The New England Patriots' selection of N'Keal Harry in the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft received rave reviews in expert draft grades, but media members aren't the only people excited for what the future holds for the former Arizona State wide receiver.
Famed trainer Travelle Gaines, whose clients have included NFL stars such as Saquon Barkley and Antonio Brown, worked with Harry before the draft. Gaines explained on the latest "Lefkoe Show" from Bleacher Report why he's confident Harry will be a success in the NFL.
"How focused he is," Gaines said. "He's almost oblivious to what's going on outside around him. He's just focused on training and playing football."
Well, that sounds like the ideal player for Bill Belichick and the Patriots.
Gaines also was asked what type of player Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is getting in Harry.
"(Brady) has an athlete that's going to compete and he has an athlete that can go up and get (the ball)," Gaines said. "And he's a lot faster than people think. He returned kickoffs and punts this year. He wasn't just a receiver. Again, I definitely think he's going to be a 1,000-yard receiver as a rookie. I definitely think he's probably going to win NFL Rookie of the Year. And I'm not saying that because I trained him, I'm saying that because he's in the best position of all offensive rookies in the NFL this year."
Oddsmakers are a little less optimistic about Harry's chances of winning Rookie of the Year. Caesars Palace had him at +1000 (fourth-best odds) to win the award earlier this month.
New England Patriots
He's not a bad bet, though. Harry has a real chance to be a critical player in the Patriots' offense, especially after the offseason departures of tight end Rob Gronkowski and wide receivers Chris Hogan and Cordarrelle Patterson. We also don't know if suspended wideout Josh Gordon will be eligible to play at all in 2019.
It's not unreasonable to think Harry could hit the 1,000-yard mark and be a top contender for Rookie of the Year. And according to Gaines, the young wide receiver certainly has the work ethic needed to reach those goals.
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