Re-Signing Devin McCourty Keeps Patriots on Best Path to Defend League Title

The New England Patriots made the smart move late Sunday night when they reportedly re-signed free safety Devin McCourty to a new five-year contract. The contract is valued at $47.5 million with $28.5 million of that in guarantees.

That’s open-marketplace cash to keep McCourty at home. And he’s worth every dollar given his impact to the Patriots’ defensive system.

According to reports, McCourty drew strong interest from the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Giants and Jacksonville Jaguars, but this new deal to return to Bill Belichick’s team should be looked at as a major win for the Patriots as they start the offseason process.

On Sunday morning, I wrote about McCourty’s skill set at the safety position. A true, middle-of-the-field defender who can take away the post and the seam with the range to overlap the 9 (fade) route. That’s vital to the success of any defense that wants to play single-high schemes, as the free safety can put a tent on top of the secondary.

That's what you get with McCourty given the instincts and speed he shows on tape. This is a guy who plays fast because of his ability to stay square, read the quarterback and get a jump on the ball. I call it "football awareness."

Credit: NFL Game Rewind

In 2014, the Patriots showed some two-deep, but their core schemes focused on McCourty playing over the top. Think of Cover 1 (man-free) and Cover 3 (three-deep, four-under zone) with cornerbacks Darrelle Revis, Brandon Browner, Kyle Arrington, etc. funneling receivers inside.

I know that doesn’t sound complicated, but with McCourty’s ability to close down the middle of the field, the Patriots will once again have flexibility in the defensive game plan this season.

Plus, McCourty’s impact in the post gives the Patriots some creativity to set their matchups. That’s a big part of playing man-coverage in this league, and cornerbacks can aggressively challenge opposing receivers knowing McCourty is protecting them over the top. It starts at the snap, but with a free safety patrolling the middle, cornerbacks can sit low on the hip of the receiver, bait the quarterback and take some risks to go find the ball.

The Patriots' next step is to re-sign Revis. He’s a top-tier player at the cornerback position given his man-coverage skill set and the technique he consistently plays with. That’s some of the best tape out there to study for young defensive backs because he plays the position like a vet. He has the footwork, the eyes, hand placement on the jam and the hips. 

During the previous offseason, the Patriots added Revis and Browner—two cornerbacks with press-man skills—to pair with McCourty in the middle of the field. That gave New England the ability to play physical man-coverage underneath while dictating matchups across the board. Hey, it doesn’t get much better than that. Line up and play man.

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However, if Revis moves on, the Patriots can still play man-coverage in 2015 because of McCourty. He’s the key, the main factor when looking at this scheme and the importance of having a safety who can take away the middle of the field. Yes, it will always be a two-way-street with cornerbacks and safeties. They lean on each other to shut down opposing offenses. But the value of a safety over the top is something you just can't replace with a second-tier guy. 

When I look at the remaining veterans on the free-agent market at safety and a draft class coming in that lacks overall talent, getting McCourty back was a must for the Patriots given the defensive scheme they want to play as they defend their Super Bowl title.  

Finding a legit middle-of-the-field defender is hard, and there aren't many who have the same impact as McCourty. The Patriots made the right call here to bring their free safety back. 

Seven-year NFL veteran Matt Bowen is an NFL National Lead Writer for Bleacher Report.

Follow @MattBowen41