How Patriots Captain Explained Eyebrow-Raising Tom Brady Comment

Devin McCourty insists he was speaking in jest when he said he’d play another season for the Patriots if Tom Brady returned.

The longtime Patriots safety clarified his remarks and addressed his plans for the future during an appearance Tuesday on NBC Sports Boston’s “Patriots Talk Podcast.”

“I’m not sure yet, man,” McCourty said. “I know a lot of people saw what I said — that if Tom comes back, I’ll come back — which was obviously a joke. I mean, that would have no bearing on if I played football or not. That would be pretty sad as a grown man.”

The comments in question came during McCourty’s guest appearance on NFL Network’s “NFL Gameday Live.” The 35-year-old also has appeared on CBS’s NFL pregame coverage in recent weeks as he trials a potential post-playing career as a broadcaster.

McCourty has acknowledged this season might have been his last. But he doesn’t plan on rushing that decision.

“I’m going to take — a lot of times, people say, ‘I’m going to take some time’ — I’m going to take a lot of time to figure out what’s next,” he said on “Patriots Talk.” “Obviously, for me, when the season ended, I had an opportunity to kind of see what I might want to do next, and I’ve just been taking advantage of that. Going on CBS, going on NFL Network and just having fun and seeing what that feels like.

“And I think one of the coolest things about that is just being around just great guys — obviously guys that are doing very highly in their profession now as broadcasters and TV stuff. I mean, around legends. … I’ve had a lot of fun doing that, and I think the next phase will be hanging out with my family, vacations and just seeing how I feel and then deciding what will be next.”

Patriots fans also are awaiting a decision from longtime special teams captain Matthew Slater, who, like McCourty, is mulling retirement at age 37. Both are scheduled to hit free agency in March.