For the first time in 23 years, the New England Patriots used a first-round pick on a wide receiver, taking Arizona State's N'Keal Harry with the 32nd overall selection in the 2019 NFL Draft.
Everyone knew that receiver was a major need of the Patriots going into the draft, so their decision to go with Harry did not come as much of a surprise in spite of their track record.
The question is, just what can we expect from Harry during his rookie campaign?
First of all, here is the scoop on New England's passing game.
Long-time tight end and security blanket Rob Gronkowski retired earlier this offseason, and while some are debating whether or not his retirement will be permanent, the fact of the matter is that the Pats need to act as if he will not be playing at all in 2019. Also, the Patriots lost wide receivers Chris Hogan and Cordarrelle Patterson to free agency, and fellow wide out Josh Gordon is serving an indefinite suspension.
So, basically, outside of mainstay Julian Edelman, New England's receiving corps features a 31-year-old Demaryius Thomas coming off of a torn Achilles, an unproven Phillip Dorsett who registered just 290 yards this past season, and Harry.
That is a whole lot of uncertainty, and as incredible as Tom Brady is, even he has to be wondering just how things are going to work this coming season.
It's not like Brady has always had a ton of talented pass-catchers to throw to, because outside of Randy Moss and Gronkowski, well, he hasn't, but there are no Deion Branch's, Troy Brown's, or David Givens' this year. Just Edelman and a myriad of question marks.
Obviously, that means Harry could end up—and probably will end up—being one of Brady's primary targets, which makes him a pretty big sleeper pick heading into Fantasy Football drafts.
At 6-foot-4 and around 215 pounds, Harry has great size, so he will certainly represent a big target for Brady, both on short and intermediate routes (which is where Brady has forged his legend over the last two decades) and in the end zone.
We also know he was productive in college, as he is coming off of a junior campaign in which he hauled in 73 receptions for 1,088 yards and nine touchdowns, and in his sophomore year, he caught 82 passes for 1,142 yards and eight scores.
Harry's speed is only mediocre, with the 21-year-old clocking in at 4.53 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the Scouting Combine, but the Patriots' offense is not about downfield threats and never really has been. It's about racking up first downs and milking the clock, which is where Harry really excels.
While Harry could very well end up becoming the No. 1 receiver for New England, we do have to assume that Edelman will be Brady's primary target for now, so we have to temper our expectations just a bit.
Still, it is not out of the realm of possibility that Harry has a big rookie year, and based on the Pats' lack of options in the aerial attack overall, something like 60 catches for 700 yards and eight to 10 touchdowns doesn't seem all that unrealistic.
Remember: the Patriots have to replace the production of three departed pass-catchers, so you have to think that Harry will see quite a bit of action in 2019.
While he is a risky because, well, he is a rookie, after all, he could represent a high-risk, high-reward option as the No. 2 receiver on someone's Fantasy Football roster.
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