Devin McCourty (AP)

FOXBORO — Almost overnight, the 24-year-old Devin McCourty — with just 23 NFL starts under his belt — has become the senior cornerback in the Patriots’ system. No current member of the Patriots secondary has more starts under his belt in New England than the Rutgers product.

The Patriots have had several shifting parts at corner over the last year, with the departures of Leigh Bodden and Darius Butler and the additions of Antuwan Molden and Phillip Adams. And while Kyle Arrington and Pat Chung have played more games as a pro, it’s McCourty who has the most experience as a starter of any defensive back in the New England system.

But it’s not like McCourty sits around pining for the days when he was part of a group that included Bodden and Butler, as well as safeties Brandon Meriweather and James Sanders, both of whom were released before the start of the season.

“I mean, I still talk to those guys so I know where they are,” he said Thursday when asked about his former teammates. “I think our focus right now is just getting better and at times we’re making strides in that and at times we’re falling a little short. I think our goal is to keep getting better and be more consistent.”

After all the moves, McCourty said the defensive backs that remain have learned to manage all the change that’s taken place.

“You just keep playing,” he said. “You have to really value those reps when you’re out there on the practice field. When we’re in the meeting rooms, we’re communicating with guys and that’s where you build that trust and communication on the field — you build it in meeting rooms and walkthroughs. We really just emphasize communicating in the walkthroughs and meetings.”

The Patriots’ appeared to struggle in pass defense Sunday against the Steelers, yielding 365 yards to Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. New England is last in the league against the pass, allowing an average of 323.1 yards per game. But for his part, McCourty remains optimistic about the rest of the season.

“I think our outlook is really that we’re going to get better,” he said. “We really don’t worry about what everybody else says. We’re just trying to get better and we’re trying to do it as soon as possible. When we go out there today we’re going to have that urgency at practice to get better. [We’re] trying to make sure it keeps coming over on Sundays, not just for a week, not for two weeks but that we can be consistent stringing each game together.”

After a strong 2009, Leigh Bodden did not live up to his four-year, $22 million contract extension with the Patriots. (AP)

The Leigh Bodden era in New England started strong but ultimately fizzled as the cornerback struggled to reclaim the form that made him one of the league’s most sought-after defensive backs in free agency 20 months ago.

Signed as an undrafted free agent out of Duquesne by the Browns in 2003, Bodden bounced around the league before signing a one-year deal with New England prior to the 2009 season. That year, he was a pleasant surprise, starting 14 of 15 games, leading the team with 19 passes defensed and tying for the team lead with five interceptions. On the strength of that performance, he entered free agency as one of the most desirable corners on the market. After a brief look at some other options (including the Texans), he re-signed with the Patriots, inking a four-year, $22.03 million extension.

However, he injured his shoulder the following summer and spent all of 2010 on injured reserve. This season, even after the Patriots decided to move on from Darius Butler, the 30-year-old Bodden spent a lot of time in the slot and struggled to stay on the field because of injury — officially, he was limited in practice on Thursday because of a recurring thumb injury. According to Pro Football Focus, in five games as the team’s primary nickel corner, Bodden had been thrown at 22 times this year and allowed 12 receptions and one touchdown. He has four passes defensed and has played 222 snaps for the Patriots.

Overall, the 6-foot-1, 193-pound cornerback has 362 tackles and 18 interceptions during his 95-game career with the Browns (2003-07), Lions (2008) and Patriots.

The Patriots now have five corners on their roster: Devin McCourty, Kyle Arrington, Ras-I Dowling, Antuwan Molden and Phillip Adams. While the move won’t affect McCourty and Arrington (the two likely will continue to serve as the primary starters at corner), at first glance the move means an increased workload for Dowling, a youngster who has struggled to see the field over the course of his first season in the league. Through six weeks he’s played just 93 snaps, none of them since a Week 2 win over the Chargers. Molden also is expected to benefit from the move and get more opportunities.

In addition, New England has three players eligible to come off the physically unable to perform list in Kevin Faulk, Ron Brace and Brandon Deaderick. The release of Bodden could free up a roster spot for one of them.

As for Bodden (who is making a base salary of $3.9 million each of the next two seasons), he will be exposed to waivers. Any team that claims his contract will be on the hook for just over $2 million in base salary that remains for this season.

