Is Malcolm Butler Ready to Make 2nd-Year Jump for New England Patriots?

Some NFL players will play 10 times as long as New England Patriots cornerback Malcolm Butler has played and will not build one-tenth of his legacy.

Butler went from undrafted rookie to regional hero with one goal-line interception that helped lift the Patriots to a 28-24 victory in Super Bowl XLIX. He was part of a parade through the city of Boston, had a T-shirt made in his honor and earned an ESPY nomination for Play of the Year. 

Those accolades might go to some players' heads, but Patriots head coach Bill Belichick told WEEI's Dale and Holley on Monday that Butler hasn't changed much from his first year to his second year: 

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I think he, as much as any player that I've been around, has really not changed very much from year one to year two. I think he's maintained his level of humility, his lifestyle, his sense of purpose. In a lot of ways, he acts like a rookie out there, like he's starting all over again. Which, in a lot of ways, that's the way it is for all of us. We're all starting all over again. I think Malcolm has had a real good perspective and has worked hard. He's had a good camp and I think he'll be ready to go.

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Butler has been undoubtedly the Patriots' best cornerback this summer in training camp. It seems like he makes a play on the ball every day in practice, whether it's a pass breakup or an interception. He was the defensive back who snagged Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's first interception of the summer. He made one of the most impressive plays of Patriots training camp with a one-handed interception off Brady on an attempt for wide receiver Josh Boyce over the middle.

But those are just two standout highlights in an impressive summer for Butler. The West Alabama product routinely gets his hand on the ball and denies completions to Brady and backup Jimmy Garoppolo alike. 

Of course, there are mountainous expectations on Butler—not the least of which is following up on his Super Bowl heroics. Butler is also being asked to replace the departed Darrelle Revis, widely regarded as one of the best man-to-man cover cornerbacks in the entire league. He may not be up to that level just yet, but he's far and away the closest thing the Patriots have to a legitimate No. 1 cornerback. 

The coaches seem to agree, but it's not just Belichick's words that are speaking volumes: his actions are speaking louder.

Butler played just one defensive series (15 snaps) against the Green Bay Packers in the preseason opener, and yielded only one 10-yard reception on three passes thrown his way, according to Pro Football Focus. The one time Butler allowed a catch, the second-year cornerback was right there to put a heavy lick on the receiver.  

Make no mistake; Butler has yielded his share of completions this summer, but so does every cornerback. The true measure of greatness at the cornerback position is whether a player can bounce back from those bad plays and keep his confidence to make a play the next time around. 

"You got to have confidence to play defensive back," Butler said. "That's not being a butthole or anything like that, bragging or anything. But you got to have confidence to play defensive back."

Belichick has often spoke about the importance of making a jump from the first year to the second year of a player's NFL career. The main reason is that those players not only have a deeper understanding of life in the NFL, of the playbook and of their role with the team, but they also get a full offseason to work with the strength and conditioning coaches.

"It's a great opportunity for them to take a year of experience in the NFL—a shortened version of it by the time they actually get here in May—and take that year of experience and have that as a base to build on [in] year two, which they obviously don’t have the first year," he said. "So, it's a huge advantage. There is a lot more physical training that they can do, and they are at least further ahead in the mental game, and they also know what to expect, so there's a little bit less anxiety of the unknown."

Butler might still have a rookie's approach to training camp with his insatiable hunger to make plays, but he is just as, if not more important to the defense as any veteran.

Unless otherwise noted, all practice observations, game notes and quotes obtained first-hand.