Getty Devin McCourty
The New England Patriots made a long awaited trade that sent Stephon Gilmore to the Carolina Panthers for a sixth-round pick on Wednesday.
The move won’t impact much of what the Patriots have been doing this season considering Gilmore hasn’t played this year. However, there was some hope that he would return to the team at some point this season. With those hopes now gone, the Patriots’ lack of depth at corner could be an ongoing concern.
That concern prompted a question to long-time safety and team captain Devin McCourty. D-Mac was asked if he would ever consider a move back to his original position at corner. McCourty’s response was funny.
Devin McCourty Moving Back to Corner? He Says, “That’s Dead”
NBC Sports’ Phil Perry posted McCourty’s response to the possibility of him moving back to corner in the event the Patriots need someone to step up in that area. McCourty said:
Devin McCourty asked about a move a move back to… corner?
“That’s dead,” he says with a laugh. “Before that happens, you guys will probably give me a notebook. I’ll be over there with you guys.”
In case you forgot, McCourty played corner the first three years of his career, and he was pretty impressive. As a 23-year-old rookie, McCourty made the first of two Pro-Bowls in his career. As a starting corner, he had 7 interceptions, 2 forced fumbles and a sack.
Over the next two seasons, he’d have 7 more picks before switching to free safety in 2013. Even with his previous success at corner, McCourty knows his days of playing the position–at least at a high level–are done. He’s 34 years old and this is his 12th year in the NFL. Rarely–if ever–will you see a player go from safety to corner at this stage. McCourty has played his entire career with the Patriots, spending some of that time with his twin brother Jason McCourty.
The latter just left New England as a free agent to sing with the Miami Dolphins ahead of this season. He has started all four games of the season for the Dolphins including the Week 1 clash with the Patriots.
It’s All About J.C. Jackson Now
For the past few months, we’ve heard a lot of conversation about J.C. Jackson potentially stepping into the No. 1 corner role if Gilmore was traded.
Now that the move has happened, the Patriots are officially turning over that huge responsibility to the Pick Magnet. Jackson has an amazing 19 interceptions in the first 49 games of his career. To put that into some perspective, the great Deion Sanders had just 17 picks in his first 4 full seasons, which spanned 59 games.
No one is saying Jackson is on Sanders’ level, but his nose for the ball has put his pick numbers in rare air. With Gilmore officially gone, no future Hall-of-Famer is going to come walking through those doors.
Jackson is going to have to maintain–if not elevate–his level of play if he’s going to keep the Patriots from missing Gilmore. The Patriots will try to avoid slipping to 1-4 on Sunday when they head south west to take on the Houston Texans.
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