Report: Jaguars officially sign veteran TE Jacob Hollister

Hollister had over 550 receiving yards and six touchdowns between his last two seasons with Seattle.

The Jacksonville Jaguars added another weapon at a key position of need by bringing in former Buffalo Bills tight end Jacob Hollister. NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported that the Jags were expected to land the veteran on Thursday, and his colleague Mike Garafolo confirmed the official signing on Friday.

In Hollister, the Jags land a player who has been a solid backup tight end for Seattle the last two seasons. Originally an undrafted signee for the New England Patriots out of Wyoming, Hollister only made eight catches in his first 23 appearances. After the 2018 season, he was traded to Seattle, where he had the best season of his career.

He finished 2018 with 349 yards and three touchdowns, and though his yardage total dropped to 209 in 2020, he matched three scores again. This offseason, he signed a one-year deal with the Buffalo Bills that reunited him with his college quarterback, Josh Allen, but in a bit of a surprising move, he didn’t make the Bills’ final roster.

The Jags will hope Hollister can be a solid role player for them now. James O’Shaughnessy could start, and the team added Chris Manhertz from Carolina this offseason. But Manhertz hasn’t been asked to do much in the passing game throughout his career, and the presence of Hollister gives rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence another receiving threat.

The Jags also have tight end Luke Farrell on the roster, but the rookie was almost exclusively a blocker in college at Ohio State.

Hollister is a solid pickup who should help this team’s depth at its biggest positional weakness considerably, though O’Shaughnessy is likely still the top target at the spot.

In Hollister, the Jags land a player who has been a solid backup tight end for Seattle the last two seasons. Originally an undrafted signee for the New England Patriots out of Wyoming, Hollister only made eight catches in his first 23 appearances. After the 2018 season, he was traded to Seattle, where he had the best season of his career.

He finished 2018 with 349 yards and three touchdowns, and though his yardage total dropped to 209 in 2020, he matched three scores again. This offseason, he signed a one-year deal with the Buffalo Bills that reunited him with his college quarterback, Josh Allen, but in a bit of a surprising move, he didn’t make the Bills’ final roster.

The Jags will hope Hollister can be a solid role player for them now. James O’Shaughnessy could start, and the team added Chris Manhertz from Carolina this offseason. But Manhertz hasn’t been asked to do much in the passing game throughout his career, and the presence of Hollister gives rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence another receiving threat.

The Jags also have tight end Luke Farrell on the roster, but the rookie was almost exclusively a blocker in college at Ohio State.

Hollister is a solid pickup who should help this team’s depth at its biggest positional weakness considerably, though O’Shaughnessy is likely still the top target at the spot.

The Jags placed receiver Tavon Austin on injured reserve on Thursday, so the Jags’ active roster was at 52 players before the signing of Hollister. As a result, it appears the Jags won’t need to make any roster cuts with the signing.

Former Bills TE Jacob Hollister signs with Jaguars

Former #Bills TE Jacob Hollister signs with #Jaguars:

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One of the surprises of the Buffalo Bills’ roster cutdowns was tight end Jacob Hollister and instead of being brought back, he’s now replacing Tim Tebow in Jacksonville.

Admittedly, Hollister won’t be doing that based on the time stamp, but he will be playing for the Jaguars. According to NFL Network‘s Tom Pelissero, Hollister is headed to the Jags as he signed there late Thursday.

Hollister was certainly a surprise cut. Almost immediately, some speculated he was going to be later retained by the Bills when someone else was placed on the injured reserve list.

Instead, general manager Brandon Beane went on to say that Hollister would not be brought back and that he expected the tight end to be signed elsewhere.

Eventually, Beane was right.

During training camp, the Bills only had a limited dose of Hollister in the lineup as he suffered a back injury on the first day of practice. After some time he did get on the field and even scored in the preseason.

The Bills still let him go.

Buffalo only ended up keeping two tight ends on their roster, Dawson Knox and Tommy Sweeney.

The Bills went on to sign UDFA Quintin Morris to their practice squad and later signed free agent Kahale Warring to the taxi squad as well.

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Report: Jags expected to sign veteran TE Jacob Hollister

Veteran TE help is on the way for the #Jaguars as they are in the process of getting ready for their regular season opener.

