Devin McCourty suggests Patriots might be better off tanking for a top pick

BOSTON -- A lot has changed for the New England Patriots. They went from playing in the AFC Championship Game every year, to milling around near .500, to now losing in blowout fashion in back-to-back weeks to drop to 1-4.

It's ugly. And for the recently retired Devin McCourty, it's a lot to try to grasp.

Now an analyst for Sunday Night Football's studio coverage, McCourty was asked to try to explain what's going on with his former team after the most recent 34-0 beating from the Saints. What he said is something that hasn't been considered for a Bill Belichick-coached team in a long, long time.

"I don't know where they turn to try to find answers to turn this season around. Their best bet might be tank it -- or whatever you want to call it -- and get a great draft pick," McCourty said.

Of course, the Patriots may be unintentionally tanking at the moment anyway, as evidenced by their 1-4 record, with that lone win coming by a narrow margin against the underwhelming Jets. But hearing that message from a player who was the emotional leader and captain of the defense for so long is nevertheless a bit jarring.

Like many fans watching the game, McCourty seemed to have been perturbed to see the Patriots punting instead of going for it on a fourth-and-3 at the Saints' 40-yard line while trailing by 24-0. In McCourty's eyes, that looked like a play where Bill Belichick was just trying to keep the score somewhat respectable instead of letting it fully slip away.

"I think the frustrating thing is everyone wants New England to win. If you in the New England area, it's all about Super Bowls. That's been the talk," McCourty said. "I played here 13 years, and it was all about, 'I don't care how many playoff games you win. Are you going to win the Super Bowl?' This team now is ... Are we going to win, or are we going to just keep the game within two scores? And I think that's the struggle right now."

McCourty didn't pinpoint Mac Jones as the biggest issue on the Patriots, but he did suggest that a quarterback change could spark some energy from a team that needs a lift.

"I don't know if that kind of re-energizes a team and they play better ball," McCourty said of a potential switch to Bailey Zappe. "But they've gotta try to do something."

Later on Sunday Night Football coverage, fellow former Patriots safety Rodney Harrison weighed in on the matter.

"These young players, they're not listening to Coach Belichick. They don't really understand the Patriot Way. It's really foreign to them," Harrison said. "Because Coach Belichick hasn't forgotten how to coach. But when you start looking at their team, I don't think it's just a great, talented team. Offensively, you look at the quarterback, he's lost his confidence. The offensive line -- I'm being nice when I say they're average. And they just don't have a run game. They don't have a number one receiver. It's just so many issues they have, and on the defensive side of the ball, they're hurt."

Harrison added: "It's just a bad football team. As much as we're used to the Patriots winning Super Bowls, making the playoffs ... this is just a bad football team."

During their days as team captains, McCourty and Harrison were instructed to tune out the outside noise. Things have gotten so bad in Foxboro, though, that the two have no other choice but to add to that ever-growing din.