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Friday free-for-all: Captain Devin McCourty and Nate Solder is confident 09.07.12 at 11:31 pm ET
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Devin McCourty enters his third NFL season on Sunday, his first as Patriots captain. (Mike Petraglia/WEEI.com)

FOXBORO — Leadership is something that’s not taken for granted with the Patriots, nor is it bestowed lightly.

So when Devin McCourty was honored on Thursday as one of six team captains, he was humbled that his teammates felt he had what it takes in his third NFL season to lead the Patriots defense on the field.

“It’s an honor,” McCourty said Friday. “Whenever you can get voted by a bunch of your peers and your teammates as someone they feel is a leader. I think it’s an honor and I’m just going to try and do my duties and be a leader for these guys.”

McCourty joins Vince Wilfork and Jerod Mayo as captains on defense while Tom Brady and Logan Mankins are offensive captains and Matthew Slater rounds out the captains for the 2012 Patriots on special teams.

“Just trying to do whatever I think the team needs,” McCourty said. “I think we have some great leaders on this team so I think we’re just trying to feed off each other.”

McCourty has advice for the younger players, including the rookies, who will be making their NFL debut this Sunday.

“When you get out there on the field, the speed picks up a little more,” McCourty said. “I think the rookies will see it’s not as friendly. In the preseason, a lot of times you’re going against a lot of guys you went to school with, guys that are free agents get on teams. Once you start talking about each game matters, you get in the regular season and guys are really focused on just trying to win. I think the pace and the attitude changes a little bit.

“I’ve just been telling the guys to just remember that at the end of the day, it’s football. You’ve been playing football your whole life. It’s a bigger stage but it’s the next stage for you. Just be prepared and try to stay settled.”

Meanwhile, no one has faced more criticism in the preseason than left tackle Nate Solder. He knows he’s under the microscope, filling the shoes of the retiring Matt Light. He believes, in spite of the criticism and the rough games, he’s grown in  a positive way this preseason and is ready for the live bullets on Sunday in Nashville.

“For me, I think I learned a lot,” Solder said Friday, just 48 hours before the opener. “I certainly improved on some things and I have more to improve on definitely. My technique has come around a little bit. Understanding the schemes better, understanding the system better. It’s all kind of helped.

“We certainly have to all be working together, kind of see thing through the same eyes and play together. That’s a huge part of what we do. Certainly, I’m excited to play and ready to go.”

Read More: lex hilliard, Nate Solder, New England Patriots, nfl Print  |  Bark It Up!  |  Digg It
  • Johnny Spygate

    LOL.  I gave you that “Like”.  Cherish it.

  • Sicko

     BTW when was the last time a New York team was even IN the NBA finals let alone winning a championship?!? Yeah, must have been the same medical team that gave Arod 252 million HAHAHAHA.

  • old milton

    wow… The Celtics need rebounding so badly.  This will really hurt!! Let’s hope that the surgery is relatively non-invasive and that he is ready for next year.

  • Ric33

    If Danny doesn’t make any solid moves at the deadline he should get fired !!!!

  • Bruinman86

    Boy, what’s with the season ending injuries to the young players on this team the last few years???  Something in the water at the Garden???

  • Touchdowntony

    what move do you want the guy to make? honestly?  The only pieces I would give up are garnett and pierce.  Why get rid of any young talent.  The only way this team gets better this season going into next is if Pierce and Garnett (and I HATE saying this because I love them both) hang up the sneakers and retire.  

  • Dope Hunter

    John, do you have any dirty pictures of your wife?  If not, do you want to see some?

  • http://profiles.yahoo.com/u/ZVFM2HRNC5CTO2OUXD4XTX65O4 Dennis

     Weren’t there smoke signals about this before the draft? 

  • Madcapmusic06234

    How the frig did the Celtics miss this blunder

  • TIME TO EXPOSE FRAUDS.

