D. McCourty may retire if Pats win Super Bowl
ATLANTA — New England Patriots safety Devin McCourty didn’t rule out the possibility that he might retire after Super Bowl LIII if his team beats the Los Angeles Rams.
“I don’t know for sure, man. But I do look at it — if we can win this game, winning with my brother [Jason], I don’t know what else I could do that could top that,” McCourty said at the interview podium on Super Bowl opening night while being questioned by Deion Sanders. “So I’m just trying to make sure I enjoy this season and enjoy these last couple days with these guys.”
McCourty, 31, is finishing his ninth season with the Patriots and is an eight-time captain. He has played in 139 career regular-season games, starting all of them, in addition to 21 playoff games.
Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski isn’t ready to talk retirement just yet, but did say Monday night he would have that “sit-down” to consider his playing future a few weeks following the Super Bowl.
Super Bowl week is here. The Patriots and Rams arrived in Atlanta and met the media Monday night.
At last year’s Super Bowl, coach Bill Belichick noted how rare it is for a player to be voted a captain in this second year, as McCourty was. “There’s not many that do more behind the scenes than Devin does,” Belichick said. “He’s an outstanding player and an even better person and better teammate. I couldn’t be prouder to coach a player than Devin McCourty.”
Part of what has made the 2018 season special for McCourty is having his twin brother on the team. The Patriots had acquired Jason McCourty, now in his 10th NFL season after playing for the Titans (2009 to 2016) and Browns (2017), in a March trade.
That fulfilled a longtime dream for the twins and for their mother, Phyllis Harrell.
Jason McCourty is scheduled for free agency after the season and could also consider retirement, while Devin has one year remaining on his contract through the 2019 season.