When the Patriots report to training camp, there will be one big difference from the past 13 years.
Safety Devin McCourty will not be with the team. McCourty retired after the end of the 2022 season and will be working for NBC rather than leading the secondary in New England, which former teammate Adrian Phillips calls a “big void to fill” this season.
Phillips will be joined by Kyle Dugger at safety this season and both players said this week that filling that void won’t be accomplished by simply sliding players into new spots on the depth chart.
“You can’t just replace a guy like Devin,” Dugger said, via Christopher Price of the Boston Globe. “We’re just going to have to make sure we’re communicating and talking. Communication will be important and help tremendously.”
Phillips said the Patriots “don’t have to reincarnate” McCourty as they move toward the 2023 season, but it will definitely be an adjustment to play without someone who has been a fixture in New England for many years.
