Two weeks, two red zone touchdowns: Jaguars tight end James O'Shaughnessy growing in new offensive scheme

One player who has benefited from a new offensive scheme in Jacksonville has been tight end James O'Shaghnessy, a player who was merely a depth piece in the past.

A hot topic for the Jacksonville Jaguars offense ever since the team hired John DeFilippo to lead the unit in January has been what he will be able to get out of the tight end position, a position that was among the most important on the offense when he and quarterback Nick Foles were with the Philadelphia Eagles.

But when DeFilippo stepped into his role in Jacksonville, it was clear the position was sparce. Former tight end Marcedes Lewis was long gone and Austin Seferian-Jenkins was a one-and-done free agent bust. The team would draft San Jose State tight end Josh Oliver in the third-round of the 2019 draft, but a hamstring injury in the beginning of August has knocked him out of the lineup for over a month. 

Yet in the chaos that has been the team's tight end position, one player has thrived in DeFilippo's scheme in recent weeks — fifth-year tight end James O'Shaughnessy, who has caught two of his three career touchdowns in the last two weeks, each a red zone score.

Gardner Minshew’s fourth touchdown pass of the season. pic.twitter.com/fOA3GSkT0R

— Jaguars OnSI (@JaguarsOnSI) September 20, 2019

For O'Shaughnessy, it has been a streak of performances and opportunities he has been waiting for his whole NFL career. And instead of glossing over what has helped him reach the end zone, he is thankful for the job the Jaguars offensive coaching staff has done to put him in these situations. 

"It is awesome. Any player who is in the receiving realm as a wide receiver, tight end, running back, that is kind of what you play the game for — for that glory," O'Shaughnessy told JaguarMaven on Thursday.

"I really gotta give a lot of credit to the coaches for being kind enough to scheme me up for these plays that have turned out to be great calls, great execution and great plays."

The tight end is in his third season with the Jaguars, the first season which he is not a part of a Nate Hackett-led offense. The scheme change has been an overhaul from what the Jaguars have done in recent years, leading him to study the why of the scheme instead of simply just what he is asked to do.

"Obviously with new coaches you have to kind of figure out not just how we do the scheme but why we are doing the scheme, what we are trying to accomplish. Not just the depth and the route itself but what is the overall theme of what we are trying to do on each concept, each play," O'Shaughnessy said. 

DeFilippo hasn't been shy about targeting his current starting tight end in the red zone largely because of the jump he has seen him make since the coach first arrived in Jacksonville. In O'Shaughnessy, the coach sees a heady player who can perform the different roles he has envisioned for the position.

“James is greatly improved. He’s a very smart guy. He understands football. He understands leverage and understands zones and those things, which I think is very important when you are an inside player whether you are a slot receiver or whether you are a tight end," DeFilippo said this week.

"He understands those techniques of playing the position. He’s gotten a lot better since we first got here, and he’s done a really nice job.”

Since starting quarterback Nick Foles went down with a clavicle injury early in the season's first game, O'Shaughnessy has grown on the field with rookie quarterback Gardner Minshew, who is among the most happy for the tight end's recent scores for a few reasons.

“Yeah, James is awesome. He’s a super smart player. Knows how to set up routes. I’ve been really happy for him to get those two [touchdowns]. I got him kind of smoked in the end zone earlier in the game, so to get him a touchdown made me feel a lot better about that," Minshew said this week.

There is still a lot of football left to play in 2019 and O'Shaughnessy has at least 12 more games to prove that his recent red zone success hasn't been a fluke. But for now, he is enjoying his role and appreciating the people around him who have helped him score. 

"Coach DeFilippo has been unbelievable for us, just helping us get acclimated as quick as possible. ... Nick (Foles) has been a great resource. And Gardner (Minshew), even though he is a rookie, he has done a great job of relaying the offense," O'Shaughnessy told JaguarMaven.

"Obviously there has been changes at the quarterback realm so there has been changes to the scheme and changes to this, that and the other. I think everybody has done a really good job of adapting and learning what we need to get done."