Patriots acquired Edelman, Gronk in this pivotal trade with Jaguars
Over the past two seasons, Rob Gronkowski and Julian Edelman have arguably been the New England Patriots' best offensive players not named Tom Brady. Since the start of 2014, Edelman and Gronkowski have combined to catch 286 passes for 3,631 yards and 31 of Brady's 58 touchdowns.
Both players have only played for the Patriots in their career, but if not for the Jacksonville Jaguars, they may not have landed in New England in the first place.
Before the 2009 draft, the Patriots and Jaguars made a trade that New England has reaped the benefits of for years.
The Jaguars desperately wanted the Patriots' third-round selection that year, so they traded a seventh rounder in 2009 and a second-round pick in 2010 to New England. It sounds like a fair swap on paper, and it likely was at the time, but in hindsight, it was lopsided like few other trades in history.
Here's how it turned out for both teams.
Derek Cox: With their third-round pick (73rd overall), the Jaguars selected Cox, a cornerback out of William & Mary. Though his name isn't immediately recognizable, he actually had a solid career before getting injured and finding himself out of the NFL. Cox started 16 games as a rookie, recording 72 tackles, 11 passes defensed, and four interceptions. In five seasons in the NFL -- four with the Jaguars -- Cox picked off 13 passes in 56 starts before injuries derailed his career. His first interception was off Peyton Manning, no less. As a third-round pick, Cox performed well, but not nearly well enough to outweigh what the Jaguars could've had.
Julian Edelman: As one of the best slot receivers in the NFL, it's easy to forget that Edelman was not only a seventh-round pick, but he was a quarterback coming out of college. The Patriots selected Edelman with that seventh rounder acquired from the Jaguars and haven't looked back since. In seven seasons, Edelman has caught 327 passes for 3,434 yards and 21 touchdowns -- 17 of which have come since 2013. He's really come on in recent years, making the Patriots look like geniuses for re-signing him in both 2013 and 2014.
Rob Gronkowski: The biggest piece of the trade comes in the form of the biggest man involved. To get Gronk, the Patriots packaged a second rounder (from the Jaguars) and a sixth rounder, trading it to the Raiders for the 42nd overall pick in 2010 -- which is where they selected the big tight end out of Arizona. Gronkowski has done nothing but dominate since coming into the NFL and is widely regarded as the league's best tight end. He's caught 359 passes for 5,222 yards and a whopping 62 touchdowns since joining the Patriots in 2010, and those numbers would likely be much higher if not for injuries.
Without a doubt, the Jaguars would love to have Edelman and Gronkowski right now, but hindsight is always 20-20. And for the Patriots, it's one of the best moves they've made in recent memory.
