Bill Belichick Offers (Mostly) Positive First Review Of N’Keal Harry

Much is expected of N’Keal Harry in his first season with the New England Patriots, and understandably so. He is a first-round pick, after all.

Winning over his head coach, Bill Belichick, is a mandatory first step for the rookie wideout. Thus far, it appears he’s been successful.

Belichick shared his initial impressions of Harry during an appearance Monday on Sirius XM NFL Radio, and his review was mostly positive.

“A big kid that runs well. Good catch radius. Very strong, physical receiver,” Belichick said, as transcribed by ESPN’s Mike Reiss. “He has a long way to go … but he’s gotten better every day and been dependable, durable, tough. … making good progress.”

There certainly are worse things that Belichick could say about a young receiver.

Given Rob Gronkowski’s retirement, Julian Edelman’s thumb injury and the status of New England’s receiver corps as a whole, the Patriots need Harry to step up. First-year wideouts typically struggle both to gain Tom Brady’s trust and to adjust to Josh McDaniels’ complex playbook, but Harry has all the tools to buck that trend.