If there's one thing that can be pointed to as Bill Belichick's greatest strength as Patriots head coach/general manager, it's his ability to pull a diamond out of the rough.
The greatest example, of course, is Tom Brady, who was drafted in the sixth round before going on to put together the greatest career in the history of organized football. But, it goes deeper than that. Julian Edelman was drafted as a college quarterback and went on to win a Super Bowl MVP as one of Brady's most reliable targets ever. Players like Wes Welker, Matthew Slater, Malcolm Butler and J.C. Jackson all arrived to New England as relative unknowns before carving out Pro-Bowl careers.
All of those players put together sustained runs of success for the Patriots, going down in the franchise's history as some of the best to ever do it. This list? Not so much.
Sometimes a player flashes the highest of highs before fading into obscurity. You've seen it before in the NFL with Super Bowl XXII hero Timmy Smith running roughshod for Washington. Green Bay Packers backup quarterback Matt Flynn threw six touchdowns in relief of Aaron Rodgers before combining for 11 over the remaining six years of his career. Seattle Seahawks wideout Chris Matthews saw 20% of his career catches come in the Super Bowl against the Patriots. But no team, and no coach, has seen the amount of flashes in the pan like the Patriots under Bill Belichick.
So here are some of the best.
Jonas Gray (2014 @ Indianapolis)
This is the name everyone envisioned when clicking on this article, and rightfully so. Jonas Gray is to one-game wonders as Belichick is to coaching football. I mean, who else here ended up on the cover of Sports Illustrated?
Gray ran all over the Indianapolis Colts in Week 11 of the 2014 season, touching them up for 201 yards and four touchdowns on 37 carries in a 42-20 Patriots win. Those 201 yards rank third in franchise history for a single game. Gray's career in New England would quickly fizzle out after he was late to a practice later that week before being a healthy scratch against the Detroit Lions. The Patriots tried their luck against Indianapolis again in that season's AFC Championship game, but Gray would finish with four yards on four carries, giving way to LeGarrette Blount's 148 yards. Gray would bounce around Florida the following season, appearing in games for the Miami Dolphins and Jacksonville Jaguars before finding himself out of the league following the 2015 season. He combined for 391 yards and one touchdown in his 18 other career games.
Kristian Wilkerson (2021 vs. Jacksonville)
Four catches for 48 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Those are Kristian Wilkerson's career stats, and they all happened to come in one game. As a member of New England's 2021 wide receiving corps, there was no way of knowing when the South East Missouri State product was going to be called upon. When he was, he delivered en route to a 50-10 Patriots victory.
Jacoby Brissett (2016 vs. Houston)
Jacoby Brissett ended up carving out a nice career for himself, but no one quite knew what to expect when the then-rookie was called on to make a spot start against the undefeated Houston Texans. The results, though not overpowering, were impressive.
Brissett combined for 151 total yards and just one touchdown on the ground, but he didn't turn the ball over and led New England on five scoring drives on the way to a 27-0 Patriots victory. He would go on to start New England's following game but was knocked out with a thumb injury before spending the rest of the year as an inactive. He was traded the following offseason.
Michael Bishop (2000 vs. Indianapolis)
From one Tom Brady backup to another, Michael Bishop could more accurately be described as a one-play wonder more than a one-game wonder.
Belichick opted to have Bishop attempt a hail-mary pass prior to halftime of a divisional matchup against the Colts. In the first of his nine career pass attempts, the former Heisman candidate launched a ball 60 yards in the air that landed into the arms of wide receiver Tony Simmons to tie the game. The Patriots would go on to win 24-16.
Eric Lee (2017 @ Buffalo)
"Remember Eric Lee?" That was probably your reaction when reading the name of one of Belichick's all-time scrap heap signings.
Lee played in nine games for the Patriots, filling in down the stretch for a 2017 team who had about every kind of injury you could have. Especially thin at linebacker, Lee was called upon to just be a body on the edge but exceeded all expectations in his first career start. Lee absolutely tortured Tyrod Taylor and the Buffalo Bills to the tune of 1.5 sacks, one tackle for loss, three QB hits and an interception in a 23-3 Patriots win. He would go on to start five more games for New England in its run to the Super Bowl. Unfortunately, that defense isn't fondly remembered as it gave up the most yards in the history of the big game. Lee would sign with the Detroit Lions the next season before he fizzled out in 2018. He finished his career with 3.5 sacks and five QB hits.
James Harrison (2017 vs. New York)
Yes, that James Harrison.
Harrison is a candidate to wind up in Canton as a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, meaning he clearly wasn't a one-game wonder when we're talking about his career. He did, however, only make an impact for the Patriots in one outing, his very first. Picked up off the street to help Lee and the boys in their run to Super Bowl LII, Harrison only got one regular season game to warm up. He did so by sacking Jets quarterback Bryce Petty twice, hitting him two more times and adding a tackle for loss in a 26-6 Patriots win. The then-39-year-old would go on to post zero sacks, zero tackles for loss and three QB hits in New England's run to the Super Bowl.
Michael Floyd (2016 @ Miami)
More fondly remembered for a block than anything, Michael Floyd's career highlight came in a game where he actually played a solid game at wide receiver as well.
Floyd sprung Edelman for the longest touchdown of the legendary Patriots' career with a sick block on Dolphins cornerback Tony Lippett, before catching a touchdown pass of his own in a 35-14 Patriots win. He only played in three games for New England, but that block is enough to get him on this list.
Antonio Brown (2019 @ Miami)
Much like Harrison, Antonio Brown's on-field accomplishments are good enough to get him into the Hall of Fame. But, much like they did with his career on the whole, Brown's off-field issues put a quick end to what looked like a promising Patriots tenure.
Brown's Patriots tenure only lasted 11 days, giving him only enough time to play in one contest. That game, a 43-0 Patriots victory, seemed to be his coming out party alongside Brady, with the wideout catching four passes for 43 yards and a touchdown. Everything surrounding those four hours was a complete and total disaster, but the game itself was something to marvel at.
