The New England Patriots may have picked N’Keal Harry at No. 32 overall in the draft, in part because Bill Belichick has never had a receiver quite like the Arizona State product. This isn’t to say he’s beyond comparison or that he’s better than the past pass-catchers under Bill Belichick. Randy Moss was one of the best receivers in the history of the sport. Rob Gronkowski, who retired this offseason, is one of the best tight ends to ever play. And Harry hasn’t played an NFL game. He’s not the king of the NFL.

That said, he’s different than both of those players — and every pass-catcher under Belichick. With slot receivers, you see a pattern: Troy Brown, Wes Welker, Julian Edelman and Danny Amendola. With Harry, he doesn’t follow the mold for the Patriots offense.

The best comparison is former Patriots wideout Brandon LaFell, who is 6-foot-2, 210 pounds and ran a 4.54 40-yard dash. Of course, those numbers match Harry’s, except that he is just as fast at 235 pounds. LaFell had the versatility to line up at different the different receiver spots in the offense, both outside and inside. He was a big slot, and not necessarily a burner. And he was a tough player to tackle when he had the ball in his hands.

Harry checks all those boxes. But to be considered a success, he’ll have to do all that and more. LaFell’s career highs came in 2014 with the Patriots when he caught 74 passes for 953 yards and seven touchdowns. With Tom Brady as his quarterback, Harry should make those numbers a regular occurrence.

During the first open session of organized team activities last week, he lined up outside and inside, and was impressive in those roles. (Remember: small sample size.) He managed to create separation while flashing his huge catch radius, which made him such an enticing prospect coming out of college. What we didn’t see during that session is his ability to break tackles and make plays after the catch. The practice was in shells and gym shorts, and was non-contact. Harry couldn’t show off his physical abilities as a ball-carrier, which were enough for Patriots director of player personnel Nick Caserio to say that Harry runs a little like a running back.

That’s why his college coaches compared him to receivers Dez Bryant and Anquan Boldin. Those comparisons are lofty projections, but they’re based on his potential with catching, leaping, running and strength.

The floor for Harry is that of Josh Doctson or Aaron Dobson: a bust. A good (but perhaps still disappointing) outcome would be if Harry’s game looked like LaFell. And a best-case would be a mix of Bryant and Boldin, two of the most productive receivers in the NFL during their peaks. If that’s what Harry becomes, he’ll be an entirely unique weapon, compared to pass-catchers of Belichick’s past.