Belichick heaps praise on McCourty, Slater after win vs. Dolphins originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Sunday's win over the Miami Dolphins was bittersweet for Devin McCourty and Matthew Slater.
The New England Patriots team captains may have played their final game at Gillette Stadium. While they haven't officially announced their retirement from football, both McCourty and Slater have acknowledged the possibility that this season will be their last.
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Patriots-Dolphins takeaways: Defense remains Pats' saving grace
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After the game, Bill Belichick took a moment to reflect on how much the two veterans have meant to him and the organization.
"Devin has done about everything a player could do for this program. And you could say the same thing about Matt Slater in the kicking game," Belichick said. "I don't know if there's ever been or ever going to be a better player than Matt Slater as an overall special teams player, and the leadership he's brought to the team along with Devin. Devin came in as a corner, went to the Pro Bowl, moved to safety, led the defense at the safety position from his second year on.
"His off-the-field leadership, on-the-field leadership is superior and as good as anybody I've ever coached at that position. He does everything right, he's done everything right since he's been here. He knows the line calls, he knows the defense inside and out. And he has total respect from everybody because of his preparation and his unselfish play. The same thing for Slater. What those two guys have done, what they mean to this organization, what they mean to me personally, what they've done here is pretty impressive. Pretty elite."
Certainly some high praise from the Patriots head coach, who has spent more than half of his tenure in New England coaching McCourty and Slater.
Though McCourty hasn't yet made a decision on his NFL future, he made sure to take it all in knowing that Sunday may have marked the end of an era.
“I took a moment. I’ll spend some time with my family on the field," McCourty said. "I’d be lying if I said I didn’t think about it before the game."
If it indeed was McCourty and Slater's final game in Foxboro, they ended on a high note. The Patriots' victory kept their playoff hopes alive heading into next week's regular-season finale against the Buffalo Bills.