Many fans had been waiting for the Jacksonville Jaguars to add some veteran help at the tight end position, and they plan to do just that shortly. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the team is expected to sign veteran tight end Jacob Hollister soon.

Hollister, 27, is a familiar face to Jags passing game coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, who was his offensive coordinator for two seasons with the Seattle Seahawks. As mentioned above, Hollister was a surprise cut by the Buffalo Bills after he signed with them this offseason, and with him becoming available, the Jags jumped on the opportunity to bolster their roster.

Hollister originally went undrafted to the New England Patriots in 2017 out of Wyoming. He spent two seasons with them, then two with the Seahawks. Throughout those two runs, he accumulated 74 catches for 652 receiving yards and six touchdowns.

The Jags likely feel his veteran presence will help rookie quarterback Trevor Lawrence and the Jags’ young offense. He’ll join a tight ends group that has two veterans on it currently between James O’Shaughnessy and Chris Manhertz. The Jags named rookie tight end Luke Farrell to the final roster, too.

The Jags placed receiver Tavon Austin on injured reserve Thursday, which means they don’t have to let a player go to sign Hollister.  The Jags are currently at 22 offensive players and 28 on defense, so Hollister won’t clearly be the team’s lone offensive addition in the coming days.

Bills to place Marquez Stevenson on IR, Jacob Hollister won’t be re-signed

Updates from #Bills GM Brandon Beane on Marquez Stevenson, Jacob Hollister:

Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane was a key figure in the team’s roster cuts which were due by 4 p.m. on Tuesday. In getting there, the Bills got creative and even had some surprises.

Among the head-turning moves involved tight end Jacob Hollister. On the final roster, the Bills are only keeping two true tight ends, Dawson Knox and Tommy Sweeney as Hollister was released.

Some speculated the Hollister would go the way of Reid Ferguson. The long snapper was cut, but it was previously reported that the team had plans to re-sign him because, due to his roster status, Ferguson did not need to pass through waivers.

Beane confirmed Ferguson will be back, but he said that Hollister will not.

“We wish Jacob the best,” Beane said via video conference.

If Hollister does not end up on another team, the GM said the Bills might be open to bringing him back, potentially via practice squad. But Beane said he “expects” someone will sign him.

Also playing a part in that decision for the team was Reggie Gilliam. The fullback is versatile and can play tight end as well, something he did just last season.

So as of now, with Knox and Sweeney, Gilliam would be the No. 3 tight end.

“Reggie’s a great piece,” Beane said.

Additionally, Beane mentioned a noteworthy move that’s en route to come. Making space for Ferguson to return will be wide receiver Marquez Stevenson (foot).

Previously, speculated players that Ferguson might replace were defensive tackle Harrison Phillips or wide receiver Isaiah McKenzie. Instead, it’s Stevenson.

Stevenson will spend, at minimum, three weeks on IR before he can play.

Beane also mentioned that… somehow… Stevenson injury actually occurred prior to his 79-yard punt return he had in Week 2 of the preseason vs. the Chicago Bears.

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5 most surprising cuts made by the Buffalo Bills

5 most surprising cuts made by the #Bills:

The Buffalo Bills trimmed their roster from near 80 men to 53 on Tuesday in accordance with the NFL’s deadline.

It’s always a tough day across the league, but that’s the nature of business. The day also comes with more than a handful of surprises.

With that, here are the five  most head-turning cuts made by the Bills:

Bills remain in top-five team in NFL.com power rankings

Bills remain a top-five team in NFL.com power rankings after initial wave of free agency

The Buffalo Bills made several moves to help fill the minor holes on their roster over the first portion of the free agency period. Their decisions keep them among the league’s best, according to NFL.com. In their latest, post-free agency power rankings, the Bills stand in the No. 4 spot.

The Bills did a great job at keeping major pieces from the 2020 season in the fold for upcoming seasons, as Buffalo signed linebacker Matt Milano, guard Jon Felciano, and tackle Darryl Williams. General manager Brandon Beane restructured some contracts to create some more cap space for the squad. This allowed Beane to make some moves with respect to unrestricted free agents.

