N’Keal Harry’s once-promising turned disappointing career with the New England Patriots appears to be over.
According to the NFL Network’s Mike Garafalo, Harry, who would have had to battle to make the Patriots out of training camp, is headed to the Bears. Garafolo tweeted:
“The #Patriots have traded WR N’Keal Harry to the #Bears, sources tell me and @RapSheet. Former first-round pick gets a shot at a fresh start.”
According to ESPN’s Mike Reiss, the Patriots will get a seventh-round pick in 2024.
Harry, the Patriots’ first round pick in the 2019 draft, battled injury and inconsistency throughout his New England career. He had 57 catches for 598 yards and four touchdowns in his three seasons. He missed 16 games during that time.
PANTHERS: Baker Mayfield said he was “shocked” to learn that he was not included in the Cleveland Browns’ future plans earlier this offseason.
But the No. 1 overall NFL draft pick in 2018 has had a few months now to digest the Browns’ decision to replace him with Deshaun Watson and is eager to take advantage of a fresh start with his new team, the Carolina Panthers.
“Shocked, I would say, is pretty much the only way to describe it,” Mayfield said Tuesday. “But you roll with the punches and you’ve got to move forward. This is a test of adversity and how I’m going to handle it and how I can move forward and be the best teammate possible.”
Mayfield said he has no animosity toward the Browns, although he admits Carolina’s home opener against Cleveland on Sept. 11 will be a “special” game.
Often viewed as fiery and outspoken, Mayfield was humble and introspective in his first interview since the Browns dealt him to Carolina for a 2024 conditional fifth-round draft pick.
To help facilitate the deal, Mayfield agreed to take a $3.5 million pay cut. He’ll still make a combined $15.5 million from the Browns and Panthers.
In taking the pay cut, Mayfield is essentially betting on himself with free agency lingering after this upcoming season.
But first he has to win the starting job.
Mayfield joins Sam Darnold in the quarterback room, giving the Panthers the top two QBs from the ’18 draft – but no clear starter heading into training camp.
Panthers General Manager Scott Fitterer called it an “open competition” and predicts both will get equal reps in practice.
“The reason we have Baker here is to make the whole group better as a whole,” Fitterer said. “Our philosophy is that we want competition, not just in the quarterback room but at every position.”
But past success suggests Mayfield has a better chance of winning the job. He’s 29-30 as an NFL starter, while Darnold is 17-32. Mayfield has thrown 92 touchdown passes and 56 interceptions compared to Darnold’s 54 TD passes and 52 INTs.
Mayfield has also shown he can lead a team to the playoffs, helping the Browns go 11-5 in 2020.
Mayfield avoided questions on whether he expects to be the team’s starter, only saying he wants to be the best quarterback he can be and help the Panthers win games regardless of his role. He said he likes and respects Darnold, who called him shortly after the trade to Carolina was announced.
He doesn’t want a quarterback controversy disrupting the team.
COMMANDERS: The U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Reform has accepted an offer for Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder to testify virtually July 28.
Chairwoman Carolyn B. Maloney wrote a letter to attorney Karen Patton Seymour on Tuesday saying he would be allowed to testify via Zoom under the conditions set out by the committee’s initial subpoena “to ensure that Mr. Snyder’s testimony will be full and complete and will not be restricted in the way it would be if the deposition were conducted voluntarily.”
The committee is set to give Snyder access to exhibitions used in prior depositions and interview transcripts as well as descriptions of redacted information, which were among the elements requested by his representatives in a previous letter. July 28 was also one of their preferred dates after declining several previous invitations.
Snyder did not appear when first invited along with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who testified virtually June 22, with prior obligations and international travel given among the reasons.
His camp has until Wednesday at noon to confirm Snyder will appear before the committee, which launched an investigation into the team’s workplace culture last year after the league did not release a report of its independent review into the organization, which prompted a $10 million fine.
RAIDERS: A judge ruled that results of a blood-alcohol test taken from former Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III can be used as evidence in his DUI crash case.
Authorities said the 23-year-old Ruggs allegedly was driving 156 mph just seconds before the fiery November 2021 crash that left a woman dead and Ruggs and his female passenger injured.
Prosecutors have said Ruggs’ blood alcohol level after the crash several miles west of the Las Vegas Strip was 0.16%, which is twice the legal limit for drivers in Nevada.
Ruggs’ lawyers argued Tuesday that police did not have probable cause to ask a judge for the warrant to obtain Ruggs’ blood after the crash.
Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Ann Zimmerman disagreed and denied the defense’s motion to exclude the blood test.
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