New England Patriots links 7/07/21 – Mac Jones locked in, N’Keal Harry wants out

Daily news and links for Wednesday

TEAM TALK

• Patriots sign 2021 first-round pick quarterback Mac Jones.
• Mike Dussault talks about the report of N’Keal Harry’s agent requesting a trade on his behalf. “It appears that any optimism of Harry figuring it out in his third year in New England is fading fast.”
• Paul Perillo tackles this week’s Patriots Unfiltered Q&A: Gilmore solutions, QB breakdown and more.
• Paul Perillo’s NFL Notes: Six things to watch for the Pats.
• Patriots Unfiltered 7/6: Evaluating the CB depth; LB competition; Plus, Migel Benzan from PatsCap joins us to talk about void years in contracts and what a new contract for Stephon Gilmore might look like. (2 hours)

LOCAL LINKS

• Chad Finn tries to look rationally at whether the Patriots underused N’Keal Harry before getting to the absurdity of the statement from N’Keal Harry’s agent. “Throwing him the ball? That would have been a fine plan if the goal was to go three-and-out in the most annoying fashion possible.”
• Tom E. Curran quotes Rudolph’s Hermey the Elf (“You can’t fire me, I quit”) as N’Keal Harry tries to beat the Patriots to the punch. /Remember, N’Keal, in the words of Rudolph’s girl deer-friend Clarice, “There’s always tomorrow, for dreams to come true…”
• Mike D’Abate (PatriotMaven) N’Keal Harry’s management team requests trade. “There are times where he made some brilliant catches, flashing some of the skill that likely made him a first-round target for the Patriots in 2019. More often than not, however, he has been a minimal factor in the Pats offense.”
• Ryan Hannable explains why N’Keal Harry formally requesting trade was a bad idea. /Brutal, lolz.
• Alex Barth explores what the N’Keal Harry trade market would look like and who might be interested.
• Mike Masala (PatriotsWire) What history tells us the Patriots could get in a potential N’Keal Harry trade.
• Henry McKenna (PatriotsWire) 8 potential landing spots for Patriots WR N’Keal Harry after trade request.
• Ryan Hannable wonders what team would even trade for N’Keal Harry.
• Bobby Thompson (FullPressCoverage) N’Keal Harry’s agent requests a trade. “I expect the return for Harry to be no earlier than a mid to late 4th round pick.”
• Tom Westerholm writes the Pats officially signed Mac Jones to rookie contract, reportedly for 4 years, $15.6 million
• Tom Shaw-Mellors (PatsPropaganda) Mac Jones signs rookie contract with the Patriots. Includes updated Patriots cap space number.
• Henry McKenna (PatriotsWire) Jakobi Meyers isn’t getting the love he deserves as Patriots’ potential WR1.
• Dakota Randall notes Gunner Olszewski is set to drive the pace car in New Hampshire NASCAR race.
• Mike Reiss catches up with Chris Hogan who is attacking the challenge of a new career. Hogan entered the Premier Lacrosse League as an undrafted free agent, the same route he took to the NFL a decade ago.
• CBS Boston talks about last night’s The Match: Tom Brady roasted with Belichick zinger, then beaten by Aaron Rodgers and Bryson DeChambeau.
• One Patriots Place podcast: Murph, Clare and Steve are joined by Alex Barth to talk all things Patriots. (60 min.)
• Patriots Beat podcast: Alex Barth and Evan Lazar discuss N’Keal Harry’s trade request. (32 min.)

NATIONAL NEWS

• Mike Garafolo (NFL.com) Mac Jones, the 15th overall pick in April’s draft, will earn roughly $15.6 million fully guaranteed over four years, with a signing bonus of about $8.7 million.
• Chris Cwik (Yahoo! Sports) N’Keal Harry’s agent asks Patriots for trade after 2 disappointing seasons. “If Harry is looking for opportunity, New England isn’t a terrible place. The team doesn’t have the strongest wide receivers, leaving a chance for Harry to emerge. But it sounds like Harry and the Patriots disagree over his skills, leading Harry to believe the team isn’t maximizing his potential.”
• James Fragoza (ProFootballNetwork) N’Keal Harry landing spots: Will Patriots trade former first-round pick?
• Mike Florio (ProFootballTalk) No opt outs for 2021.
• Doug Farrar (TouchdownWire) The NFL’s top 11 slot receivers. No Pats.
• Marc Sessler (NFL.com) One potential first-time Pro Bowler from each AFC team. Patriots: J.C. Jackson.
• Dalton Miller (ProFootballNetwork) NFL Top 100 for 2021: NFL player rankings. Nos 91-100, Nos 71-80.
• Frank Schwab (Yahoo! Sports) 2021 NFL Preview: Bears have exciting new QB, with a coach and GM trying to survive.
• Highlights (NFL Network) Time to relive the best moments from the 2020 season. (6.04 min. video) / : P
• Tom VanHaaren (ESPN) Aaron Rodgers telling Phil Mickelson to shut up, Tom Brady’s personalized golf balls and more from The Match.