N’Keal Harry made one mistake in Week 1. It could have been a major issue for the New England Patriots, but they ultimately overcame his fumble on the 1-yard line, which bounced through the side of the end zone for a touchback and a turnover.
Though the Dolphins converted the fumble into a touchdown on the ensuing drive, Harry’s day was otherwise succesful, according to quarterback Cam Newton. He wanted to set the record straight on that performance, with media members and fans jumping on Harry for the fumble.
“Let’s just put this in perspective here. Did he have a good game? Yes, he did,” Newton said Wednesday. “I think that one play overshadowed the production that he did have. He bailed me out on a play on an inaccurate pass that he came down with and got the first down. He did pretty good in the run game. He had a couple catches, and all that was kind of for naught, because a lot of people just focused on the fumble. And he would be the first person to tell you that he knows that’s unacceptable. But when you put things in perspective and call an apple an apple and a spade a spade, it was just one mistake. Him being a young player, things like that will happen.”
Harry finished the day with five catches for 39 yards. Had he not fumbled, he would’ve had a touchdown, too. Newton is preaching patience. He wants to maximize the talent in Harry, who was the Patriots’ first-round pick in 2019.
“I’ve had a N’Keal in my life for as long as my career has existed,” Newton said. Newton rattled off the names of young players he mentored in Carolina: Kelvin Benjamin, Devin Funchess, Curtis Samuel, D.J. Moore and Christian McCaffrey. They were all high draft picks and they were all players that had success with Newton at quarterback. “It’s nothing to come to a team and have a young talent at receiver and try to morph him to the best player he can be,” he said.
It sounds like Newton is just the man to help Harry, who had a rough rookie season, figure out how to get his career moving in the right direction.
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