10-year NFL veteran cornerback Jason McCourty is returning to the New England Patriots on a two-year, per Mike Garafolo and multiple reports. McCourty spent the 2018 season with the Patriots but has also played for the Tennessee Titans and the Cleveland Browns.
CB Jason McCourty back to the #Patriots on a two-year deal, source says.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 13, 2019
Jason McCourty Signs Two-Year Deal With New England Patriots
McCourty spent the 2018 season with the Patriots and was part of the stout defensive unit that held the Los Angeles Rams to just three points in Super Bowl LIII. It was McCourty’s first career postseason run.
McCourty was graded as the league’s seventh-best cornerback by Pro Football Focus in December 2018.
After Super Bowl LIII, McCourty said that he would prefer to re-sign with the Patriots to avoid forcing his family to move for the third time in three years. This will be the first time the veteran corner has been a free agent when the league year starts.
McCourty was signed to a five-year, $43 million extension by the Tennessee Titans in 2012 and then released just days before the 2017 NFL Draft. He felt that the Titans decision to release him so late into free agency didn’t afford him an appropriate opportunity.
That same off-season, he signed with the Browns on a two-year, $6 million deal. As a member of the Browns, McCourty notched three interceptions, including his first career pick-six, two forced fumbles and a career-high five tackles for loss. His play drew attention from the Patriots, and the Browns traded McCourty and a 2018 seventh-round draft pick to the Patriots for a 2018 sixth-round pick.
The Patriots brought McCourty in to complement Stephon Gilmore and bolster a weak cornerback depth chart. Despite preseason questions about whether McCourty would remain on the roster for New England, he appeared in all 19 games the Patriots played this season and made 12 starts in the regular season. In his tenth year in the league, the 31-year-old veteran racked up one interception, one forced fumble, 14 passes defensed and 63 solo tackles.
NFL.com graded McCourty as the 69th-best free agent in this year’s free agency class.
Main photo:
Embed from Getty Images
