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FOXBOROUGH – New England Patriots safety and captain Devin McCourty is supportive of his teammates, but he doesn't want to parent them.
The Patriots' 33-14 loss to the Chicago Bears might have put a damper on the moods of a lot of their players, specifically Mac Jones. The second-year quarterback struggled in his return from a three-game absence due to an ankle injury. He completed just three of the six passes he threw for 16 yards. As the Patriots went three-and-out on his first two drives, Jones was booed and Patriots fans were cheering for his backup, Bailey Zappe, to come into the game.
Jones ended up being replaced by Zappe after he threw an interception on his third drive of the game. McCourty was asked Wednesday if he felt like he had to lift his teammates' spirits up following a situation and a loss like that. The 13-year vet kept things in perspective.
“I’m a dad, so I do that with my kids. I really don’t come to work to pat guys on the back and say, ‘Come on, buddy,’ ” McCourty said Wednesday. “We don’t really have guys that walk around and act like the world is falling. We’re all doing pretty well in here, we get to play football. All of us have played with a ton of guys who would dream to be in this position.
“Sometimes you help a guy out who may have some personal issues going on. You’ve got guys with newborn babies who might be a little bit tired, but I don’t think the world is crashing down on nobody. We’re not running this huge daycare of like, ‘Buddy took my favorite toy and now I'm mad, can you get me a new toy?'”
McCourty doesn't see the Patriots' locker room falling into shambles due to the quarterback controversy, either, saying that every player knows they've got to focus on themselves.
“We don't have divisions, so hopefully we can go play,” Devin McCourty said. “Honestly, I see this sport as a professional business. If your job is to play quarterback, you need to prepare to play quarterback. If your job isn't to play quarterback, you need to do what you need to do at whatever it is, whether it's a receiver, an offensive lineman, a linebacker, a secondary guy, a safety, or a corner. If you're complaining about who's playing quarterback, then we've got more trouble than who's actually playing quarterback.”
Devin McCourty: “We don’t have time to feel sorry for oursleves.”#Patriots pic.twitter.com/jRqRWc9Np4
— Conor Roche (@ConorRoche27) October 26, 2022
The Patriots certainly had issues beyond quarterback on Monday. Their offensive line played poorly, with left tackle Trent Brown being called for four penalties. The ground game never got going as Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson combined for just 47 yards on 14 carries.
Defensively, the Patriots got ran all over as the Bears rushed 243 yards. Chicago also had seven scoring drives and went 11-for-18 on third-down conversions.
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After a performance like that, McCourty said that every player should focus on themselves because no one played well enough for New England to win.
McCourty: “I don’t see people in the locker room acting like the world is coming down” when asked if he feels he has to encourage players#Patriots
— Conor Roche (@ConorRoche27) October 26, 2022
“When you turn on the film from Monday night, I don't think anybody played particularly well,” McCourty said. “You guys watched the game. I don't think you guys watched the game and walked away from it saying ‘If everybody would've played like this guy, they would've won.' If there was a guy, I would love to know. But overall, I'd say it didn't go well for anyone. So, I think we should focus on that and play better and the quarterback situation will be sorted out by the head coach and however he sees fit and we'll go out and play.”
McCourty also said that players on the team need to recognize the reality of the situation the Patriots are in and can't rest on past laurels.
“I think, no matter what, you have to take responsibility when things don't go that well,” McCourty said. “We're 3-4. I'd say, out of seven games, it hasn't gone well. If you're going to say ‘that's not us,' well, that's more us in the four losses than the three wins because four's more than three. We have to take responsibility for our play as individuals, our play as defense, offense, special teams, and overall as a team. That's coaches, players and everybody. That's how you improve.
“If everybody in the locker room comes in after a game like that and says ‘That's just not me, I'll be good.' Then like, you'll probably do the same thing next week. It just leads to more and more inconsistency.”
Breaking news for Week 8: Patriots QB Mac Jones took about 90% of the first teams reps in practice today and will start for the team on Sunday against the Jets, per source. pic.twitter.com/Gc2js6YabK
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) October 26, 2022
Devin McCourty and the Patriots will have a chance to get back on the right track on Sunday when they face the 5-2 New York Jets as Jones will reportedly start.
