3 New England Patriots players that need to step up against the Bills
New England Patriots key player No. 2: N’Keal Harry
Could this be the long awaited N’Keal Harry game? It’s certainly shaping up that way, with Kendrick Bourne still on the COVID list and Nelson Agholor missing the first two days of practice while he deals with a concussion. Harry has been limited the first two days as well, but it appears he has the best chance of suiting up on Sunday afternoon.
Harry has been limited almost exclusively to run blocking this season, and he’s actually become quite good at it. But he also provided a reminder that he can catch the football when it comes his way too, as he hauled in a huge 43 yard completion late in the fourth quarter last week against the Indianapolis Colts that helped New England pull the game to within three points. It was the type of play Patriots fans have been expecting from Harry since he was drafted in the first round in 2019.
Now Harry might have a legitimate chance to follow up his solid outing against Indy. Bourne and Agholor very well may be missing from this game (hopefully not) which opens up a huge role for Harry to take advantage of. Remember, the Bills secondary also isn’t at full strength, as they are still without their top cornerback Tre’Davious White.
Harry’s advantage has been his size, and that could play a huge part in this one. There isn’t a member of the Bills secondary that can match up with him physically (for reference, Harry is 6’4, and there isn’t a member of the Bills secondary that is taller than 6’0 tall). There are going to be a number of matchups for Harry to work with here, and as it has been throughout his career, it’s all going to depend on whether Harry can get separation from his defender.
If Harry ends up being the Patriots second receiver behind Jakobi Meyers in this one, offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels should do what he can to get Harry involved early. There isn’t going to be a defender that can stop Harry on a quick slant route once he gets the defender on his back. And we all know Harry can go up and get jump balls when they are thrown his way. What better way for Harry to step up than with the division on the line? Here’s hoping he shows up.