UPDATE (1:15 p.m. ET, March 17): The New England Patriots officially announced Thursday that they had acquired tight end Martellus Bennett and a 2016 sixth-round draft pick from the Chicago Bears in exchange for a 2016 fourth-round draft pick.
ORIGINAL STORY: The New England Patriots reportedly are adding a big weapon to their offensive arsenal.
The Patriots will acquire tight end Martellus Bennett in a trade with the Chicago Bears, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Wednesday night. The Patriots will give up a fourth-round draft pick and receive Bennett and a sixth-round selection, CSNNE.com’s Tom E. Curran reported.
Bennett, 29, is one of the top tight ends in the NFL, and he caught 53 passes for 439 yards with three touchdowns in 11 games last season. He had a career year in 2014 when he caught 90 passes for 916 yards with six touchdowns.
The 6-foot-6, 273-pound tight end was selected in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft out of Texas A&M by the Dallas Cowboys. He also played with the New York Giants.
The Patriots have Rob Gronkowski, Michael Williams and A.J. Derby at tight end. They released Scott Chandler earlier this month.
Bennett has one year left on his contract. He’s due $5.085 million in 2016.
This is the second big trade the Patriots will have made in consecutive days. They shipped defensive end Chandler Jones to the Arizona Cardinals on Tuesday for guard Jonathan Cooper and a second-round draft pick.
Thumbnail photo via Jake Roth/USA TODAY Sports Images
