JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Tom Coughlin coached two Giants teams to wins over the Patriots in Super Bowls. Malik Jackson has beaten New England in the playoffs en route to a Super Bowl title as a member of the Denver Broncos, and Marcell Dareus faced the Patriots twice a year as a division rival in Buffalo. But nobody in the Jaguars organization has a better understanding of the way the Patriots go about business than Jaguars tight end James O'Shaughnessy.
The third-year pro was traded by Kansas City to the Patriots on April 29, 2017. He worked with the team through the offseason and in the 2017 preseason before being released by the Patriots on Sept. 2 in the cuts before the season began. The Jaguars picked him up the following day.
O'Shaughnessy, who caught 14 passes, including one touchdown this season for the Jaguars, said he learned a lot in the five months he spent with the Patriots.
"I would definitely say that every organization has a certain way they like to do things and the Patriots have their own rules and the way they like to go about things. I learned a lot there," O'Shaughnessy said. "Discipline. Whether it be on the field, off the field, nutrition. I grew a lot and I learned a lot there and I think there are some similarities between (the Patriots approach) and the Jaguars."
While the pedigrees of the two teams are very different, O'Shaughnessy saw a core value being the same under Bill Belichick and under Doug Marrone.
"Discipline, mostly," O'Shaughnessy said. "We work really hard in practice and that is something the Patriots always did."
The former Chiefs draft pick admits that when was traded by Kansas City to New England, he had visions of a Super Bowl ring, but when he was picked up by Jacksonville, he wasn't as sure, initially.
"To come to Jacksonville, and personally not have that much history, not know their history, it's kind of a weird thing to come to this team and find out, 'Oh, wow, we're pretty good,'" O'Shaughnessy said. "We might be in the same place that I thought I was going to be. It's pretty cool that we've made it this far and that we have an opportunity to make it to the Super Bowl."
As for the inside information, O'Shaughnessy has been asked by teammates about some Patriots opponents and he said he has shared what he can.
"I was only there a short period of time, so I wouldn't say I have insider knowledge of the players or the system," O'Shaughnessy said. "Players have asked me about this guy, things he likes to do, what are his tendencies from receivers, tight ends. I'm here to help, but I think it comes down to everybody studying and taking what they feel is important for them."