Devin McCourty proved he had more to give the Patriots than just veteran leadership in 2021, playing every game of his age-34 season and rarely coming off the field. He hopes to do the same at age 35 — a time at which many of his peers have already hit the end of their careers.
In fact, Devin’s twin brother, Jason, is still waiting to get a call from an NFL team after recovering from a season-ending injury suffered with the Miami Dolphins last year.
But that won't stop Jason from having a little fun at his brother’s expense.
During an appearance on NFL Network’s “Good Morning, Football!” show on Monday, Jason needled Devin for his advancing age despite him holding the longest active streak for consecutive starts among safeties (98).
“If I had a list of (top defensive backs) 35 and up, Devin McCourty would have been on my list. But there’s too many young guys out here!” Jason told Peter Schrager on set, as reported by ESPN’s Mike Reiss.
Of course, it's all love between the two brothers, who were Patriots teammates from 2018-20 and even share a Twitter account.
Also, Jason isn't wrong about the prevalence of exciting young safeties in the NFL. One such young talent, Kyle Dugger, plays alongside Devin at the moment and could become one of the best players at his position in short order.
But as much as Devin will be counted on to mentor the likes of Dugger and others, he still showed he could play solid football himself last year as the Patriots’ primary deep safety. He, along with Adrian Phillips, cracked the top 20 in Pro Football Focus grades among safeties who played at least 150 coverage snaps (98 players total).
Whatever scheme changes the Patriots might make in 2022, Devin McCourty’s presence on the back end of the defense should keep things steady for the present.
Another season of strong play will be worth a few old-man jokes from Jason.