Devin McCourty is not yet ready to be ranked among the NFL's elite defensive backs. (AP)

With the Patriots off this week, we’ve got our Bye-Week Breakdown, a position-by-position look at the Patriots at the six-week mark. We’ve already examined every one of the offensive positions so far, as well as the defensive line and linebackers. Now, we take a look at the defensive backs.

Depth chart: Devin McCourty, Leigh Bodden, Kyle Arrington, Antuwan Molden, Ras-I Dowling, Patrick Chung, James Ihedigbo, Josh Barrett, Sergio Brown. (In addition, Phillip Adams and Ross Ventrone have been on and off the roster from the practice squad.)

Overview: The secondary has had lots of movement since the start of camp — notables like Darius Butler, James Sanders and Brandon Meriweather are gone, and as the new faces have played together there have been plenty of rough patches. However, it appears that the Patriots have played more zone coverage the last couple of weeks, which may be the reason we’ve seen more improvement in the secondary.

After a stellar rookie season, McCourty has been targeted a lot through the first six weeks of his second season (check out the stats below) and while he has been physical and competitive on most occasions, he’s clearly not ready to take that next step into elite status just yet. While Bodden and Dowling have been hampered by injury and Molden remains a part-time player, the real find this season has been Arrington. The Hofstra product had always been a quality nickel corner with good physical skills, but he’s made a big leap forward this year, so much so he was leading the league in picks through six weeks with four.

At safety, Chung remains a stable and reliable presence. However, the Patriots are still seeking consistency opposite him. Barrett and Brown have struggled, but Ihedigbo has played well the last two weeks. Against the Jets and Cowboys, Ihedigbo has been slotted next to Chung (the UMass product has missed only five snaps the last two games) and appeared to mostly hold his own. It remains a question as to whether or not he’s a long-term answer at the spot, but he appears to be the safest bet at the position in the coming weeks.

Best moment: Arrington had a pair of picks in the loss to Buffalo, probably the finest moment of the season for an occasionally group of beleaguered defensive backs.
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Darius Butler has his sights set on Carolina after his Patriots release.

FOXBORO — The release on Wednesday morning of 2009 second-round pick Darius Butler came as a surprise to some.

But if you thought Bill Belichick and the Patriots would hold on to a player simply because of where they were drafted in a particular year, think again.

With Butler in mind, Belichick was asked if it stings more when you have to part with a player you drafted highly as opposed to parting with an undrafted free agent?

“We have a saying around here – ‘it doesn’t matter how you get here, it’s what you do here.’ I think that’s the way I think we should coach the team and I think that’s what the players expect,” Belichick said. “That goes for everybody.”

Butler looked a lot like Devin McCourty in 2009 when – as a rookie out of Connecticut – he had three interceptions, including returning one for touchdown. He also had 33 solo tackles in 14 games. But last year, his numbers dropped sharply as he had just 22 tackles and no interceptions in 15 games. And while showing glimpses in camp and four preseason games, his stock had clearly dropped.

“We made the decision we felt was best for the football team,” Belichick said. “[We] try to put together the most competitive team we can. Obviously there are players that aren’t on this team that are good players and they were good players for us and I’m sure they’ll play for somebody else. But we have to make the decisions we feel are best for our football team so that’s what we do.

“Nobody is on a scholarship – everybody has to earn their keep,” Belichick said of the corner who was picked up off waivers by Carolina. “It’s a competitive situation – I think that brings out the best in everybody. [It] brings out the best in guys that are established that they’re being pushed, it brings out the best from guys who aren’t established who know they have an opportunity. Competition is competition. That’s just basing on what the performance is – all that is decided on the field.”

Speaking of another player not currently on the Patriots roster, Belichick was asked about the rumors floating out there that Randy Moss would “un-retire” and return to the Patriots if Belichick wanted him. Has he had any contact with Moss or entertained the thought of bringing him back at any point?

“I wouldn’t talk about any player that’s not on our football team,” Belichick said.

With Moss, the question might not be so much how he gets to Foxboro but if there’s a place for him at all. The answer is still “no” – for now.

Antuwan Molden (AP)

FOXBORO — It’s been a busy week for cornerback Antwaun Molden.

