Devin McCourty Contract Proves Patriots Willing to Pay Top Dollar for Top Talent

The New England Patriots' unwillingness to pay top players is a story again after they failed to give cornerback Darrelle Revis the top dollar he needed—the top dollar he deserved—to play in Foxborough for years to come.

It's not a popular opinion that the Patriots are, indeed, willing to pay top dollar for top talent. It's about as popular an opinion as the belief that the Moon landing was staged. Yet anyone defending the Patriots' philosophy will get the same side-eyed look as if they had just disparaged the accomplishments of Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin. 

But the proof is right there on paper with the big contract being handed to safety Devin McCourty—a whopping five-year, $47.5 million deal with $22 million guaranteed, according to CBS Sports' Joel Corry (h/t OverTheCap.com) for one of the best safeties in the league. 

You can argue whether the Patriots were wise to invest their money in McCourty instead of Revis—though it's a more debatable subject than you may think—but one thing you cannot dispute is that the Patriots can pony up the cash when they want to.

The operative phrase: when they want to.

Player	Revis	McCourty
Years	5	5
Total $	$70,000,000	$47,500,000
Guaranteed $	$39,000,000	$22,000,000
Age at end of deal	34	31

Why wouldn't they want to sign Revis? Why would they instead sign McCourty? A five-year contract for a 27-year-old safety seems like a more promising investment than a five-year contract for a 30-year-old cornerback. The Patriots will have McCourty from 27-31 years old; the Jets will have Revis from 30-34 years old. 

Year after year, the Patriots make these decisions. Year after year, they are crucified for them. And year after year, they end up being right: Aqib Tallib, Wes Welker, Asante Samuel, Adam Vinatieri, Deion Branch; the list goes on, and so do the Patriots. The Patriots bet on themselves, and they win nearly every time. 

They often make the right decisions not only when it comes to who they allow to walk away, but also in who they choose to retain. Key cogs like Vince Wilfork, Logan Mankins, Jerod Mayo, Rob Ninkovich, Sebastian Vollmer, Rob Gronkowski and others have been kept in the fold with contract extensions. 

You can debate how often the Patriots get it right when they bring in free agents from the outside, but their success rate when it comes to evaluating their own talent is impeccable.

If they think McCourty is worth that kind of money, to their defense, that's probably because he is. 

"

Impact players at FS are hard to find. I would pay big money for Devin McCourty. Post at B/R: http://t.co/Vp9gHHPpuZ pic.twitter.com/zGT5Qep10N

— Matt Bowen (@MattBowen41) March 8, 2015"

McCourty's value is apparent both on and off the field. He is one of the best free safeties in the league and also a team captain of the past two seasons. The release of Wilfork and a looming contract discussion with Mayo are both threats to the Patriots' locker room leadership structure. 

Not only that, but his value to their ever-changing defensive scheme is immense. The Patriots' defensive scheme changes week to week, quarter to quarter—sometimes even series to series. He has been trusted with the leadership responsibilities on the back end of the defense, helping his teammates get lined up and making the checks to get everyone in the right play to defend whatever is coming.

The Patriots didn't pay Revis as much as the Jets would, but they also didn't have as much money to spare. They chose to pay someone, and they chose McCourty. Whether they chose right, we'll only find out in the coming seasons.