Patriots Coach Lays Out Harsh Reality For Defense Without Devin McCourty

Nearly every time he’s spoken with reporters since the end of last season, Brian Belichick has faced at least one question about how his position group is replacing Devin McCourty.

On Tuesday, the Patriots safeties coach offered a definitive response: they’re not.

Now past the halfway point of New England’s 2023 campaign, Belichick said his unit is long past trying to replicate what McCourty brought to New England’s defense during his sensational career.

“I love Devin and loved working with Devin, and we were lucky to have him for a long time. But he’s not here anymore,” Belichick said in a video conference. “So we’re not really looking for Devin or looking for someone who’s going to be Devin, because that person isn’t going to exist. He’s done, unfortunately, for us.

“We were lucky to have him for a long time, but as far as filling that role, the goal is to just play the best defense we can with the guys we have. Thankfully, I’m really confident in the group we have with what they can do. They have multiple different skill sets that can help us in a lot of different ways, and that’s a strength for us and something that we can use to our advantage.”

New England’s primary McCourty replacement has been versatile veteran Jabrill Peppers, and he’s enjoying his best season as a pro. Peppers is the Patriots’ highest-graded defender by Pro Football Focus and is PFF’s highest-graded run defender across all teams and positions.

Peppers has played a team-high 257 snaps as a deep safety, per PFF, with fellow starter Kyle Dugger logging 199. Jalen Mills has played 57, with his playing time increasing in recent weeks, followed by rookie Marte Mapu with 52, slot corner Myles Bryant with 32 and Adrian Phillips with 12.

The Patriots seem to be missing McCourty’s communication ability, however. Breakdowns in the secondary have grown increasingly frequent of late. In Week 8, the Patriots allowed five pass plays of 20-plus yards in a loss to Miami — a season high at the time. Then, they surrendered six on Sunday in a loss to Washington. Only one NFL team gave up more big-play completions over the last two weeks, per ESPN’s Mike Reiss.

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Mapu, a Sacramento State product who’s played everywhere from free safety to inside linebacker since joining the Patriots this spring, was partially responsible for one of those busts, failing to provide over-the-top help to cornerback J.C. Jackson on a long Tyreek Hill touchdown.

New England also is tied for 21st in the NFL this season with just five interceptions, though they did grab one in each of the last three games. McCourty was tied for the team lead with four INTs last season and grabbed 14 over his final four years in Foxboro, Mass.

“Unfortunately, Devin is irreplaceable,” Belichick said. “We’re doing our best, and thankfully I have a lot of confidence in the guys we have.”

Unreliable cornerback play and poor tackling throughout the secondary have been major issues, too, for a defense that’s held just one opponent below 20 points this season (Zach Wilson’s Jets in Week 3).

The Patriots will head to Frankfurt, Germany, this week to face an Indianapolis Colts team that’s topped 20 points in all nine of its games and ranks seventh in the NFL in scoring.