    The nba draft is a c###shoot only once in a decade do you get a lebron james..The rest of the draft is like playing a game of roulette..Its not exact….I get such a laugh from the wanna be tough guys who leave comments thinking there tough. Or these people have issues that there girlfriend thinks tom brady is cute so they become the biggest anti pats fans or think there better than brady cause there girlfriend said they liked him. These people are also funny to read because there sore losers…The league did what they did for spygate..The pats rings are LEGIT..sorry….to make you cry…These people do not have say which means more than the league…If these people had evidence why didnt they go to the press….OH wait..there was none and the pats have 3 rings and have the best % since 2007…Some players like dan marino went to 1 bowl and lost…So it doesnt matter since spygate..A RING IS A RING AND THE LEAGUE SAYS ITS A RING…the nit wit non working stiff cant say other wise…..

    The CS have to look at other things..If they can get sull better than bring him back..Lets see what danny can do..Predictions are for vegas..not for a foureum…

    Cheers! nit-wits get your last word in…..lets see you make your self look iq deficient..in 3,2,1……..

    felt good to write back huh!! are all the voices in your head laughing….Lets hope..

    Because all of us in reality are laughing at anybody who brings up spygate and has a pic of brady on the ground…

     

  • Whats in the coffee?

    The Celtics Bruins and Pats all with serious injuries. Gronk Herandez Rondo Sullinger and two Bruins last night. There must be an injury flu.

  • HotMess

    Wow! I really thought they would give the Heat a run for their money but without Rondo and Sully on the boards. fuggedaboutit!

  • Anonymous

    Solid moves with what?  Is this one of these “let’s trade Bass for Gortat straight up” posts where we assume that the goal of the rest of the NBA teams is to help the C’s?  Maybe Cleveland will give us Irving for Terry, am I right?  

    I also like the idea of firing the GM who built a team that last won the Finals in 2008, last made the Finals in 2010, and last year was eliminated in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals.  Too funny.   

  • Whats in the coffee

    Look at Superman Howard with his body is breaking down. Hopefully the operation cleans it up and probably this was the longterm plan from the get go.

  • Bruce

    then $325 million

  • Old Time Hockey

    who the hell is he going to trade. he’s two best assets just got hurt. 

  • Enough Said

    Wow, who decided to give you access to a computer today? Your mom again?
    But seriously, I gotta run.  Have a great weekend and don’t worry about getting laid.  That’s still years away.
    Cheers!

  • Frozenrope26

    Bradley, Lee, Melo and our suddenly more attractive 1st rd pick are the only real assets left. And trading Lee along with Bradley in the same deal makes no sense. Ainge is truly stuck now, and this season is lost in limbo. May as well try to grab Kenyon Martin off the street and ride it out with the horse we’ve got. Can see an early shut down for Pierce and KG along about March considering the depth we have now. That Bradley, Sullinger, Lee, 1st round pick for Cousins and Evans deal I proposed recently looks a lot better now huh….

  • Lloyd Christmas

    Big Gulps huh? Welp…..see ya later!

  • redpats12

    Lets hope Sully comes back stronger and better. And lets hope Melo keeps on getting better. Trade Pierce I hate to say it, but we need to get younger and faster. It will also benefit Green to score more.  I wld keep Garnett only to help with melo and sully

  • jaypop

    Well not much we can do about Sully except say see you next year.  Now it’s truly time to see what Doc can do. Now is the time to sit that stiff Collins and see what Melo can do.  Celtics took over the claws to run the same defenses , so can’t say he doesn’t know the rotations. If Doc doesn’t play him because he’s young , Doc should go !!!

  • MrJournal

    the good news is that dwight howard would like to play for the celtics. who wouldn’t want to give up life in california for the nice weather out here ???  ahahahahahahaaa – like the sox, the celtics have no future. boston – the city of chumpians.  aahahahahahhahha.

  • DAPATS

    I thought you died……too bad maybe tomorrow…..

  • Nate

     Surgeries Suck,  I hope that everything goes well and Jared will bounce back quickly.  I’ve had three since 1997 for heart valve replacement surgeries twice and a pacemaker and I really hope it goes well for you Jared. 

    J Spygate needs to just drop dead like the piece of S that she really is!

  • otis

     jeezus. surprised the sox havent signed you to a mulit year deal

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