FOXBORO, Mass. — New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick might have ruffled a few feathers in the defensive meeting room when he declared, unprompted, that defensive players typically play defense because they’re “not good enough to play offense.”
Patriots safety Devin McCourty, a longtime captain of New England’s defense, was asked for his take on Belichick’s jab.
“I mean, I would say he knows a lot more about football than me,” McCourty said Wednesday. “But I don’t know — I don’t know what he means ‘good enough.’ As in we can’t catch? I don’t know. (Cornerback Cyrus Jones) is pretty good with the ball in his hands. I’m pretty good. Maybe I’m no Julian Edelman, but I’m OK.
“But I don’t know. On the opposite end, I’m sure if he comes in our meeting room, he’ll tell us we play defense because we’re more physical, we’re nasty, we like to hit. I’m going to really go with that side of it rather than the ‘We’re not good enough,’ but he has said that to us before. I’ve heard that.”
That response kicked off a back-and-forth between McCourty and the assembled media regarding the idea of defensive players playing on offense and vice versa. Here’s the full transcript of the exchange:
Question: When was the last time you played a ton of offense? Did you play any at Rutgers?
McCourty: “No, I was a really low-end recruit at Rutgers. I didn’t do much of anything other than what scout team opportunities that I had. But no, just kickoff returns and stuff like that. I’ve never been a big fan of offense really, though.”
Q: Even in high school?
McCourty: “No, we had a running offense and my brother (current Tennessee Titans cornerback Jason McCourty) was a running back. I’m not much of a blocker. It wasn’t for me.”
Q: You don’t even know what you’re missing then.
McCourty: “I’m not missing much. Defense is where it’s at. What’s the saying go? Defense wins championships.”
Q: Would you say that there are many offensive players who couldn’t hit like defensive players?
McCourty: “Definitely. There are not many physical players on offense. They stand out when you see a guy who is very physical on offense. It surprises you a lot of times.”
Q: Would tight end Rob Gronkowski be one of those guys?
McCourty: “We’d have to try to find a position. I don’t know what he would be. Maybe a (defensive) end? I don’t know. The guy has a lot of ability so we’d find a way.”
Q: How did you assess wide receiver Julian Edelman’s cornerback play back in 2011?
McCourty: “He’s a smart player. Jules is smart. He used what he knew from offense on defense — route combinations, how guys stemmed routes. He did that and he was very smart. He only needed to know a little bit about what we were doing on defense, and everything else he took from his knowledge of offense. So he was very effective for us.”
Q: Anybody in that defensive meeting room that has lobbied to play offense at any point?
McCourty: “Our offense is pretty good. I don’t think they’re dying to get any of us on defense out there.”
Thumbnail photo via Stew Milne/USA TODAY Sports Images
