Devin McCourty often is regarded as one of the more underappreciated players in the NFL.
Kyle Van Noy certainly believes the veteran safety doesn’t garner the warranted level of recognition.
Van Noy and McCourty were Patriots teammates for four seasons, over which time they won two Super Bowl championships together. McCourty clearly left a lasting impression on the veteran linebacker, who gushed over the two-time Pro Bowl selection during a recent appearance on Bleacher Report’s “The Lefkoe Show.”
“He’s like my older, little brother,” Van Noy said. “Him and J-Mac (Jason McCourty) kind of took me under their wings a little bit. I talk to them almost every day. What Dev has taught me, money can’t buy. That’s how powerful his leadership is. That’s how powerful he is on the field. His knowledge of the game and life is amazing. His ability to be the coach on the field, calling every play right, knowing what the opponent’s gonna do — it’s crazy to even describe because of how it goes unnoticed, which is crazy. …He’s really remarkable, what he does. I think, to me, a lot of safeties are in that one-dimensional, one-trick pony, but he can do it all. You need him to play man-to-man, he can play. You need him to play in the box — does he want to? Maybe not, but he’ll do it and he does it really good. You want to play him middle post? He can do it. He can do it all.”
Devin McCourty – a tremendous leader, and someone @AdamLefkoe says is possibly the "most underrated player of the last decade." @KVN_03 whole-heartedly agrees. pic.twitter.com/coOvrZuIVE
— The Lefkoe Show (@LefkoeShow) July 11, 2020
McCourty’s influence likely will be beneficial for Van Noy as he embarks on the next chapter of his NFL career. The Dolphins are a team on the rise and they’ll look for Van Noy, who signed a four-year, $51 million deal with Miami in free agency, to be one of the leaders on defense.
