles, one sack and one batted pass. He was transferred to the Covid-19 reserve list on Monday.

NEW ENGLAND

Devine Ozigbo, running back — The Patriots signed Ozigbo to the practice squad in November and he served as a standard elevation in December. Prior to then, the 25-year-old running back had made two stops apiece with the Saints and Jaguars. Undrafted out of Nebraska in 2019, Ozigbo has appeared in 21 career games to record 11 carries for 25 yards and 13 catches for 72 yards. He was claimed off waivers by Jacksonville during his rookie season as well as this fall. In between, Ozigbo was signed off the Jaguars’ practice squad to the Saints’ 53-man roster.

Carl Davis Jr., defensive tackle — Selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the third round of the 2015 draft, Davis found himself a Cleveland Brown by 2018 and an Indianapolis Colt by 2019. The defensive lineman from Iowa then signed with the Jaguars midway through his fifth NFL run. Davis played in two games while in Jacksonville and recorded one tackle. He was re-signed twice and released once during the 2020 offseason and agreed to join Jacksonville’s practice squad upon being reinstated from a four-game suspension last fall. The Patriots then signed Davis off the scout team to the active roster. The 29-year-old has since logged 18 appearances and five starts. His first career solo sack and a total of 21 tackles have been logged in the process.

Daniel Ekuale, defensive tackle — Ekuale has served as both a standard elevation and a Covid-19 replacement since joining the New England practice squad at its formation in September. His season high in snaps was set last week. Through five games, the 27-year-old has rotated in for five tackles and two sacks. Ekuale entered the league as an undrafted rookie with the Browns in 2018 and signed to the practice squad in Jacksonville to begin 2020. The former Washington State defensive tackle, waived in August, made the initial five starts of his career last season and posted 13 tackles to go with one sack. Ekuale saw 290 defensive downs during his stay with the Jaguars.

Cody Davis, safety — The 2013 undrafted arrival out of Texas Tech spent five seasons with the St. Louis and Los Angeles Rams before signing with the Jaguars in March 2018. Davis took the field for all 32 games of his tenure from there, gathering 23 tackles and a pass deflection while playing north of 85 percent of the workload on special teams. The 32-year-old safety has since been in for 78 percent of the work in New England’s kicking game, and ranks behind only Matthew Slater and Justin Bethel this campaign. Re-signed as the league year opened, Davis stands with a dozen tackles.