Tight end Adam Shaheen will have the chance for a new start in 2020.
The Chicago Bears are trading Shaheen, the 45th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, to the Miami Dolphins, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Saturday, per an informed source. The Bears later announced the transaction on Sunday, and noted that they will receive a conditional 2021 seventh-round pick that could flex to a sixth-rounder.
Chicago retained J.P. Holtz, added free agents Jimmy Graham and Demetrius Harris and drafted two TEs, including Notre Dame's Cole Kmet in the second round, this offseason, making Shaheen expendable.
A once-promising prospect, Shaheen, 25, entered 2019 second on the depth chart behind Trey Burton, and ended up playing in eight games (two starts) before a foot injury ended his season after Week 9. He finished the year with nine receptions for 74 yards.
After a promising rookie season -- 12 receptions, 127 yards, three touchdowns in 13 games -- Shaheen appeared poised to step in as a full-time starter in 2018. But a preseason injury landed him on injured reserve in September, preventing him from hitting the field until Week 11. He started four of his six appearances, and recorded five catches for 48 yards and a score.
Shaheen will now look to compete for reps in Miami in a room that includes a pair of 2018 picks Mike Gesicki and Durham Smythe, who started 14 games last season. Gesicki ended the year second on the team in receiving with 51 catches for 570 yards and five TDs.