Last Wednesday, the Patriots claimed Molden off waivers from Houston, and he was on a plane to New England that night. He landed shortly after midnight on Sept. 1, and less than 18 hours later, he was on the field for the Patriots playing significant snaps at cornerback in the preseason finale against the Giants.

“It was a crazy experience — I’ve never experienced anything like it,” the 26-year-old Molden said. “That’s my first time being on waivers. But at the end of the day, it was a blessing. I was prepared. I was in shape. Again, it was definitely a blessing for me in that I still had a chance to come out here and compete. Especially being picked off the waiver wire that quick.”

“He’s a big corner,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said after the game, when asked what the Patriots liked in Molden. “He’s an athletic guy who can run, and he plays in the kicking game.”

A veteran of three NFL seasons with Houston, he originally joined the Texans as a third round (79th overall) pick out of Eastern Kentucky in 2008. Molden has played in 31 NFL games, mainly on special teams, and struggled with injuries over the course of his career with Houston. He has registered 26 special teams, including 19 special teams as a rookie in 2008.

Over the last two weeks, the New England secondary has been a constantly fluid situation — on Tuesday, the Patriots cut cornerback Darius Butler, and now, Molden is likely competing with rookie Ras-I Dowling for the role of backup corner. (He could get his chance sooner rather than later if the strain that Kyle Arrington suffered in the preseason finale is serious at all.)

The 6-foot-1, 198-pounder, who will wear No. 27, spent cutdown weekend watching film and trying to pick up as much of the New England defense as possible.

“Yeah, most definitely — anytime you come in behind like that, it’s definitely a rush to get up to speed, to get acclimated to the system,” he said. “Just handling each and every bit of information that I get, I’m just taking my time and trying to study it so nothing does come at me as a surprise. That’s the biggest challenge.”

Brandon Tate (AP)

A day full of intriguing personnel moves got even more interesting when the Patriots reportedly made the move to release wide receiver Brandon Tate, according to Pro Football Talk.

The 23-year-old Tate, a 6-foot-1, 195-pounder, was a third-round pick of the Patriots in 2009, and did emerge as something of a deep threat and valued special teamer (he returned a pair of kicks for touchdowns last year, one 103 yards and another 97 yards). However, he never really appeared secure as a wide receiver, and struggled this preseason — he was sidelined for much of camp, and certainly didn’t appear to be the same player who was one of the best kick returners in the league over the first half of the season.

Going forward, the Patriots have tried several different options at kick returner, a position they have struggled with since Ellis Hobbs was traded to Philadelphia prior to the start of the 2009 season. Julian Edelman and Darius Butler remain possibilities at that spot — both of them saw time there over the course of the preseason. It was a topic that Patriots coach Bill Belichick addressed on a Friday conference call with reporters.

“We have a number of guys that have done it on this team, so I’m sure it will be somebody from that group,” Belichick said on Friday. “We just have to figure out how it all fits together in terms of our game day roster and how we want to break those responsibilities up — for not only who can do it, but how to divide the responsibilities up for the game so that we give everybody, hopefully, a good role and try not to overload any one individual with too much stuff.”

FOXBORO — Leigh Bodden had to watch from afar last year as rookie Devin McCourty had one of the best seasons ever by a rookie cornerback in NFL history. Now, after rehabbing from surgery on a torn rotator cuff, he gets the chance to work with him on the field and in games.

Bodden signed with the Patriots before the 2009 season and had a big impact, starting 14 of 15 games played, with five picks and two fumble recoveries. He was considered one of the more reliable corners in the Patriots secondary and earned a starting role at the all-important right corner position.

Then he hurt himself in the preseason last year and missed the entire 2010 season. He had surgery and was essentially limited to tweeting his progress and how much he missed his Patriots teammates.

“I’m definitely rejuvenated. I’m just glad to be back out here. I’m ready to go, 100 percent. All I can do is keep going, put a good Leigh Bodden out there and just try to stay healthy.”

While not referencing McCourty directly, he clearly is excited about getting the chance to be one of the senior members of the Patriots secondary – along with James Sanders – and help bring along rookie Ras-I Dowling and third-year players Darius Butler and Kyle Arrington. Read the rest of this entry »