In 2019, N’Keal Harry was a standout, first-round wide receiver talent out of Arizona State. Standing at 6’ 4,” his size and big-play ability intrigued NFL scouts and personnel leading up to the 2019 Draft. Harry was selected as the 32nd pick by the New England Patriots. This pick was a surprise to some as Bill Bellicheck was known for questionable selections, while this one seemed quite reasonable. The Patriots wide receiving core lacked depth and talent for the most part, and it appeared as if Harry would be an instant-impact player for a contending team with Tom Brady as their quarterback.

Fast forward three years and N’Keal Harry has recently been traded to the Chicago Bears for a seventh-round pick. This rapid decline of a seemingly exceptional talent raises the question: What happened to N’Keal Harry?

In the wide receiver’s first year, Harry played in seven and started just five games as he suffered an ankle sprain in the team’s preseason against the Lions. That season he recorded a mere 12 receptions for 105 yards, highlighted by a controversial 13-yard catch against the Chiefs in which all New England, including myself, thought Harry did not step out-of-bounds before the endzone. If this catch was ruled a touchdown, I could be writing a different story about N’Keal Harry, but it was not. This season was an extreme letdown for the Patriots as they lost in the Wild Card game. Harry’s play only made matters worse for the Pats as he was unable to cement himself as the second wide receiver behind Julian Edelman. Then, Tom Brady left.

There was little hope for the team in 2020 with Cam Newton as the quarterback, but fans and the organization still hoped that Bellicheck’s first and only opening-round wide receiver could develop into a star. There were positives and negatives in Harry’s second season with the Patriots. A positive: he only missed two games. Negatives: everything else. He accumulated a disastrous 309 yards on 33 catches. Harry was unable to develop any chemistry with Newton and looked out of place for the second year in a row—rumors of him being cut surfaced.

Harry was not relieved of his duties, and heading into his third year; no one had any expectations of him to make an impact on the roster. Despite the extreme lack of talent among Patriot’s wide receivers, it seemed like he slowly faded away. In 2021, the Patriots’ top wide receiver was an undrafted player from the same draft as Harry, Jakobi Meyers. Once again, N’Keal Harry did nothing to help to Patriots, finishing with 12 receptions for 184 yards to pair with three injuries.

N’Keal Harry’s time in New England was pretty eventful, and by eventful, I mean it was astonishingly uneventful. Harry’s play on the field was subpar at best, leaving Patriots fans putting him at the top of their list: Greatest Busts in Patriots History. Harry’s abysmal play, a return of a seventh-round pick, and the fact that Harry’s draft also contained players drafted after him like DK Metcalf, Terry McLaurin, and AJ Brown, only rubbed salt in the wound.

I believe it is safe to say that Patriots fans are quite upset with how their first-round pick panned out. It aches me to think about the possible players the Patriots could have right now, but I am also grateful the Patriots received a seventh out of N’Keal Harry.