Wide receiver N’Keal Harry and the Patriots appear to be on the fast track toward a divorce.
Harry isn’t happy and has made it clear – through his agent’s curious and ill-advised public trade request – he wants out of New England.
Bill Belichick and the Patriots can’t be happy with the production they’ve gotten over the last two seasons – 45 catches for 414 yards (9.2 avg.) with four touchdowns in 21 games with 14 starts – from the 2019 first-round pick out of Arizona State.
And Harry has the audacity to question his usage?
Literally, GTFOH!
From the outside looking in, Harry and the Patriots appear to be a miserable marriage made in hell at this point. They shouldn’t stay together for the children, the quarterbacks, the Patriot Nation fans or anyone else for that matter.
But how exactly can Harry and the Patriots best go about a conscious uncoupling this summer?
Obviously the Patriots don’t just want to cut Harry, barely two years removed from making him the only first-round wide receiver ever drafted in the two-plus-decade Belichick era in New England. Clearly a trade would be preferable.
Of course Harry’s value on the open market is extremely low given his abysmal production, especially after his agent took to the media.
That move couldn’t have sat well with Belichick.
So, what’s the next step in the process? Can emotions and hurt feelings be put aside to find an exit strategy that benefits all involved?
From Harry’s end, it seems pretty simple.
Show up. Shut up. (Shut your agent up!). And put up.
According to a recent report that easily could have come from Captain Obvious, Harry so graciously plans on attending training camp at Gillette Stadium later this month. Since he’s under contract, has no leverage, could be going down a bust road that will lead to very few paychecks in the future and doesn’t want to accrue costly fines, showing up for camp is really his only option to continue his floundering NFL career.
Once he arrives he needs to do and say all the right things. Sound professional in interviews. Get open and catch the damn ball on the practice field. Even more importantly, stay healthy and stand out just a little bit in joint practices and preseason action, assuming he even makes it that far in a Patriots practice uniform.
The best thing that could happen is for Harry to look like some semblance of a valuable NFL pass catcher in late July and early August.
Heck, maybe he can con(vince) the Eagles into believing in joint practice or preseason action that he’s salvageable!
Belichick, on the other hand, also has to do what’s best.
Don’t bury Harry. Don’t cut him or unload him now. See if he can show a little something on the field or wait for another team to suffer an injury at the receiver position that might allow New England to leverage a better draft pick or player via trade.
The situation is quite obviously less than ideal. Harry is sleeping on the proverbial couch. His coach probably wants to kick him out of the house altogether as quickly as possible.
But a summer slow play is probably the best play for the Patriots at this point.
Of course there is always the chance Belichick simply cuts his losses, cuts Harry and moves on without the guy who could very well go down as the worst draft pick and biggest bust of the Hall of Fame coach’s tenure in New England.
Click here to listen to this Harry discussion and the full “Off Day” podcast, including our latest thoughts on Stephon Gilmore’s holdout that could very well decide the fate of the 2021 Patriots.