The Patriots made N'Keal Harry the 32nd overall choice in 2018. He fell out of favor with Bill Belichick and never lived up to expectations, playing 33 games with 18 starts and seeing action on 1,130 offensive snaps and 32 on special teams.
Harry asked for a trade last summer, but the Patriots didn’t make a move until earlier this month.
“It really is a much-needed fresh start for me,” Harry said Wednesday after his first practice with the Bears, via Chris Emma of 670 The Score.
Harry saw only 103 targets and caught 57 passes for 598 yards and four touchdowns in his time in New England. He should see more playing time and more opportunities on a team rebuilding at the position after losing WR1 Allen Robinson in free agency.
Byron Pringle and Equanimeous St. Brown are in similar situations, hoping to move up the depth chart with the Bears as complementary targets to Darnell Mooney.
Harry calls this “a reset, a much-needed reset.”
“I just want to show how dominant I can be as a player in the NFL,” Harry said.
The Bears gave up only a 2024 seventh-round pick, so it is a low-risk, high-reward trade. Quarterback Justin Fields said Wednesday he is “very excited” to see what Harry can do, and Harry no doubt is motivated.
“He has a really good skill set, great physical traits, and I think he has something to prove, for sure,” first-year General Manager Ryan Poles said.