3 Biggest NFL Draft Busts in New England Patriots History

New England Patriots and legendary head coach Bill Belichick will be looking forward to the 2022 NFL Draft, with the team holding the 21st overall selection of the first-round.

The Pats will be hoping their picks in this draft can help them rebuild the dynasty that lasted for the majority of the 2000s and 2010s. Of course, they will have to do it without the catalyst of the dynasty created by Tom Brady, who is now with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Pats have had mixed success in the draft in recent seasons. They have done well in picking up hidden gems, such as guard Michael Onwenu in the sixth-round, who has been the Pats starter for the majority of his time in the NFL and even made the PWA All-Rookie team.

However, Belichick and New England don’t always get it right. Here are three of the biggest NFL Draft busts in New England Patriots history.

New England Patriots' Biggest NFL Draft Busts Ever

#3 - N’Keal Harry, Wide Receiver

New England Patriots Biggest NFL Draft Busts - N'Keal Harry

Harry was selected by the Patriots in the first-round of the 2019 draft with the 32nd overall pick. In doing so, Harry became the first wide-receiver drafted in the first-round by Bill Belichick, 19 years after he took over as head coach.

Despite this, and despite the fact that he had Tom Brady throwing to him, his rookie campaign didn’t offer much, with just 12 receptions for 105 yards and two touchdowns, although he did only appear in seven games due to injury.

Harry hasn’t progressed much since being drafted, and the jury is still out as to whether he’s a total bust due to the quarterbacks he’s had throwing to him since Brady departed. The list includes Cam Newton, Mac Jones and Brian Hoyer. Harry’s NFL career stats, thus far, leave a lot to be desired, going for 598 yards and four touchdowns in three seasons in New England. This is not the kind of production you would expect from a first-round selection.

He even requested a trade in 2021, which hasn't yet been fulfilled, proving that this pick wasn't worth it for either party.

#2 - Ras-I Dowling, Safety

New England Patriots Biggest NFL Draft Busts - Ras-I Dowling

Dowling was selected by the New England Patriots with the first pick of the second-round of the 2011 NFL draft. Early selections for the second-round are usually filled with guys with first-round talent, but have fallen out of the top round for one reason or another. This might have been the case for Dowling, but we rarely saw him suit up in New England.

Unfortunately, the Virginia product just couldn’t stay healthy while with the Pats, having been placed on injured reserve in October 2011, ending his rookie season and repeating the feat in October 2012, ending his 2012 season.

The Pats cut Dowling in August 2013 after two injury-hit seasons, and he bounced around the league afterwards, playing for the New York Jets, Oakland Raiders and Carolina Panthers before calling it quits in 2015, just four years after being drafted.

#1 - Chad Jackson, Wide Receiver

New England Patriots Biggest NFL Draft Busts - Chad Jackson

The New England Patriots moved up in the 2006 Draft to select wide-receiver Chad Jackson out of Florida. However, the move didn’t work out for Jackson or the Pats. After missing the entire 2006 preseason with a hamstring injury, he would only feature in 12 games, starting once during his rookie season. He only caught 13 passes for 152 yards and three touchdowns, and this is as good as it would get for Jackson.

Going into the 2007 season, injuries continued to hamper Jackson, and he was placed on the PUP (Physically Unable to Perform) list, and wasn’t activated off it until November 2007. Jackson would only play in two games in 2007, not recording a catch, before being released at the end of the season.

He would spend a year with the Denver Broncos in 2008, but only caught one catch in the four games he was active for. Jackson would be out of the NFL after this season, and his selection will go down as one of the worst in New England Patriots history.

To add insult to injury, the Pats traded with the Green Bay Packers to move up to select Jackson, and with the pick the Packers got, they selected Pro Bowl receiver Greg Jennings.