Here is the breakdown on Buffalo’s offseason so far:

The Bills have established themselves as a legitimate championship contender, so we liked the move to keep Matt Milano — a member of the team’s defensive core — on a long-term deal. On offense, Buffalo opted to let John Brown head to Vegas in favor of Emmanuel Sanders, an underrated talent who slots in nicely with Stefon Diggs and Cole Beasley to form a rock-solid wide receivers room. The signing of former No. 2 overall pick Mitch Trubisky represents an upgrade over Matt Barkley at backup QB. Of course, if Trubisky plays meaningful snaps in 2021, you’ll know something went terribly wrong.

Buffalo also added tight end Jacob Hollister to help bolter the tight end room and defensive end Efe Obada to compete as a pass rusher.

Buffalo’s core pieces remained intact moving forward. As long as the team can get a repeat performance out of their returning players and get a little extra out of the new faces on the squad, Buffalo will once again challenge for the AFC crown.

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Report: Bills were in running for Giants TE Kyle Rudolph

Buffalo Bills were connected to New York Giants TE Kyle Rudolph.

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The Bills eventually landed on Jacob Hollister as their tight end addition this offseason. Reportedly Kyle Rudolph was in discussion to some extent though, too.

According to NFL Network’s Michael Silver, before signing Hollister and prior to Rudolph inking a deal with the Giants, the Bills were interested in the former Viking.

Along with the Bills, the Colts, Chargers, and Panthers were “also in the running” for Rudolph, per the report.

Rudolph, 31, was cut by the Vikings prior to free agency, but didn’t sign until this past week. Giants Wire reports it was a two-year, $16 million deal for Rudolph.

Terms for Hollister’s contract were not released, but he signed a one-year deal with the Bills. The 27-year-old also played in college with Buffalo quarterback Josh Allen.

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Zach Ertz trade rumors: Bills no longer interested due to Eagles high asking price

Zach Ertz trade rumors: Bills no longer interested due to Eagles high asking price

As Zach Ertz waits to find an NFL home, the Bills are moving on according to Marcel Louis-Jacques, who’s reporting that Buffalo is set to sign Jacob Hollister because of the Eagles’ high asking price.

Louis-Jacque said multiple sources told him the Eagles’ asking price for Ertz was “as high as a 3rd-round pick,” and it comes on the heels of Howie Roseman confirming that he’d only move on from the tight end if it made sense for Philadelphia.

Ertz is due $8.25 million in 2021 on the final year of a five-year, $42.5 million extension.

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Bills signing former Seahawks tight end Jacob Hollister to 1-year deal

The Bills will be signing former Seattle Seahawks tight end Jacob Hollister to a one-year deal. He’ll reunite with QB Josh Allen in Buffalo.

https://twitter.com/TomPelissero/status/1372984101800706050

The Buffalo Bills have found themselves a new tight end and will be signing former Seattle Seahawks TE Jacob Hollister to the roster.

Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network is reporting the agreement is for a one-year deal.

Seattle allowing Hollister to walk shouldn’t come as a huge surprise following the Seahawks’ signing of new tight end, Gerald Everett to his own, one-year contract.

In Buffalo, Hollister will reunite with Bills quarterback Josh Allen, a former college teammate at Wyoming.

Don’t forget to check our tracker for all the latest Seahawks news.

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Bills sign TE Jacob Hollister to one-year deal

TE Jacob Hollister signed one-year deal with Buffalo Bills.

The Buffalo Bills let the dust settle a bit in the tight end market before striking, but they finally did so on Friday.

According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, Jacob Hollister has signed a one-year deal with the Bills.

Hollister, 27, was an undrafted free agent signee of the New England Patriots in 2017 out of the University of Wyoming. More importantly, that means he played with Bills quarterback Josh Allen in college.

In April 2019, the Patriots traded him to the Seattle Seahawks where he played last season as well. Hollister had 25 catches for 209 yards and three touchdowns in 2020.

His best season came in 2019, though. In only 11 games played, Hollister flashed some talent with 41 catches for 349 yards and another three scores.

Pro Football Focus graded Hollister as a solid 64.9 overall mark in terms of his run-blocking ability last year,.

With Hollister’s addition, he could potentially battle incumbent Dawson Knox for playing time in training camp. Hollister would not enter the lineup as a top-tier tight end, such as a player like Zach Ertz, so he’ll have to earn his playing time.

Terms of the deal of yet to be announced.

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