For the first time in over a decade, NFL teams won't have to worry about a certain former New England Patriot in their game-planning. Yes, opposing offenses can finally breathe easy with Devin McCourty having announced his retirement.
McCourty leaves behind a crew of experienced defenders with varying degrees of experience, including Kyle Dugger and Adrian Phillips. The pair spoke to the Boston Globe about what lies ahead in the post-McCourty era … one that Phillips anticipates living up to its name.
"If you keep trying to find somebody to replace him or somebody to be like Dev - 'Do this like Dev. Do that like Dev' - we'll never be able to grow to where we need to be,” Phillips said. “This is like the ultimate test for our secondary to be able to grow, because he's always been that backbone for so long. You’ll never replace a guy like that specifically, just because he’s like one in a million.”
McCourty was one of the final remnants of the Patriots’ championship days and the 35-year-old has moved on to take a broadcasting job with NBC. Of course, the Patriots’ present and future affairs get special attention considering who was…and now isn’t…under center but the defense is expected to play a major role in keeping the team afloat while it searches for offensive stability.
But even with the defense standing as a consistent silver lining as the Patriots try to get back to the glory days, New England will be forced to get used to life without McCourty pretty quickly: in addition to a divisional slate that now includes Aaron Rodgers in addition to Josh Allen and Tua Tagovailoa, the Patriots also run into other elite throwers like Jalen Hurts, Dak Prescott, and Derek Carr … and that’s just before Halloween .
Don't expect Dugger to ask McCourty to abandon the peacock, though, as they’re more eager to make up the lost production themselves.
"You can't just replace a guy like Devin," Dugger told the Globe. "We're just going to have to make sure we're communicating and talking. Communication will be important and help tremendously."
Perhaps inching toward the twilight of his own career, Phillips, 31, believes Duggar is more than capable of living up to the sterling precedent McCourty left behind.
Having gained a sense of instant fame as the Patriots’ first draft pick since Tom Brady’s retirement, Dugger has fulfilled expectations to the tune of seven interceptions over the last two seasons, two of which were returned for touchdowns in 2022. Phillips foresees a literal leap into a larger conversation if he keeps his current physical pace up, referring to Dugger as a “freak.”
"When you see guys like that, you see how the game is changing a lot, because you really don't see guys like 6-foot-2, running 4.3, being able to cover anyone on the field and be able to knock anybody out,” Phillips said. “He can do that."
Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags
More Patriots coverage from Sports Illustrated here.
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