Rookie highlights: New England Patriots WR Austin Carr

The New England Patriots snagged one of the top undrafted free agents on the market in WR Austin Carr. Here are some highlights from his college days…

The New England Patriots didn’t have a first or second round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft after trading for Brandin Cooks and Kony Ealy. It’s fitting that they still somehow managed to get one of the best slot receivers in college football as an undrafted free agent, even if there’s only a remote chance he makes the team (if that).

Once a walk-on at Northwestern, Carr is no stranger to being overlooked.

After three years of either modest or no production at all, Carr burst onto the scene this past season with 90 receptions for 1,247 yards and 12 touchdowns. Each one of those numbers was tops overall in the Big Ten conference.

Despite his production and solid size (checked in at 6-foot-1, over 200 pounds at his pro day), NFL teams overlooked Carr during the 2017 NFL Draft. He was not among the hundreds of players invited to the Scouting Combine, despite checking every possible box in college.

The California native made his way to Northwestern with more talents than just what he can do on the football field. He’s a singer/songwriter who also excels in the classroom. The Academic All-Big Ten selection has now taken his football abilities all the way across the country, signing on with the Patriots as one of their 19 UDFAs.

Next: 2018 NFL Mock Draft Update

The New England roster is absolutely loaded right now at the slot receiver position, starting with Julian Edelman, working down the line to Danny Amendola and Andrew Hawkins.

It wouldn’t seem New England is the ideal landing spot ultimately for Carr, but there’s a big opportunity for him to work with one of the best organizations in all of professional sports.

As it always seems with the Patriots, the rich are just getting richer.