Jason McCourty Signing With Dolphins
BOSTON (CBS) -- The McCourty twins are breaking up. On the field, anyway.
Veteran cornerback Jason McCourty is signing as a free agent with the Miami Dolphins, according to Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network. Ian Rapoport added that McCourty will be signing a one-year deal with the Dolphins.
It's a 1-year deal for the leader in the secondary. https://t.co/G7nf4djIJx
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 6, 2021
McCourty, who will turn 34 in August, played in Brian Flores' defense in New England in 2018, when the Patriots won the Super Bowl by holding the Rams to just three points. That game famously included McCourty rushing to the back of the end zone to break up a would-be touchdown pass from Jared Goff to Brandin Cooks.
Per @NextGenStats Jason McCourty was 19.2 (!!!) yards away from Brandin Cooks when Jared Goff released this pass pic.twitter.com/krJDeZoNtV
— Ian Hartitz (@Ihartitz) February 5, 2019
With Flores entering his third year as the head coach of the Dolphins, he's calling upon a reliable veteran to help in his secondary.
McCourty was on the field for 80 percent of New England's defensive snaps that season. That number dropped to 47 percent in 2019, when he missed four games, and he played just 65 percent of the team's defensive snaps in 2020. He recorded 42 total tackles -- 30 solo tackles -- with three passes defensed last season.
Lucky to have enjoyed three seasons of double the @McCourtyTwins.
— New England Patriots (@Patriots) May 7, 2021
Thank you for everything, JMac. pic.twitter.com/1L8hr2vOPb
The move to Miami ends a three-year run of Jason sharing a secondary with twin brother Devin. The longtime Patriots captain reacted to the signing with a tweet of his child looking rather upset, along with the caption, "Me seeing the news!!"
The Patriots initially acquired Jason via trade with Cleveland in 2018. He signed a two-year contract after that Super Bowl victory.