Patriots Jason McCourty Isn't Mad at Drew Brees

Getty Jason McCourty

Jason McCourty isn’t upset with the New Orleans Saints’ Drew Brees, but he does want the future Hall-of-Famer and others to know that he must re-examine his mindset.

The New England Patriots’ beloved defensive back hasn’t been shy speaking out on social injustice as it pertains to police brutality against African Americans in the United States.

McCourty took umbrage with Drew Brees’ comments about NFL players protesting during the national anthem.

In case you missed it, here’s the controversial interview and answer:

This is a disgrace! To speak about your grandfathers as if there weren’t black men fighting next to them.Those men later returned to a country that hated them. Don’t avoid the issue and try to make it about a flag or the military. Fight like your grandfathers for whats right! https://t.co/qag3Igic3V

— Devin&Jason McCourty (@McCourtyTwins) June 3, 2020

Brees has since apologized for comments, and spoken with several members of the black community to express his regret. Here is one Brees posted to his Instagram account:

View this post on Instagram

I would like to apologize to my friends, teammates, the City of New Orleans, the black community, NFL community and anyone I hurt with my comments yesterday. In speaking with some of you, it breaks my heart to know the pain I have caused. In an attempt to talk about respect, unity, and solidarity centered around the American flag and the national anthem, I made comments that were insensitive and completely missed the mark on the issues we are facing right now as a country. They lacked awareness and any type of compassion or empathy. Instead, those words have become divisive and hurtful and have misled people into believing that somehow I am an enemy. This could not be further from the truth, and is not an accurate reflection of my heart or my character. This is where I stand: I stand with the black community in the fight against systemic racial injustice and police brutality and support the creation of real policy change that will make a difference. I condemn the years of oppression that have taken place throughout our black communities and still exists today. I acknowledge that we as Americans, including myself, have not done enough to fight for that equality or to truly understand the struggles and plight of the black community. I recognize that I am part of the solution and can be a leader for the black community in this movement. I will never know what it’s like to be a black man or raise black children in America but I will work every day to put myself in those shoes and fight for what is right. I have ALWAYS been an ally, never an enemy. I am sick about the way my comments were perceived yesterday, but I take full responsibility and accountability. I recognize that I should do less talking and more listening…and when the black community is talking about their pain, we all need to listen. For that, I am very sorry and I ask your forgiveness.

A post shared by Drew Brees (@drewbrees) on Jun 4, 2020 at 5:22am PDT

However, it will take some time for him to set right what has gone wrong. Some such as the Philadelphia Eagles’ Malik Jackson have refused to forgive, while others have spoken to Brees and believed his sincerity.

NFL Hall-of-Famer and current star of FS1’s Undisputed Shannon Sharpe is one who has switched his stance on Brees.

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While McCourty was originally appalled when he saw the Brees video, he isn’t holding anything personal against the Saints QB. McCourty said the following during his podcast:

You don’t have an issue with Drew Brees when he makes those statements. You have an issue with that train of thought. That train of thought is what we’re trying to move away from. As soon as someone who has that thought is willing to dive in and learn, and open up dialogue to talk about [it] … when we’re able to do that, there’s no animosity or hostility towards anyone. That’s not what we’re trying to do. There’s an issue, and we’re trying to fix this issue.

To Brees’ credit, he is not accepting his failure and standing firm in error. He is working as diligently to remedy the issue as he has at becoming a Hall-of-Fame QB. As a black man, I respect that as much as I do anything he’s done on the football field.

Jason McCourty Talks Candidly About Drew Brees’ ‘Train of Thought’

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