It’s been reported that N’Keal Harry and his agent are looking to leave New England for a better opportunity elsewhere. Harry was picked 32nd overall in the 2019 NFL Draft by the Patriots. Through two seasons, he’s played 21 games with 45 receptions and just 81 targets for 414 yards. He’s averaging less than a first down per reception at 9.2 yards per and caught only four touchdowns in 21 games.
For a first-round selection, you’d expect more out of the 6-4, 225 lb wide out from Arizona State. At Arizona State, Harry was a monster. He caught 213 receptions for 2889 yards in three seasons in college. He caught 22 touchdowns and received an average of 14.9 yards per catch in his final season with Arizona State.
That led him to being picked in the first round by a contending football team. Harry’s agent, Jamal Tooson, announced Tuesday he has formally requested a trade for Harry. The statement is below. “For the past several months, I have been working in cooperation with the Patriots behind the scenes to put a plan in place to allow N’Keal to thrive in New England,” Tooson said in the statement obtained by NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.
“Through two seasons, he has 86 targets, which obviously hasn’t met the expectations the Patriots and N’Keal had when they drafted a dominant downfield threat who was virtually unstoppable at the point of attack in college. Following numerous conversations with the Patriots, I believe it’s time for a fresh start and best for both parties if N’Keal moves on before the start of training camp.
That is why I have informed the Patriots today I am formally requesting a trade on behalf of my client. “N’Keal understands a key ingredient to production is opportunity. He will continue to work hard to develop and refine his craft after missing a large portion of his rookie year to injury. His draft-day expectations for his NFL career have not changed. We are confident success is just around the corner for him and will aggressively pursue it.”
In his first season with the Patriots, Brady threw Harry 24 targets. 12 were caught for 105 yards including two touchdowns. The reality was, the Patriots were counting on Harry. They thought he could be the big wide out they were looking for. But his injury throughout the rookie season forced the Patriots hands and they went and signed Mohamed Sanu in the middle of that 2019 season. Sanu eventually left after the 2019 season and his departure, most people believed, would give Harry the chance to shine in 2020.
Instead, without Brady under center, Harry saw just 57 targets in 14 games, gaining 309 yards with two touchdowns. Instead of Brady, Harry had to work with Cam Newton, who would run more than pass most games. The Patriots transformed their offense into a more run-friendly offense and that hurt Harry and all the other wide outs on the team. But in 2021, with the Patriots signing Nelson Agholor and Kendrick Bourne, Harry and his agent realized the Patriots didn’t have many plans, if any, for Harry.
Instead of being booted off the team before the season began, Harry and his agent wanted to have a fair chance of making a roster so he could prove his impact as a wide receiver. But currently, Harry isn’t worth anything. He hasn’t done anything at the NFL level to have different teams salivate over bringing him onto their team.
The Patriots have little leverage left but they’ve got a former first-round pick on their hands and won’t want to just dump him for nothing. There will be teams calling for Harry but there won’t be much offered from those teams for the first round pick. We’ll see what takes place but it’s ultimately the right move for Harry to move on, even if the Patriots won’t accept it.