Monday Patriots Notebook 3/9 - McCourty Called Belichick to Say He Was Leaving, Deadline Looming For Browner, More Notes
 McCourty agreed to a 5-year deal to stay in New England Sunday night. (USA TODAY Images) |
Sometimes it's not always about the money.
Sunday night brought some good news for the Patriots after the team reached an agreement to re-sign their first key free agent, with Devin McCourty reportedly agreeing to a 5-year, $47.5 million deal, with $28.5 of that deal being guaranteed. The deal was reportedly less money than he was being offered elsewhere, with Philadelphia, Jacksonville, Tennessee and the New York Giants all reportedly in contention for his services.
According to NJ.com McCourty was close to becoming a member of the Eagles, and Mike Reiss reported that at one point the veteran safety called Bill Belichick and thanked him for a great five years with the franchise, telling him that it looked like he was ready to move on.
That apparently turned the negotiations in the final moments and the Patriots stepped up to make sure that McCourty would stay in a Patriots uniform. As a result McCourty decided to remain in New England and told Comcast Sports New England and he was glad to be back.
"I'm blessed to say we had other teams that were interested but I said all along that I knew in my heart that I wanted to be back in New England," said McCourty via ESPN Boston. "But I also knew the business side of football, and I had to do what I had to do. I'm back, but I'd be lying if I said there wasn't possibilities over the last two days that I was going to be somewhere else. I'm happy it all worked out."
“We wanted to be happy and we wanted to win,” McCourty said via ProFootballTalk.com. “We felt we had an opportunity . . . at really all those places, we saw ways we could win. Obviously being in New England for five years, there’s no kind of mystery or question. I know we can win here. We’ve already done it. That’s where [the Patriots] came in first in that category. And financially they stepped up and hit all the numbers that I wanted. I think that’s what matters, what was going to make me happy."
Now the team can turn their attention to trying to keep Darrelle Revis, with today's 4pm deadline looming to pick up the cornerback's $12 million option, although New England is expected to instead try and get a long-term deal done. McCourty told CSNNE Sunday night that he's spoken to Revis and he's planning on working out with him soon in Arizona and he hopes the two will be in training camp together by the time they reconvene in July.
"I actually spoke to him," McCourty said via MassLive. "I told him I feel like the same thing he would tell me...I want him back here. I want to play with him. He's a great teammate and the best corner in the game, but also I know it's a business. I would never hit him up and try to pressure him into doing something. I already told him (we're teammates) for the rest of my NFL career anyway because we already train together, so I'll see him again in Arizona (for offseason workouts) and hopefully I'll see again in July in training camp."
DEADLINE LOOMING FOR BRANDON BROWNER:
If there was ever an indication to let you know how things are going with the Darrelle Revis negotiations, we may learn a little by what happens with Brandon Browner, who has a $2 million roster bonus pending before today's 4pm deadline. As Karen Guregian of the Boston Herald points out, that bonus locks in his contract for 2015 and 2016 and it's doubtful they'll let him go if they felt they weren't going to be able to retain Revis.
If it comes down between the two the odds are pretty good the Patriots would likely choose Revis over Browner, so what happens on that front may give us a slight glimpse into the negotiations. But it should make for an interesting day ahead. The good news is that at least one of their key components in their secondary will be in place for next season, and hopefully McCourty won't be the last one the Patriots are able to keep in the fold.
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
- A nice story on KARE11.com on actor Chris Evans, who is a Patriots fan and made a bet with fellow actor Chris Pratt, who is a Seahawks fan. Pratt had reportedly challenged Evans to a bet via Twitter that if Pratt's team won the Super Bowl, Evans would visit Seattle Children's Hospital dressed as his movie character – Captain America – carrying the 12th Man flag and if Evans' team won, Pratt would visit Christopher's Haven in Boston dressed as his movie character – Star-Lord – wearing Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's jersey. The two visited both hospitals, so kudos to both for taking the time to do so.
- There will be a familiar feel for two former Patriots quarterbacks in Houston this July, with Brian Hoyer reportedly expected to re-join former offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien with the Texans. The deal will put him back in a battle with former Pats QB Ryan Mallett, who has reportedly agreed to terms and sets up an interesting competition in training camp since Mallett, as of right now, was expected to be the team's Week 1 starter. Mallett is coming off of a torn pectoral that required surgery and ended his season back on November 24, 2014.
- It's going to be interesting to see if the Patriots make any additional moves before having to be in compliance with the salary cap by Monday at 4 p.m. ET and Mike Reiss brought up the point in his Sunday notes that one to watch will be if the team does anything with receiver Danny Amendola’s contract. He’s scheduled to earn $4 million in 2015 and count $5.7 million against the cap and given his production he'll likely be in line for a pay reduction. Now the big question will be whether or not he's willing to accept that to stay, or if he'll decide to move on. He was a key contributor down the stretch but you have to wonder if he would also want to remain in New England given what he's been through the past couple of seasons. He's earned a role here, albeit a reduced one, and whether or not it will make sense financially will be the key factor. Bill Belichick talked during the season about the fact that Amendola's role returning kicks took some wear and tear off of Julian Edelman and if he leaves the Patriots will have to find someone else to take on those duties.
- Reiss also brought up the point that seeing Vince Wilfork end up with the Texans is a strong possibility given that former coach Bill O'Brien and Romeo Crennel are there, as well as former players Mike Vrabel and Anthony Pleasant. The worst-case scenario would be the Jets getting into the mix since for Pats coach Pepper Johnson is currently their defensive line coach. That would be something that would be tough to deal with, although Wilfork might have a hard time with that given the ribbing he recently gave a Jets fan.
- An interesting note on Wilfork in Ben Volin's Sunday notes. His racehorse, Great Minds, won the fifth race at Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans on Thursday, which according to Volin earned Wilfork a winner’s share of $22,800. Not a bad payout for the veteran defensive lineman, and it was apparently the second win in less than a month for his horse.
